Administration & Finance Assistant

Salary: £25,249 with progression to £26,707 per annum

Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits. We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.

Closing Date: 19 February 2026

The Role

Are you organised, proactive, and ready to make a real impact behind the scenes? We have an exciting opportunity to join Hospitality & Commercial Services as an Administration & Finance Assistant. This is a key role within a friendly, supportive commercial team at a University that values colleague development and invests in training.

You will play an essential part in the smooth running of back-office systems covering sales, customer service, purchasing, and finance. Working closely with Food & Beverage Managers, you’ll help deliver conferences, events, and retail services efficiently and professionally.

We’re looking for someone detail focused, enthusiastic, and eager to contribute to a collaborative team environment. Experience in hospitality or catering, particularly dealing with bookings, customer queries, and providing excellent customer service, is highly desirable. You should thrive on keeping things organised, supporting colleagues, and ensuring processes run smoothly.

This is a full-time, permanent position (37 hours per week), with the opportunity for blended working once your training and induction are complete.

How to Apply

Please submit your online application with a CV and a cover letter. Your cover letter should provide a detailed supporting statement showing how you meet the essential criteria below, with clear examples from your experience.

Please note that there will be a skills test as part of the interview process.

Informal enquiries are welcome. Please contact Victoria Odd at [email protected]

Key Accountabilities

• To coordinate, receive, process and administer all bookings via the Kinetics catering and events software for all event catering services to ensure financial control and exceptional customer service, timely payments and a robust audit trail


• To advise customers of choices appropriate to their events and up sell to maximise income where appropriate, using own judgement when to pass complex enquiries onto a Food & Beverage Manager


• To update the Kinetics catering system with correct prices and menus via the configuration part of this software as well as responding to requests for special items and prices


• To handle all customer issues and complaints, resolving the situation where appropriate and possible, passing on to a relevant manager should additional involvement or resolution be required


• To assist in the development of improvements to the customer ordering system and terms and conditions of the business as part of regular operational reviews


• To assist in the processing of all charges for HCS both to internal departments and external customers, ensuring that University Financial Regulations are adhered to


• Using the University computerised financial system (SAP) to raise sales invoices ensuring all VAT regulations are adhered to and that income is coded to correct cost centres


• To assist in the P2P procedure by being an Expert Buyer for the system providing purchase orders for itemised goods for HCS and to confirm receipt when delivered


• To assist in the updating and maintaining of the Saffron Stock Control system as directed by the Admin & Finance Team Leader


• To respond to queries and deal with bookings from the conference office


• To follow established ordering procedures with regard to stationery office supplies to ensure adequate resources are available to meet work requirements


• Process overtime and respond to queries from HCS colleagues


• Administer the absence process ensuring that information is recorded accurately


• Support HCS recruitment processes by using the University E-Recruitment system and working with the Management Team to organise the interviews, ensuring all administrative processes are completed to deadlines


• Ensure all Health & Safety documentation is updated and reviewed on a regular basis and filed correctly


• Provide meeting support where needed, including minute-taking and the management and distribution of supporting documentation


• Support the Service’s commitment to training and development by participating fully in training courses


• To identify, implement and maintain effective office procedures to ensure full support to the work of all HCS units and as directed by the Admin & Finance Team Leader

The Person

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Relevant work experience in an administrative or customer service setting


• Proficient IT skills, with experience using the Microsoft Office suite


• Must be able to work accurately and pay attention to detail


• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to tailor messages for different audiences


• Planning, organisational and numerical skills


• Ability to work to tight deadlines


• Good oral/written communication skills


• A flexible, adaptable approach to workload and stakeholders, with a strong commitment to delivering excellent customer service


• Ability to work independently as well as collaboratively within a team


• Relevant work experience in a Hospitality or Catering environment (Desirable)


• Knowledge or experience of using University Systems e.g. Kinetics, SAP, Saffron Stock Control (Desirable)

Attributes and Behaviour

• Gets involved with team tasks


• Keeps other team members up to date with programme


• Talks about other team members in a positive way


• Ensures that all activities are completed on time


• Works in a planned and structured way


• Uses own and others’ time effectively


• Keeps an open mind to alternative ways of doing things


• Looks at overcoming obstacles rather than coming to a standstill


• Uses initiative to sort things out


• Pays attention to detail


• Strives to deliver high quality results


• Is enthusiastic in getting job done on time

Qualifications

• Academic or vocational qualification to GCSE (A-C)/NVQ level 2, including Maths and English

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect.  As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution.

We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society.  We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent.  We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population.

At Newcastle University we hold a Gold Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality.  We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC.  We are a Disability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme.

In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe. 

Requisition ID: 29065