04 December 2019 
Matt Sisson, Projects and Membership Manager
Understanding University Finance – Over the years BUFDG has worked to improve understanding of university business models and financial accounting. We've now launched an accessible new guide, Understanding University Finance, to be a useful companion for the broad church of university stakeholders and brave Annual Report explorers.
The guide builds on the 2011 publication An Insider’s Guide to Finance and Accounting in Higher Education that was published jointly by number of sector bodies including BUFDG. We’re also pleased to share that a separate guide to Accounting for Pensions in Higher Education Institutions is in the drafting room and is scheduled for publication in early 2020. This will be joined by a revised edition of the BUFDG Briefing on Tax in Higher Education in the Spring 2020.
Chair’s Quarterly – We’ve launched the first ever edition of the BUFDG Chair’s Quarterly, for those working on or with the Higher Education sector. We hope we’ll be able to alert readers to new developments, improve understanding of key issues, and contribute to a more efficient and effective sector.
New Pro e-learning modules –For the 86% of members who are at institutions signed up to BUFDG Pro (our e-learning subscription service) you’ll be able to access 5 new modules launching on Monday 9th December. These form part of your Year 1 subscription and are available to ALL staff across your university. The modules are:
If you haven’t signed up BUFDG Pro and would like to join in, please contact Rachel. Also, drop Rachel an email if you would like to be involved in the creation of content for any of our modules.
New ‘International’ area - We are delighted to announce that, along with the regional international forums we hosted with PwC last month, we’ve also launched a new international section of our website, along with a dedicated international discussion board. The international webpages pull together all our content from the past two years that has an international element to it, whether in payroll, tax, insurance, risk management, finance etc, and we will be including all future content with an international angle on these pages as well.
In order to receive updates on what's happening on the international discussion board as part of the daily discussion board email, you will need to make sure you have selected 'international' as one of your interests on the MyBUFDG page (expand the 'Interests' section after Primary and Secondary Interests, about half way down the page, then hit 'Save my details' at the top or bottom of the page.
Election manifestos – If you’ve wondered what all the party manifestos say about Higher Education, but haven’t the time to track them down individually, HEPI has a handy summary.
UK universities face chill winds – Nick Hillman of HEPI puts some context to the recent downgrade of HE institutions by credit rating agencies despite, on the face of it, things looking up.
Preparing for changes to off-payroll working - Last month we highlighted recent HMRC guidance on changes to the existing off-payroll working rules being implemented in April 2020 which will affect the HE sector (you can find that article here). Building on that article, we have highlighted difficulties that HEIs may have with the operation of the new rules and what actions you should consider taking now to prepare.
New and improved CEST - HMRC have updated the employment status checker, CEST, to improve the customer experience. They have also issued supporting guidance on how to use and answer the tool, based on the circumstances of the arrangements. HEI’s can use CEST to check the employment status of your workers, whether the individuals are sole traders or providing their services through their own personal service company (PSC). There are multiple changes to the tool, which you can read about in our full article.
Four Tax courses in the Spring - This year we are splitting our VAT on Land & Property course into two completely separate courses, to enable the content to be better tailored to the level of the delegates. These two courses – at Introductory and Update level, will be held on the 26th and 31st March respectively. March also sees two further Tax courses, covering Corpration Taxes (3rd) and Introduction to VAT (18th). Links and further details here. In addition, we will be running a webinar on practical tips for the CGS with Centurion VAT Specialists. We hope to run the webinar on 30 January and will publish details as soon as possible. So save the date now!
Sector climate commission – dozens of sector VCs and FE college heads were joined by students, regulators, and staff from HE sector agencies at the launch of the Climate Commission for UK HE and FE on the 13th November.
Fraudulent credit cards – there’s a big discussion on the website about several attempts around the sector to pay student fees with a fraudulent use of credit cards. Stopping it can be a challenge, but there are some ideas on the board, as well as slides from the recent WPM webinar on the subject.
UCAS student application figures – UCAS released its end-of-cycle report in November showing, among other things, record entry rates for 18 year olds in the UK and record levels of acceptances.
Universities are big business – an article in Wonkhe suggests that the sheer size of universities’ competitive income in England and, to a lesser extent, the rest of the UK, means universities should be seen as big businesses.
Finance for non-finance Managers - We have a new London course date in the diary for the 16th March. Finance for non-finance Managers aims to give non-accountants a basic understanding of finance. The course costs £250 (incl VAT) to attend. Find out more here. For any queries, please contact Rachel.
Finance business partners – Two new dates for this course, in London on 5th March, and Leeds on the 4th June. This course allows delegates to understand the role, realities, and competencies required of a HE Finance Business Partner, using real university examples. It will help you work more strategically, identify and practise ways to communicate with stakeholders and develop better relationships. You will also work with a set of tools to develop and prioritise your activities and will leave the session with a personal action plan to put into place on your return.
Introduction to TRAC - New course dates are available for our ever-popular course, which introduces those new to Higher Education and / or new to TRAC to the key concepts and compliance requirements. It looks at the difficulties and challenges that might arise, together with possible solutions and good practice. The two courses are in London on the 12th May and the 24th November. For any queries, please contact Rachel.
Ratings Revaluation Webinar - Institutions in England and Wales that rely on the 80% charitable relief from “Business Rates” may have wondered why it is taking so long to agree an approach to the valuations of property to establish the 100% figure. AUDE has been following this project closely since UUK handed it on and has now organised a webinar on Friday 6th December to explain where we are, what institutions should do now and where we might go next.
Student finance training - If any of your team are involved in student finance, the NASMA training events will be very useful. View them all on the NASMA website.
Let’s talk value – AdvanceHE’s second conference on value in Higher Education - what it is, how it’s created, and how we talk about it and report it, is in London on the 11th February.
Our job of the month is for a Chief Financial Officer to join the team at the University of Buckingham. "The CFO will have a strategic focus, engaging closely with the PVCs, COO and Deans, to develop corporate planning strategy and processes, enabling the integration of academic and financial strategy, supported by underpinning operational plans and budgets". Closing date for this vacancy is 9th December 2019.
As usual, there are lots of other vacancies listed on the BUFDG jobs page.
