Schools Finance Manual

SCHOOLS FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATION MANUAL

To ensure that there is a consistent approach to financial administration within schools, give clarity on financial
procedures and, assist new staff who may be involved in finance within a school it has been a long standing requirement that each school has a manual containing details on how its financial management systems operate.

Many schools have produced their own Manuals and manage to maintain them, reflecting procedural changes within the school as they occur. On the other hand, auditors have been reporting on a regular basis that a significant number of schools have not been able to either maintain their financial manuals in a current state or more worryingly produce an initial copy of appropriate quality.

There appears to have been a variety of reasons as to why so many schools have had problems in this area and why schools have been making contact with Auditors and Schools Financial Advisers requesting details on how to develop local manuals.

In response to school's concerns a 'standard' template for a school financial manual which covers the majority of financial systems within schools has been developed by a team sourced from schools, Auditors and Schools Financial Advisers. The team have drawn on examples of good practice from a range of existing school manuals. Volunteer readers from schools have been reviewing drafts covering individual systems as they have been developed.

It gives the facility for schools to tailor the detail for each system to reflect  who within that school carries out particular control functions.  Schools may take the whole Manual with suitable insertions as above to make it virtually bespoke or select those systems not covered by their current manual and add that additional documentation to the existing Manual as appropriate.

Every effort has been made to ensure that the financial control principles covered within the Schools Financial  Self Assessment documents and Schools Financial Regulations are exemplified within the Manual template therefore, they are the standards against which auditors currently review actual procedures. The template will be a further common reference point for schools, Auditors and Schools Financial Advisers.

Click here to download as a Word 97 document.
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Training sessions will be available later in the Autumn and reference will be made to the document at the forthcoming quarterly Schools Finance Seminars. In the interim if you wish any more information on this project please contact any of the following.

Tony Brown -Head of Financial Standards ( B. 228533 )
Andy Watkins -Financial Policy Adviser ( B. 228436 ) 
Kathy Riches-Audit Manager Schools ( B. 228532 )