Before lockdown started, my office was at the home of Doncaster Rovers and Doncaster Rugby League Club – The Dons. It’s exciting working in a football stadium: you never know who you might bump into.
I am the finance function for two Doncaster-based charities: Club Doncaster Foundation and Expect Youth, which provide sport-based activities to the surrounding area. I do everything from paying staff wages and expenses to producing monthly management accounts and cashflow forecasts. I find working for the not-for-profit sector incredibly rewarding.
If anything positive comes out of the pandemic, it’s that businesses have realised that home working isn’t at the expense of productivity
Covid-19 has brought challenges to both charities. As some delivery has paused, so have those sources of funding, and with an uncertain future ahead of us it becomes difficult to forecast incomings and outgoings.
The charities have been able to adapt in some areas and responded fantastically by providing live online fitness and workout sessions, digital resources for schools, and online learning for Club Doncaster Sports College students. Staff have also distributed care packages to people who are feeling particularly isolated or lonely.
Over the past year I have been forced to change how I work. However, this hasn’t been all negative. I have two young children so I’ve welcomed being able to work flexibly around school and nursery – something I wasn’t able to do before. If anything positive comes out of the pandemic, it’s that businesses have realised they can facilitate home working and it won’t be at the expense of productivity.
I had an incredibly supportive manager in a previous job: it made me feel like a valued member of the team and want to work harder. My biggest achievement was becoming management accountant for the National Lead Force for Fraud at the City of London Police, managing grant income budgets in excess of £14m per year.
Gaining the ACCA Qualification opened doors to higher salaried jobs and promotions. It meant I had no problems finding a new job when relocating to South Yorkshire. It enables me to access a huge bank of CPD resources over a wide range of subjects, as well as various networks.
My two young daughters take up most of my spare time and keep me on my toes! I love reading novels and recently discovered a passion for interior design.
