Accountancy Recruitment

Accountancy Capital is a specialist accountancy recruitment agency. We place ACA, ACCA and CIMA-qualified finance professionals into in-house roles across the UK at £50,000 and above, on permanent, interim and fractional terms. Our work is the qualified tier that runs a finance function below director level: Financial Controllers, Finance Managers, Management Accountants, Financial Accountants, FP&A professionals, Finance Business Partners and in-house tax specialists.

This page explains what a specialist accountancy recruiter actually does, which roles we fill, how permanent, interim and fractional hiring differ, and how a search runs from first call to start date. If you want an overview of the firm, start on our homepage; for a role-by-role breakdown of the qualified finance market and how those roles fit together, see our qualified finance recruitment hub. Finance Director and CFO searches run with our sister firm FD Capital, part of the same group.

What a Specialist Accountancy Recruiter Does

Any recruiter can advertise a vacancy and forward CVs. The value of a specialist accountancy recruiter lies in three things a generalist usually cannot do well: pricing and scoping the role accurately, reaching qualified people who are not looking, and assessing whether a candidate can genuinely do the specific job rather than one that sounds similar.

Scoping the role before it goes to market

Job titles in finance are inconsistent. A “Financial Controller” at a £5 million owner-managed company and one at a £150 million private equity-backed group are different jobs with different salary ranges. Before we search, we confirm the details that decide who can do the role: revenue and ownership structure, the month-end close timetable the business expects, the accounting system, the size and shape of the finance team, whether the hire will run the year-end audit independently, and what board or investor reporting looks like. Once those are clear, the right salary range usually follows, and the search starts with a package that attracts the right people from the first week.

Reaching candidates who are not on job boards

Most strong qualified accountants are in roles they enjoy, with employers who want to keep them. They do not answer adverts. A specialist reaches them through relationships built over many searches: people we have placed, assessed for previous briefs or kept in touch with as their careers have developed. Advertising still has a place, but a shortlist built only from active applicants is a shortlist drawn from a fraction of the market.

Assessing against the actual brief

Each candidate we put forward is assessed in conversation against the specific brief. For a PE-backed Financial Controller, that means close timetable track record, board pack experience and how they work with an investor. For a scale-up, it means building processes from scratch, ARR reporting and IFRS 15 revenue recognition. For a senior corporate tax manager, it means transfer pricing, M&A tax and HMRC enquiry experience. Generic CV screening cannot make those distinctions; someone who understands the work can.

Accountancy Roles We Place

The table shows the roles we recruit most often and the broad salary ranges we see across the UK. The top of each range is typically London, larger groups and regulated businesses; the bottom is smaller regional employers.

Some Finance Manager and Financial Accountant roles start below £50,000 outside London; we take those on where the role needs a qualified accountant. Finance Director and CFO appointments, including interim and fractional, are handled by FD Capital, and non-executive roles by NED Capital.

Financial Controllers and Finance Managers

The Financial Controller owns the close, the controls, the audit and the statutory accounts; the Finance Manager usually runs day-to-day accounting and reporting and is often the first senior hire in a growing business. Knowing which you need, and when one becomes the other, is one of the most common conversations we have. Our guide on Financial Controller vs Finance Manager sets out the differences.

Management and Financial Accountants

Management Accountants produce the monthly numbers the business runs on: management accounts, variance analysis, costing and forecasts. Financial Accountants look after statutory reporting, balance sheet integrity, audit files and, in groups, consolidation. Many candidates move between the two, but employers usually need one emphasis, and the brief should say which.

FP&A and Finance Business Partners

FP&A professionals build budgets, forecasts and models; Finance Business Partners sit with operational or commercial teams and turn the numbers into decisions. Both need strong technical grounding plus the ability to influence non-finance managers, and both are frequently CIMA-qualified.

In-house tax

We recruit corporate tax, VAT, employment tax and international tax specialists into in-house teams, usually ACA or ACCA plus the CTA qualification from the Chartered Institute of Taxation. Our tax recruitment page covers this work in detail.

Permanent, Interim and Fractional Accountancy Recruitment

The right engagement model depends on how long the need lasts and how much of the week it fills.

• Permanent. For an ongoing role in the structure. We typically deliver a shortlist within one to two weeks of agreeing the brief. Start dates depend mostly on the candidate’s notice period and typically fall six to fourteen weeks after the brief is confirmed.
• Interim. For cover, projects and gaps: a departure, parental leave, an audit, a system change or a turnaround. We can usually put forward available candidates within days, and interim starts typically follow within one to three weeks. See interim accountancy recruitment.
• Fractional. For businesses that need qualified financial management one or two days a week rather than a full-time salary. Fractional Financial Controllers and Finance Managers are the most common requests. See our fractional finance hub.

Interim and fractional engagements raise employment status questions. Where an interim works through their own company, the client needs to consider the off-payroll working rules; HMRC’s guidance on understanding off-payroll working (IR35) sets out who is responsible for the status determination. We raise this at the start of every interim brief rather than at contract stage.

How an Accountancy Search Works

Our process is simple, but each step is there for a reason.

• Scope call. A twenty to thirty minute conversation with the hiring manager covering the six points above: size and ownership, close timetable, systems, team, audit responsibility and reporting. We also ask why the role exists now, because that shapes what good looks like. Our guide on how to brief a finance recruitment agency explains what to have ready.
• Salary and terms. We give an honest view on whether the proposed package will attract the profile you want, using current placement data. Fees are agreed in writing before a search starts.
• Search. A consultant approaches people in our network who match the brief, alongside targeted advertising where it helps. Candidates hear about the role in detail before we ask for a CV, so the people you meet have chosen to be considered.
• Assessment and shortlist. Each shortlisted candidate comes with a short written assessment: how they meet the brief, current package, notice period and our reasons for the introduction.
• Interviews and offer. We arrange interviews, collect feedback from both sides, manage the offer and handle resignation and counter-offer conversations, which are a real risk in a tight qualified market.
• Start and follow-up. We stay in touch through the notice period and the first months in role.

We respond to new briefs the same working day. Because the shortlist is drawn from people we already know, it is usually small and focused rather than a large batch of loosely matched CVs.

Why Use a Specialist Accountancy Recruiter

The choice between a specialist accountancy recruiter and a generalist comes down to one question: which recruiter knows the qualified people you need, and can tell whether they are right for the scope of your role?

A generalist agency typically has broad reach among active job-seekers and a large CV database, and can produce CVs quickly. The risk is that those candidates are approximately relevant rather than matched. A generalist may not distinguish a Financial Controller who has run a five-day close for a PE investor from one whose close runs to twelve days in an owner-managed business. Both have the same job title; only one fits a PE brief.

A specialist works in one market and sees the same profiles repeatedly. That builds knowledge of who is good, what they earn, what will make them move and how a role should be priced. It also means the specialist understands the technical content of the job. The professional bodies, the ICAEW, ACCA and CIMA, train accountants differently, and those differences matter for some roles. Our guide to ACA vs ACCA vs CIMA explains when.

Accountancy Capital was founded by a Chartered Accountant and former listed-company Finance Director, and our recruitment team works only in qualified finance. We are one of five specialist firms in FD Capital Group, alongside FD Capital, Exec Capital, NED Capital and SMF Capital, so a business building out its whole finance function can work with one group from Finance Manager to board level.

Accountancy Salary Benchmarks by Region

Location changes pay more than many employers expect. The ranges below are typical base salaries for permanent roles.

For more detail by role and sector, see our salary guides, the Financial Controller salary guide and the London accountancy salary guide.

Accountancy Recruitment Across the UK and by Sector

We recruit nationally from our offices in London (167–169 Great Portland Street, London W1W 5PF) and the West Midlands (Watling Court, Orbital Plaza, Watling Street, Cannock WS11 0EL). That covers London and the South East, the Midlands, the North West and North East, Yorkshire, the South West, Wales and Scotland. Our locations hub links to the regional pages, including London accountancy recruitment.

Sector experience often matters as much as the role itself. We work across private equity-backed businesses, technology and SaaS, manufacturing, professional services, property, healthcare, retail and the charity sector, and we have a strong focus on FCA-regulated firms, where finance teams also handle regulatory capital, client money and returns submitted through the FCA’s RegData system. Our sectors page covers each area. Where a regulated firm needs an SMF16 or SMF17 appointment, our sister firm SMF Capital handles the search.

For Candidates

If you are an ACA, ACCA or CIMA-qualified accountant thinking about your next move, actively or not, we would like to hear from you. A consultant will give you a confidential view of where your experience sits in the market, what it is worth and which kinds of role suit it. We only send your CV to an employer with your agreement, for a specific role. Register as a candidate or browse our candidate hub, including our guide to moving from practice to in-house.

Accountancy Recruitment: Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between accountancy recruitment and finance recruitment?

The terms overlap. We use accountancy recruitment to mean roles that need a qualified accountant: ACA, ACCA, CIMA or CTA, or close to qualifying. We do not recruit transactional roles such as purchase ledger, payroll or accounts assistant.

Do you recruit Finance Directors and CFOs?

Yes, through our sister firm FD Capital, which handles permanent, interim and fractional FD and CFO appointments. Clients can brief us both at once when building a team.

How quickly can you produce a shortlist?

We respond the same working day. For permanent roles, a shortlist typically follows within one to two weeks of agreeing the brief; for interim and fractional roles, within days.

How are your fees structured?

Fees depend on the role and engagement type and are agreed in writing before a search starts. There is nothing to pay for an initial conversation about a role.

Do you only recruit in London?

No. We recruit across the UK from our London and West Midlands offices and meet employers at their premises or by video call.