Financial Support Services for Schools
Service Provider
Department for Children, Young People and Learners
CYPL Finance (Schools) Team
1st Floor, Davis House
c/o Taberner House,
Park Lane
Croydon
CR9 1TP
Contact:John Fennell
Tel: 020 8760 5610
Fax: 020 8633 9577
E-mail:
Summary of service to be provided to the client
The service provided is delivered by a team of six, which consists of one School Finance Officer, four School Finance
Advisers and one Finance Assistant. All these team members are very experienced in the area of schools finance,
having worked both in schools as well as in the schools finance team. The team are based and work very closely with
the school funding team, led by David Dilling. This is a valuable source of information for our team, as are our close
contacts with colleagues in other parts of the department and the wider council,enabling us to provide up to the
minutesupport to schools.We are always at the forefront of any developments in school funding and the likely impact
these changes might have on our schools. Members of the team regularly attend training sessions and conferences
with the DfE & other LA’s. The team also link closely with the providers of the School Business Manager Programmes
– CSBM/DSBM/CSA, which have proved very popular in Croydon. There are noadditional costs to schools relating to
these activities.
We feel that a major strength of our SLA is our ability to provide an experienced school finance adviser at all times. This
could include during times of illness or adverse weather conditions. The financial admin support we provide to SLA
subscribers is unique and a service that schools value extremely highly. Having someone available to come into school
at very short notice to raise orders and pay invoices is something our schools finds very reassuring.The team has the
considerable backing of the LA behind it and this, as well as the strong support mechanism we have within the team.
Summary of Services to be paid for by the school:
Advice and support in the following areas;
·preparation of the school budget for 11/12 in line with the school development plan
·preparation of quarterly income and expenditure budgetmonitoring reports
·preparation of year end accounts for 10/11
·completion of statutory financial returns for 10/11 (Consistent Financial Reporting)
·preparation of reports for governing bodies
·long term financial planning up to 5 years
·development and maintenance of financial systems, procedures and controls
·Best value assessments
·DfE, Audit Commission and Ofsted financial guidance
·Audit guidance before and after an audit, to assist schools in getting the best possible outcome, including the replacement for FMSiS which to be announced in the near future
·Training for senior school management, governors and administrative staff in finance related areas largely, including attendance at governors meetings
·Benchmarking to compare data from similar type schools
*This Service Level agreement does not support the technical ICT features of the finance software used by schools. This can be bought through the LA ICT support service agreement CrEdIT.
Note: schools that are not maintained by Croydon will be able to access some of these services but different charges and conditions may apply.Please contact us for further information.
Delivering the Service
3.1Budgeting Service
This service involves the preparation of the school’s annual budget, quarterly monitoring reports and statutory year end returns in consultation with the school.
It does not support work on the schools IT finance package. This means that the returns to the LA cannot be validated to the same level of security as under the Gold Service.
Any problems with the recording of information on the schools finance system may require further investigation and further charges may be incurred to resolve them.
Subject to the time available and the schools priorities, advice and support will be provided in a number of areas. Please refer to the table in section 3.10 for details.
A total of 25 hours support is provided over typically 6 visits. This was increased in 2010/11 to include long term financial planning, which is now mandatory for schools in deficit, but also an important tool for all schools. Further hours can be purchased as required.
Budgeting Service suggested timetable for visits:
Hours / Month / Activity5 / April/May / Year End / CFR return /Year end reports (may be prepared off site)
4 / July / Quarterly monitoring report / staffing budget revision / funding updates
4 / October / Quarterly monitoring report / staffing budget revision / funding updates
3 / November / Long Term Financial Planning
4 / January / Quarterly monitoring report
4 / Feb/March / Annual budget preparation (some preparation may take place off site)
1 / Various / Phone calls / queries / off site preparation
Additional hours for advice and support as detailed in the charges section, table 3.6, are available at a preferential rate to schools buying the Budgeting Service
3.2a Gold Service
This service involves the preparation of the school’s annual budget, long term financial planning, quarterly monitoring reports and statutory year end returns in consultation with the school.It also includes, as required, monthly processing of: Local Authority charges (payment demand): funding transactions and bank reconciliations.
Subject to the time available and the schools priorities, advice and support will be provided in a number of areas. Please refer to the table in section 3.10 for details.
This service provides a total of 45 hours support. The length and number of visits will be flexible depending on the nature of the tasks to be undertaken. Further hours can be purchased as required at discounted rates.See ad hoc charges
Gold Service suggested timetable for visits. This is very much a guide, as we are keen to be as flexible as possible with how these hours are delivered.
Hours / Month / Activity6 / April / Year End / CFR return /Year end reports (may be prepared off site)
3 / May / Standard visit
3 / June / Standard visit
4 / July / Quarterly monitoring report / staffing budget revision / funding updates
3 / September / Standard visit
4 / October / Quarterly monitoring report / staffing budget revision / funding updates
3 / November / Long term financial planning
3 / December / Standard visit
4 / January / Quarterly monitoring report
7 / February/March / Annual budget preparation/ set up budget on system (some preparation may take place off site). + Monthly visit
4 / March / Standard visit + Governors meeting
1 / Various / Phone calls / queries / off site preparation
Additional hours for advice and support as detailed in the charges section, table 3.6, are available at a preferential rate to schools buying the Budgeting Service, but we would recommend considering the Gold+ Service, as this could represent much better value for money.
It should be noted that although much of the support will be through a named individual, there will be times when others will be involved in order to provide the most effective and efficient service.
3.2b Gold + Service
The intention of this new service is to try and deliver all the areas included on the current Gold service in a fuller way. We are keen to complete Forward Financial Plans for as many schools as possible. HCSS software introduced Cashflow reports into Version 4 and this is an area that needs to develop further in schools. Schools subscribing to this service will also be able to have their SFA attend up to two meetings of the governing body. The other main benefit will see more time dedicated to key visits, e.g. Budgeting, Quarterly Monitoring and Year End and generally being more available to support the individual schools needs. This service provides a total of 60 hours support.
Gold+ Service suggested timetable for visits. This is very much a guide, as we are keen to be as flexible as possible with how these hours are delivered.
Hours / Month / Activity6 / April / Year End / CFR return /Year end reports (may be prepared off site)
4 / May / Standard visit
4 / June / Standard visit
5 / July / Quarterly monitoring report / staffing budget revision / funding updates / Cashflow
4 / September / Standard visit
5 / October / Quarterly monitoring report / staffing budget revision / funding updates / Cashflow
7 / November / Long term financial planning + Governors Meeting (1)
4 / December / Standard visit
5 / January / Quarterly monitoring report / Cashflow
8 / February/March / Annual budget preparation/ set up budget on system (some preparation may take place off site). + Monthly visit (3)
6 / March / Standard visit + Governors Meeting (2)
2 / Various / Phone calls / queries / off site preparation
3.3 Children’s Centres Service
This additional support for schools with Children’s Centres will be delivered in a similar way to the budgeting service, but on a smaller scale over 15 hours. It will be fully funded by the Children’s Centre funding (David Johnston) and will be identified on the funding sheets. This service will normally be delivered in connection with the main service chosen by the school.
Children’s Centres suggested timetable for visits. This is very much a guide, as we are keen to be as flexible as possible with how these hours are delivered.
Hours / Month / Activity2 / April / Year End / CFR return /Year end reports (may be prepared off site)
3 / July / Quarterly monitoring report / staffing budget revision / funding updates
3 / October / Quarterly monitoring report / staffing budget revision / funding updates
3 / January / Quarterly monitoring report / staffing budget
3 / February/March / Annual budget preparation/ set up budget on system (may be prepared off site)
1 / Various / Phone calls / queries / off site preparation
3.4 Tailored Support – aimed at non subscribing schools
The team are keen to provide specific support to schools when required, particularly for those not currently subscribing to the Gold or Budget level support. This could include buying in support at certain times of the year for Budgeting – including 5 year projections, Year end support, Assistance with Quarterly Monitoring Reports, Audit advice (before & after) and attendance at Governors meeting. The costs and minimum visit time would be in line with the ad hoc charges (see Charges). Please contact John Fennell for further details.
3.5 Financial Administration - Weekly
The CYPL Finance Team can provide additional support for financial administration, including raising orders, processing of invoices and preparation of cheques.This service is normally provided on a weekly basis, subject to the availability of staff. Priority will be given to schools buying the Gold or gold + Services or who have committed via the optional extras list.This service is useful for schools seeking to cover a period of sickness or maternity leave, gaps between appointments or a backlog of work in the school office.
3.6 Additional/Supplementary Services
The services identified in the additional column in section 3.10 below would normally be delivered through additional visits and work off site. The number of hours, visits required will be agreed after consultation with the head teacher. A telephone advice service relating to the agreed work will also be available. Unless part of a longer visit, there will be a minimum charge equivalent to a 2 hour visit. For details of charges see section 6.
·Other Services
Please contact us if you think we may be able to help you in any other areas that are not mentioned in this agreement.
·Availability
All additional/supplementary services are available subject to capacity within the team.Priority will be given to schools that subscribe to the Gold +, Gold or Budgeting Services.
3.7 Training
Financial training is available to all headteachers, senior leadership teams, governors, bursars and other school staff.For full details of finance related courses available, please refer to the LWB website, Finance room and Finance Matters on Fronter and the Governor Services Service Level Agreement Offers, currently delivered by Babcock 4S.
Training is also available on a one-to-one or school specific basis. Please contact us for further details.
·Induction for new Bursars/Administrative Officers
This training is now delivered on a one-to-one basis in the school. It is tailored to suit the needs of the individual and is designed to support professional development during the first months of appointment to a bursar/admin post.It is delivered over 10 hours, consisting of two main 3 hour sessions, one to include guidance on using the school’s financial software for ordering/invoicing. A second half day session then looks at the more advanced functions of the school’s financial software and to ensure a good understanding of the budgeting, funding and monitoring functions. In addition there are two 1 hour follow up sessions provided to review progress at each stage. There is also a 2 hour visit within the first few weeks to go through all the financial aspects of the role, including a who’s who at the LA, guidance on Fronter incl funding sheets, AVCO re payment demands, acronyms and much more. Some parts of the advice may be delivered by the School Finance Adviser pending SLA capacity.For further details on content and timings, please contact Lisa Butler .
·Bitesize Training
This form of training was introduced during 2009/10 and has proved very popular, with a shorter format (1.5 hours), but still getting across all the key information. Topics covered so far have included Improving your Audit outcome, Quarterly Reports, Budget Planning, Year End Procedures and Benchmarking. We hope to add some new sessions including some twilight sessions across a number of weeks, which will cover the whole financial process from start to finish. Bitesize training sessions are available to all staff including Finance Officers/Head’s/Governors and any other interested school staff eg aspiring Head’s or Bursars.
3.8 Budgeting Software
This gives schools the opportunity to buy a variety of software packages currently from HCSS. At present, this will include the latest Finance version 5, which can be used in schools to produce their own plans, particularly for ‘What if?’ scenarios. It should be noted that the version 5 will include the main parts of the Croydon funding formula and thus enable schools to make reasonable funding projections for the next few years. Our team meet regularly with representatives from HCSS to discuss future developments. We are always looking at ways to improve the financial software we use and we even considered changing providers for next year. We are pushing HCSS for an internet based product, which we hope will be available for 2012/12. These developments costs are all met by the LA, with no additional costs to the schools buying into our SLA.
The LA version for each school held by the school’s SFA would remain as the master copy. The Personnel 7 link would give schools the opportunity to transfer staff data between Personnel 7 and HCSS automatically. The Whole School Development Plan software which sits within FPS and requires enablement is now available to purchase and provides a direct link financially between the budget and WSDP. If Schools are interested in any of these additional links, please speak with your SFA.
3.9 Optional Extras (can be added to your annual SLA) NEW
A change for 2011/12 will be the option for schools to select certain ad hoc tasks and add to them their SLA at a reduced
cost e.g. a school knows they will attend at least 3 bitesize sessions during the year. By buying up front the cost would be
£120 instead of £150 or for 6 bitesize sessions the cost would be £200 instead of £300.
It will also be possible to purchase a bundle of SFA hours at a reduced cost e.g. 10 hours for £550. This may appeal to budget
service schools, who don’t need gold level support, but require something in between.
The same would apply to schools that regularly use the services of the team’s financial assistant for financial admin work,
whether it be direct cover or catching up on a backlog of orders or invoices. A saving of around £60 per 6 hour block could be
achieved by committing upfront or a saving of £150 when booking a 10 hour block of support. This would also give the school a
priority over ad hoc booking.
3.10 Areas supported
Subject to the time available and the school’s priorities, advice and support is available in the following areas. It may be possible to provide some of the additional tasks from within the Budget or Gold Service if time allows: / Budget25
Hours / Gold
45 hours / Gold+
60
hours / Additional
hours to be agreed
Guidance on school funding / ü / ü / ü / ü
Assistance with the preparation of annual budget / ü / ü / ü / ü
Costing of various staffing options / ü / ü / ü / ü
Budget revisions / ü / ü / ü / ü
Quarterly budget monitoring reports / ü / ü / ü / ü
Interpretation of benchmarking data / ü / ü / ü / ü
Long term financial planning (overview) / ü / ü / ü / ü
Long term financial planning- draft budget +4 year summary plans including impact of changes in pupil numbers (previously a maximum of 3 years) / ü / ü / ü / ü
Long term financial planning- 5 year detailed plans including impact of changes in pupil numbers (previously a maximum of 3 years) / ü / ü
Interpretationof information from the LA’s financial system / ü / ü / ü / ü
Follow up of queries relating to funding & LA charges including HR salary issues / ü / ü / ü / ü
Preparation of additional reportsand analyses / ü / ü
Creation of User DefinedReports in FMS6 / ü / ü
Year end financial returns, reconciliations & reports / ü / ü / ü / ü
Year end procedures e.g. reconciliation of control accounts / ü / ü / ü
Year end procedures e.g. accruals & prepayments / ü / ü / ü
Setting up the new year on the finance system / ü / ü / ü
Changes to the Chart of Accounts / ü / ü / ü
Statutory financial returns(CFR) / ü / ü / ü / ü
Quarterly monitoring of cash flow (This is done through new reports on Version 4 of HCSS new reports) / ü / ü / ü
Termly meeting for admin staffincluding update, advice and a training activity – charges may be applicable for schools who do not buy back the Gold or Budgeting Service / ü / ü / ü / ü
Email/telephone advice for areas covered in budgeting service / ü / ü / ü / ü
Preparation of documentation for school visits / ü / ü / ü / ü
Monthlyreconciliation of schools' financial records with bank statements – it is envisaged that in the forthcoming years, this will be dealt with at school level / ü / ü / ü
Monthly processing of payment demand – as above / ü / ü / ü
Assistance with monthly procedures e.g. VAT as above / ü / ü / ü
Advice on recording and monitoring income and expenditure / ü / ü / ü
Completion of financial information for OFSTED inspection (SEF or equivalent) / ü / ü / ü
Interpretation of pre populated financial information for OFSTED inspection / ü / ü / ü
Assistance in costing Post OFSTED Action Plan / ü / ü
Ad hoc costing comparisons e.g. direct purchases v. leasing agreements / ü / ü / ü
One meeting outside office hours e.g. governing body meeting / ü / ü / ü
Two meetings outside office hours e.g. governing body meeting / ü
Attendance at additional governing bodymeetings / ü
Training – one to one induction for new finance staff covers the basics necessary to begin operating the finance software / ü
Training – see LWB website / ü
Training – for new or inexperienced finance staff/SMT/governors / ü
Training -attending whole school improvement activities / ü
Recruitment and selection of finance staff: suggested interview and test questions: advice on the role of a bursar: attendance at interview. / ü
Assistance with costing changes in school structure e.g. amalgamations/federations / ü / ü
Best Value advice - research to inform governing body decisions / ü / ü
Development of a school finance policy& procedures document / ü / ü
Provision of pre and post audit advice: support and advice on implementing the recommendations: attendance at exit meeting where required / ü / ü
Assistance with organising the school’s private accounts e.g. school fund/trust fund / ü / ü
Assistance with accounting for pupil focused extended school activities / ü / ü / ü
Assistance with accounting for community focused activities e.g. Children’s Centres (See separate part of this SLA) / ü
Financial administration – weekly / ü
Provision of general operating advice on FMS6 not specifically stated above / ü / ü / ü
Assistance with the Equipment Register Tool on FMS6 / ü / ü / ü
Assistance with the completion of the schools Annual Salary Statements / ü / ü / ü
Client responsibilities