Hire a CFO in Sheffield in 2027

Six CFO roles were advertised within ten miles of Sheffield in October 2026. One was temporary and two were part-time. The demand is real and it is not on job boards. Sewell Wallis is headquartered in Sheffield and has recruited finance leadership across the city for over 20 years.

Key Takeaways

• Totaljobs showed six CFO jobs within ten miles of Sheffield in October 2026, of which one was temporary and two were part-time, with Jobsite showing one within twenty miles.
• Live Sheffield adverts ranged from £80,000 to £150,000, with Synergem advertising a Finance Director at £80,000 to £95,000 plus bonus and private medical, and Matiq Group advertising its first CFO at £120,000 to £150,000.
• Heart of the City holds 500,000 sq ft of Category A office space, 98% let as at February 2026, with 2,500 staff at Grosvenor House alone across HSBC and CMS.
• The Advanced Manufacturing Park carries 2,500 or more people across nearly 100 companies, with Boeing, Rolls-Royce, McLaren Automotive and the University of Sheffield AMRC as anchor employers.
• Sewell Wallis is headquartered in Sheffield, which is the only city where the firm holds an office.

Where Sheffield Finance Leadership Talent Sits

Three clusters carry CFO-calibre demand in the city, and each needs a different candidate profile.

Heart of the City, S1. The £470m, seven-hectare regeneration covering Grosvenor House, Elshaw House on Carver Street, the Isaacs Building and Pinstone Street has created a new central business district within walking distance of the station and both universities. HSBC and CMS share 2,500 staff at Grosvenor House, with DLA Piper, Turner & Townsend, Taylor Emmet and Henry Boot’s head office nearby, and Irwin Mitchell arriving from January 2026. The scheme reached 98% let across 500,000 sq ft of Category A space by February 2026. The mix of legal, banking and a listed head office produces CFO, Finance Director and Group Financial Controller demand alongside a practice-to-industry pipeline.

Advanced Manufacturing Park and the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District, S60 5 and S9. Boeing Sheffield, Rolls-Royce, McLaren Automotive and the University of Sheffield AMRC with Factory 2050 anchor a cluster of nearly 100 companies and 2,500 or more people, with 570 or more AMRC staff. McLaren committed £40m to an expansion creating 300 jobs, and Rolls-Royce £19m to a casting facility. Rotherham productivity has risen 64% since 2004. Aerospace, defence and nuclear work calls for capex-heavy, contract-accounting CFO profiles that general finance recruiters do not map, and the site sits off the Sheffield Parkway at M1 Junction 33.

Growth, not-for-profit and public sector employers, S1, S9 and S10. Matiq Group is hiring its first CFO, Peak Edge Academy Trust carried a CFO vacancy during 2026 and NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board advertised a Deputy Chief Finance Officer. Each needs a different profile and a different pay structure, which is why a single Sheffield benchmark misleads.

Why are so few CFO jobs advertised in Sheffield?

Discretion rather than absent demand. Boards replacing a CFO rarely want lenders, auditors or the incumbent finance team to know before a successor signs. Six advertised roles against a city holding a 98%-let new business district and a 2,500-strong advanced manufacturing cluster tells you where the hiring actually happens. The direction of the wider regional market is covered in our quarterly read on the Yorkshire finance market.

What a CFO Costs in Sheffield

Sheffield pay runs from £80,000 to £150,000 across live 2026 adverts, and ownership explains the spread more than seniority does. Synergem advertised a Finance Director in S1 at £80,000 to £95,000 plus bonus and private medical cover. Matiq Group advertised a first CFO at £120,000 to £150,000. One part-time Finance Director advertised at 0.6 full-time equivalent equated to £100,000 on a full-time basis. Private-equity-backed businesses outside London run £130,000 to £215,000 plus a management incentive plan.

Interim demand is visible alongside the permanent market, with a six-month interim Group Financial Controller advertised at £80,000 to £90,000. Interim CFO rates outside London run £580 to £800 a day for owner-managed work and £750 to £1,000 for sponsor-facing mandates. Comparable C-suite benchmarking across the region sits in our analysis of what operating leadership roles pay across Yorkshire.

What is the average CFO salary in Sheffield?

Live 2026 adverts ranged from £80,000 to £150,000, and the Totaljobs Yorkshire average of £62,499 should be ignored because it counts sub-CFO roles carrying the keyword. For planning, a Sheffield owner-managed business at £50m to £150m turnover should budget £120,000 to £165,000.

Why a Sheffield-Headquartered Search Firm Changes the Odds

The advertised pool in Sheffield is too small to search through, which makes network depth the deciding factor rather than reach. We have been placing finance professionals across South Yorkshire for over 20 years, and the people who move into CFO seats here are usually people we have known at Financial Controller level. Advanced manufacturing investment and a nearly fully let new business district are creating demand faster than the advertised market reflects, which widens the gap between what a board can find and what exists.

Sheffield small and medium-sized businesses face a specific version of the problem, because they are competing for finance talent against larger employers in the same postcodes. The structural answer sits in our view on how smaller Sheffield employers build a finance pipeline that lasts.

Timing is the other lever. Where a three to six month notice period would leave a business exposed, interim cover bridges it, and the triggers that justify bringing someone in early are set out in our view on when a business genuinely needs interim finance leadership.

How We Search Sheffield

1. We draw on a network built over two decades in the city. We approach Finance Directors, Group Financial Controllers and sitting CFOs we already know rather than starting from a database.
2. We match the profile to the employer type. We separate advanced manufacturing, legal and professional services, academy trust, NHS and growth-business briefs, because the accounting and governance demands differ sharply.
3. We benchmark on ownership rather than postcode. We price against comparable structures, given a local spread from £80,000 to £215,000.
4. We assess for external accountability. We use scenario questioning on cash forecasting, due diligence and systems change, with references from lenders and sponsors.
5. We scope interim cover where the notice period creates a gap. We cost it at £750 to £1,000 a day for sponsor-facing work so the board can decide with a figure in front of it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Sewell Wallis based in Sheffield?

Yes. Sheffield is the Sewell Wallis headquarters and the only city where the firm holds an office. Coverage extends across Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Manchester from there, and the South Yorkshire network is the deepest part of it.

What kind of CFO does an advanced manufacturing business need?

A capex-heavy, contract-accounting profile. Aerospace, defence and nuclear programmes bring long contract cycles, milestone revenue recognition and significant capital expenditure, which is a different discipline from a services business. The Advanced Manufacturing Park concentrates that demand in one place.

How much does an interim CFO cost in Sheffield?

Between £580 and £800 a day for owner-managed work and £750 to £1,000 a day for private-equity-facing mandates. Listed and transaction work runs £900 to £1,250. UK interim managers averaged £907 a day across all disciplines in 2026, with private-sector rates passing £1,000 for the first time.

Can you recruit a CFO for an academy trust or NHS organisation?

Yes. Sheffield demand spans multi-academy trusts, NHS system finance and commercial businesses, and the profiles differ. Not-for-profit and public sector pay sits lower, at roughly £82,000 to £93,000, with governance and mission alignment carrying more weight than transaction experience.

Talk to us about the CFO seat you are filling in Sheffield

Tell us what the next twelve to twenty-four months need to deliver and we will map the Sheffield market against it from our office in the city. Our executive and C-suite finance recruitment covers Sheffield, Leeds, York and the wider North.