Accounts Assistant

Accounts Assistant
Salary: up to £32,000 (depending on experience)
Location: office based (SO16 0BT)
Hours of work: 35 hours (Mon – Fri)
Holiday: 25 days (plus bank holidays)
Are you an organised and detail-driven Accounts Assistant who thrives in a fast-paced business environment, building strong relationships, and ensuring financial processes run smoothly?
At Essco, we're looking for a proactive Accounts Assistant to join our team in Southampton. Reporting directly to the Financial Controller, you'll play a key role in supporting the financial health of the business through effective management of accounts receivable, accounts payable, reconciliations, reporting, and credit control.
You'll be involved in a broad range of finance activities, including:
Accounts Receivable & Credit Control
* Raising and issuing customer invoices accurately and promptly
* Monitoring outstanding debt and following up on overdue accounts
* Processing customer payments and resolving payment queries
* Negotiating payment plans and helping maintain debtor days below 90 days
Accounts Payable
* Processing supplier invoices and credit notes
* Matching invoices against purchase orders
* Managing supplier payment runs
* Reconciling supplier statements and investigating discrepancies
Financial Administration & Reporting
* Assisting with month-end reporting and management accounts preparation
* Supporting accruals and prepayment journals
* Processing business expenses in line with company policy and HMRC guidelines
* Carrying out regular bank reconciliations and investigating variances
Audit & Compliance
* Supporting the annual financial audit process
* Completing credit checks for new account applications
* Maintaining accurate digital and paper filing systems
* Ensuring financial processes and procedures are consistently followed
Background
We’re looking for a confident finance professional with strong organisational skills and a passion for accuracy as well as:
* Experience managing sales and purchase ledgers
* Strong reconciliation experience (accounts, ledgers and bank accounts)
* Successful credit control experience with a proven ability to reduce debtor days
* Experience using accounting software
* Strong Microsoft Office skills, particularly Excel
* Excellent attention to detail
* Strong communication and relationship-building skills
* Ability to prioritise workloads and meet deadlines
* Self-motivated with a proactive approach
* A team player with commercial awareness
In return for your expertise and commitment, you'll benefit from:
* Supportive and collaborative working environment
* Opportunity to work closely with senior finance leadership
* Varied role with genuine responsibility and autonomy
* Opportunity to contribute to process improvements and business growth
This is an excellent opportunity to become a valued member of a collaborative team where your ideas, accuracy, and attention to detail will make a genuine difference.
Apply today to be considered for the role.
Equals One is an advertising and recruitment agency working on behalf of our client to promote this vacancy. You may be contacted directly by the employer should they wish to progress your application. Due to the number of applications we receive, we are unable to provide specific feedback if your application is unsuccessful