Management Information Sheet
Submission of Budget Plan - Required Supporting Documentation
Headteachers and governors have requested, via their Schools' Forum representatives, clarification of the documentation being requested to support submitted budget plans, and the reasons for the request.
Norfolk's Scheme for Financing Schools, section 2.3 'Submission of budget plans', third paragraph, requires the budget plan to 'show the school's intentions for expenditure and income ...... and the assumptions underpinning the budget plan'.
Finance Support staff have the responsibility, on behalf of the Local Authority, of checking all submitted budget plans, to ensure as far as possible that they are accurate and reasonable, and that the underpinning assumptions are clear. To facilitate this checking, and to reduce the number of queries that have to be raised with headteachers and school finance staff, we are requesting the submission of appropriate supporting documentation.
The requested documents are;
Upon receipt of budget plans from schools, FSOs will undertake all their checks, and, for those schools that have submitted a plan that balances in all three years, will send a budget acceptance letter to the Headteacher and Chair of Governors.
Where schools have submitted a request for a licensed deficit, the above checks will be carried out prior to the plan being agreed by the authority.
Where schools submit a plan that shows a rising deficit, the plan will not be accepted by the authority, and the Headteacher and Chair of Governors will be asked to address the budget difficulties.
Norfolk's Scheme for Financing Schools, section 2.3 'Submission of budget plans', third paragraph, requires the budget plan to 'show the school's intentions for expenditure and income ...... and the assumptions underpinning the budget plan'.
Finance Support staff have the responsibility, on behalf of the Local Authority, of checking all submitted budget plans, to ensure as far as possible that they are accurate and reasonable, and that the underpinning assumptions are clear. To facilitate this checking, and to reduce the number of queries that have to be raised with headteachers and school finance staff, we are requesting the submission of appropriate supporting documentation.
The requested documents are;
| i). | Signed hard copy of the budget plan. This is a statutory requirement. |
| ii). | Hard copy of the staffing spreadsheets that substantiate the budget figures. This is to ensure that all increments, uplifts, on-costs, staff changes etc are included, and that the costings are reflected in the budget plan. As staffing costs can equate to approximately 80% of the total expenditure, it is important that FSOs are able to carry out these checks. |
| iii). | Hard copy of the detail pages which supports the budget plan. This tool shows the breakdown of each line of the budget plan into the relevant subjective analysis, and can be used to show consideration of the reasoning behind the budget on each line. | iv). | The planned balance analysis that prints off as part of the budget plan. It is important that governors and school leaders can be seen to have demonstrated consideration of surplus balances, and their intended future use. |
| v). | Hard copy of the pupil forecaster tool. The majority of income to school budgets is via pupil funding. It is therefore vital that consideration is given to future pupil number projections. This tool calculates funding changes, and should therefore form part of the school's working budget papers. |
| vi). | Hard copy of the SEN funding forecaster tool. Changes in PSF funding can have a significant impact upon staffing levels. It is therefore important that consideration is given to projected changes in this funding, and this tool should therefore form part of the school's working budget papers. |
| vii). | Hard copy of the schools costed SIDP (summary from within the budget planning toolkit). It is important that consideration is given to the schools' strategic priorities for School Improvement and Development, and that any associated costs are included in the budget plan. This tool should therefore form part of the schools' working budget papers. |
| viii). | Hard copy of the school's Curriculum Map (secondary schools only). This tool is to enable school leaders and governors to demonstrate consideration of appropriate staffing levels for curriculum delivery to varying numbers of students. As staffing is a costly commodity, this tool can identify surplus capacity in teaching that could be removed, thereby freeing up resources for other purposes. |
| ix). | Hard copy of the budget commentary that explains the plan when presented to the governing body. This tool enables school leaders to provide in detail the assumptions and other relevant information used to prepare the budget, so that governors can demonstrate their understanding of the figures before they approve the plan. The document is very useful for FSOs to enable them to carry out their responsibilities. |
Upon receipt of budget plans from schools, FSOs will undertake all their checks, and, for those schools that have submitted a plan that balances in all three years, will send a budget acceptance letter to the Headteacher and Chair of Governors.
Where schools have submitted a request for a licensed deficit, the above checks will be carried out prior to the plan being agreed by the authority.
Where schools submit a plan that shows a rising deficit, the plan will not be accepted by the authority, and the Headteacher and Chair of Governors will be asked to address the budget difficulties.