Project Overview
A charity operating across four physical locations was facing a financial crisis following allegations of mismanagement by its previous CFO. The organisation was heavily cash-reliant, experienced naturally high staff turnover, and had little visibility or timely reporting of financial and operational activity.

My Role
I was brought in as Interim Head of Finance to stabilise the organisation, support an ongoing investigation, and rebuild trust through systemisation and transparency. This included direct engagement with law enforcement, operational restructuring, and introducing robust financial and reporting systems.

Key Objectives

Provide forensic financial information to the police for investigation.

Stabilise the organisation’s finances across four locations.

Migrate outdated and paper-heavy systems to digital, cashless operations.

Improve transparency and reporting for trustees and stakeholders.

Implement tools to manage sales, events, rotas, and invoicing.

Actions Taken

Forensic Support: Supplied detailed accounts for police analysis of alleged mismanagement.

System Overhaul: Migrated accounting from Sage to Xero; implemented Dext for digital receipt and invoice handling.

POS Implementation: Introduced Kounta (now Lightspeed) integrated with Xero in three locations, enabling near cashless operations and real-time sales/event reporting.

Cash & Fund Management: Systemised multiple loan accounts (“pots”) for digital monitoring, tracking, and withdrawals.

Paperless Transition: Reduced paper handling by 95% by digitising finance processes.

Operational Improvements: Rolled out Deputy at the nursery location to streamline rota management, invoicing, and debtor control.

Stakeholder Engagement: Built strong relationships with staff across locations; established regular financial reporting to the board of trustees.

Outcomes & Impact

Secured the charity’s financial operations during a time of crisis.

Provided clarity and transparency to trustees, staff, and external authorities.

Real-time reporting and cashless systems reduced risk and improved control.

Finance function became significantly more efficient and resilient, with reduced reliance on manual processes.

The organisation regained stability and confidence in its operations.

Tools & Methods
Xero, Sage, Dext, Kounta (Lightspeed), Deputy, financial reporting frameworks.