Management Information Sheet
Monthly charging for Services purchased vis SLA online
Historically, LA maintained schools have been charged for subscription services once annually in August or September as a lump sum. Following discussions with various stakeholder groups, including the Finance Consultative Group, the feedback we have received suggests that schools believe that this is not particularly helpful for budget monitoring purposes, nor do governors and school leaders have an 'at a glance' schedule of the services procured and the charge for those services.
The feedback obtained from governors and school leaders, as well as service providers, suggests that it would be more transparent for budget profiling and helpful for budget monitoring if charging followed best accounting practice guidelines. We have therefore been asked to change the charging mechanism for subscription services from an annual charge, and, instead, charge for them on a monthly profiled basis.
Therefore, with effect from April 2017, the following charging mechanism will be implemented.
For annual subscription services
These services will be charged in 12 equal instalments throughout the financial year.
If the subscription service is purchased part way through the financial year, the schedule will clarify the monthly charges that will be applicable i.e. if the charge will be front-loaded and then equal instalments, or pro-rata for the remaining year.
For ad-hoc services, such as training courses etc
These services will be charged as a single charge in the month immediately following the purchase of the service.
Where credit notes are issued
These will also show on the schedule.
To ensure clarity, all LA maintained schools will be provided with a monthly schedule of service charges, which will be accessed via Anycomms Plus. The schedule will list the service provider and service/product purchased, the subjective code that will be charged, the total charge for that service/product, and the month/months that will be charged.
Schools will be able to reconcile the charges downloaded on a monthly basis against the schedule.
NB. This briefing note relates to services, support packages and training purchased via SLA Online only. There may be other charges/credits downloaded to schools from other sources within NCC that have not been processed via SLA Online.
An example of the schedule is attached for your information.