Specialist Recruitment - Maternity Cover

This is to provide Maternity Cover at Finance Business Partner Level; post will be vacant from February 2026. This extension is critical to maintaining financial stability during a period of significant organisational change. Previous attempts to secure temporary cover failed due to unsuitable candidates and candidates for short term roles not willing to wait whilst the lengthy vetting processes are undertaken, leaving key BAU and projects at risk. The proposed contractor offers an immediate, proven solution: they have successfully delivered in this role before, possess deep knowledge of our systems and processes, and bring impartiality essential for ongoing efficiency and continuous improvement initiatives. Approving this extension ensures continuity, mitigates operational risk, and safeguards delivery of strategic priorities without disruption. Contractor to be extended is Mike Davis who joined 19/05/25. Mike also was a contractor in Finance between September 24 and March 25. The cost of this post is related to maternity cover which is unavoidable but is managed within budget allocations for 2026/27. Failure to recruit or extend this post will result in the FBP team not being able to provide support for all the required BAU and project activity. This in the CFO view, will impact financial controls which underpin delivery of the Accounting Officers responsibilities.