The career opportunities in the public sector are vast, with finance roles on offer across numerous organisations. I’ve earned two promotions in the civil service within a relatively short period of time. I have worked as a financial accountant for the Office for Nuclear Regulation, been promoted to a tax specialist within the Ministry of Justice, and was recently promoted again to be a tax manager for the Home Office.
You could say that I ‘fell into’ accountancy. After graduating from the University of Birmingham with a BSc in Psychology, I got an opportunity to relocate to Aberdeen, where I worked in the payroll department of a recruitment agency. This gave me a real insight into finance. I then came back home to Liverpool and worked with a local accountancy firm. I decided to study a book-keeping qualification to learn more about finance and then studied AAT at night school.
A turning point came when a new manager joined our team who had recently completed the ACCA qualification. She was impressive, knowledgeable and inspiring, and I wanted to be just like her – so I started my ACCA studies. After staying with the same firm for 13 years, I moved into the civil service in 2020.
The biggest difference between my previous role in practice and the civil service is the scale. At the firm I was looking after the accounts and tax affairs of small companies, where I had the financial oversight of everything concerning those businesses. At the Home Office, the department’s annual expenditure is around £20bn and it has 50,000 employees delivering vital public services. I’m a small cog in a very big wheel.
When delivering a presentation, I remind myself that I’m the subject matter expert in the room
What I enjoy most is the people. The tax community in the public sector is small, so I really like engaging with fellow tax professionals across the various departments and sharing best practice.
My favourite saying is coined by Canadian ice hockey player Wayne Gretzky: ‘You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.’ It really strikes a chord with me, especially when I’m doubting myself about applying for that next promotion.
As an introvert, I struggle with small talk. I find speaking up in groups of people challenging, so getting my point across in meetings can be difficult. While at the Ministry of Justice I had to deliver training sessions on various tax-related subjects, both on Teams calls and face to face. I am now better at these tasks and don’t dread them so much. I remind myself that when delivering a presentation, I’m the subject matter expert in the room.
My biggest achievement is my ACCA qualification. It took me five years to complete it, as I studied in the evenings and weekends alongside working full-time. During this period, I also got married and had two children.
I’m a runner in my spare time. As a member of a local running club, I often take part in local races. I ran the Manchester marathon in 2024 in four hours and 48 minutes, something that I am incredibly proud of as it took a lot of dedication to achieve. I also love holidays and can often to be found planning our next family trip.
