Coding and Consistent Financial Reporting (CFR)

• Coding structure

  • Ledger Codes by CFR (WordPress Document)
  • Understanding cost codes In iTrent (Word)

• Capital codes

  Please use the Capital codes stated whilst for Revenue expenditure please refer to CFR Item List under the ‘Coding List’ heading above.

  Types of Capital Expenditure	Capital Item Code to use	Types of Revenue Expenditure
  Structural maintenance of playgrounds or increasing size of playground	C225	Routine maintenance of playgrounds (e.g. filling potholes)
  Extending a building	C225	Maintaining a building (re-pointing, repairing minor cracks, painting etc.)
  Structural repairs on a building, where the value has been written down in the accounts to reflect damage	C225	Repairs for damage not reflected by a reduction in the value of the building in the accounts
  Major refurbishment or overhauls that extend the life or value of an asset beyond its previously assessed standard	C225	Painting and decorating, routine maintenance
  Re-roofing of buildings	C225	Roof repairs or replacing broken tiles
  Upgrading poor quality old fencing with new, higher quality ones	C225	Fencing repairs or replacement of broken sections
  Upgrading poor quality old windows with new, higher quality ones	C225	Window repairs or replacement of broken windows
  Installation of central heating	C225	Replacement of central heating or broken parts of a heating system
  Improvement of floor structures	C225	Floor coverings (unless part of major refurbishment)
  Installations of new kitchens or toilet facilities	C225	Repairs or replacement of kitchen or toilet fittings
  Installation of a new water supply services/equipment	C225	Repairs or replacement of water supply services/equipment
  Remodelling to make a building/rooms fit-for-purpose that otherwise would not be	C225	Remodelling that does not significantly affect the service provided
  Purchase of fixed furniture and equipment (inc. signage and shelving)	C225	Repairs to fixed furniture or equipment
  Legal and project management fees, architects’, surveyors’ and engineers’ fees where directly attributable to an enhancement (including recharges of DCC staff time for these purposes)	C420 NPS Fees & Expenses                C421 Other Fees & Expenses	Feasibility studies and finance fees
  Planning and building regulations fees (for capital schemes above)	C473	Planning and building regulation fees (for revenue works above)
  Purchase of new removable furniture and equipment	C601	Repairs to furniture or equipment
  Purchase of ICT hardware (Servers, PC, laptops, tablets)	C610	Repairs/servicing of ICT hardware
  Purchase of ICT peripherals (printers, ICT whiteboards, etc)	C611	Repairs/servicing of ICT peripherals
  Installation of new IT or phone network	C612	Repairs/servicing of IT or phone network
  Purchase of new minibus (maximum of 16 passengers)	C634	Maintenance, servicing, ongoing costs (e.g. road tax, petrol)
  Purchase of ICT software where licence period over 1 year	C701	ICT software where the licence period is 1 year or less or website designs

• Schools Online Journal Transfer System

  The School Journal Transfer System has been devised to allow schools to journal money between accounts.

  To access the system linked above, you will need to register by clicking the following link to email the Finance Schools Mailbox: Register for Schools Journal Transfer System. In your email, please provide your name, a username of your choice, associated school and email address.

  Once the account has been set-up on the journal transfer system, an email confirmation will be sent to you. You will then be able to log-on to the school journal transfer system and it will recognise your name and associated school, which can be seen at the top of the page.

  Schools Journal Transfer System Guidance

  You will then be required to complete the form by completing the following steps:

  • Enter the amount to be transferred
  • Provide a narrative for the journal (please use a narrative more descriptive in nature than simply ‘coding correction’)
  • On the left hand side of the form select the manage code in which to debit from the drop down list
  • Click on the ‘Populate Item List’ button to enable the item (ledger) code selection.
  • Select the item (ledger) code in which to debit from the list
  • On the right hand side of the form select the manage code in which to credit from the drop down list
  • Click on the ‘Populate Item List’ button to enable the item (ledger) code selection
  • Select the item (ledger) code in which to credit from the list
  • Finally, click on the ‘Submit’ button
  • You will then be presented with a summary of your journal where you can either ‘Make Another Transfer’ or click on ‘Finish’.

• Coding FAQs

  When can I journal?

  You can journal between most codes to reflect initial incorrect coding, but you cannot journal monies to or from the budget allocation codes (9050-9059). With internal codes you can journal between internal codes, but you cannot mix internal and external ledger codes.

  Why can’t I see a code I wish to use?

  Certain codes, like budget share codes are not available for use. If you believe you need to journal from these codes, please contact the Schools Finance Team.

  Can I journal between budget share and extended school provision?

  Yes, if you have a separate fund set up such as G121, you can move most costs and income between the two. However it is better to ensure the coding is correct at source.

  Can I journal between schools in our federation?

  No, this facility does not allow this, but please consider running the federation accounts through your hub school. Email the School Finance Team if you wish to do this.

  Can I journal items that should not have been charged/credited to our budget and relate to other schools?

  No, again this facility does not allow this. Again you would need to submit details on the school finance enquiries form.

  What if I find that VAT has been extracted but should not have been (and vice-versa) – am I able to journal these items?

  No, the facility does not allow this. Again you would need to submit details via the school finance enquiries form. Please provide a full narrative to what the journal relates.

  Can I journal to and from CAPSCH?

  You can only journal contributions to capital (Debit R001 and credit C992). Any other journals involving capital will need to be requested using the school finance enquiries form and a full explanation given.

  For instance, you have a capital project that will spend more than the available allocation and there as an item correctly charged to CAPSCH – C602 (furniture & fittings short life) then this has to be paid for from revenue. This can be done, but you would always need to debit ledger code R001 on revenue and always credit C992 on capital (contribution from SBS).

  Items initially charged to SBS that you feel should come out of the capital budget can be transferred so long as sufficient detail is provided and that the item is something that can be recognised as typical capital expenditure.

  A typical example would be: item initially charged to SBS for £2,000, G120 – 2702 (grounds mtce grass cutters) required to be on CAPSCH – C635 (motorised plant & equipment).

  Credit – G120 – G2702 £2,000

  Debit – CAPSCH – C635 £2,000

  Try to correctly identify capital spend at source and code it correctly. If it is genuine capital, code it as such and if necessary move money to fund it.

  General restrictions

  • You cannot move more money than is posted to a code.
  • You cannot move monies to or from the Government Grants code (9001). If you feel there are items that should not be credited there, or vice versa, please let us know via the school finance enquiries form and we will investigate.
  • Generally speaking, you should not attempt to move expenditure items on to income codes and vice versa. If you believe there should be such a transaction, please contact the Schools Finance Team.

  General tips

  Give adequate detail so you can recognise the entry on the download and on print-outs.

  • For payroll items, state the person’s assignment number and the period to which it relates, e.g. 223311-1, September 2016. You should also then state whether it relates to pay, national insurance, superannuation or overtime.
  • For creditors/debtor items, you should include enough detail so that it is possible to easily ascertain the context and nature of the journal transaction.
  • Consider a summary entry for multiple low value items.