Author - Colette Pretorius Associate Director – Audit and Assurance, Moore Stephens

School budget preparation time can be an intense and stressful time for Business Managers and School Boards or Councils (Governing Bodies). The end of December always seems so far away until the September school holidays are here, and budget deadlines suddenly become more immediate.

Most Governing Bodies consist of volunteers who have limited time to read through and interpret large budget reports with lists of financial data. To help get their school budget approved faster, Business Managers can reduce the time their Governing Body spends reviewing such data by improving the analysis and reporting formats of their five or ten year forecasts (which are prepared as part of the annual budget process).  Preparing forecasts is a crucial part of a school's long term financial strategy and they are important tools to understand and anticipate a school's financial sustainability.  The sooner the Governing Body can approve the budget, the sooner it can return to its main priority - making strategic decisions for the future of the school.

The following guidelines can help your school to achieve improved analysis and reporting of financial forecast reports:

• agree on annual key performance indicators (KPIs) with your Governing Body and use these KPIs in calculating the results of your annual five or ten year forecasts;
• ensure that your KPIs cover a variety of ratios, including liquidity, efficiency and sustainability ratios;
• discuss possible future strategic scenarios with the Governing Body and compare the results of the different options using the KPIs approved by the Governing Body. Scenarios can include, for example:
  • different campus capital developments such as building refurbishments or new building projects;
  • changes in student and staff numbers or ratios; and
  • different fee levels;
• analyse major cost categories using a cost per student ratio. This helps puts into perspective how student fees contribute to funding an activity; and
• obtain benchmark data and incorporate these into your analyses. For example: What is your student teacher ratio, maintenance and information technology cost and debt per student? How do these ratios compare to comparable schools, and if it is different, why?

Taking the time to agree on KPIs and prepare forecasts is all part of good governance practices for schools.  The collapse of Mowbray College (a Victorian private school) in 2013 due to $28 million of debts, serves as a stark reminder to all schools and their Governing Bodies of their financial responsibilities. It also shows the importance of employing proper financial management practices to ensure that the school has a long-term future.

Taking the time to prepare a forecast report to the Governing Body, including the information listed above, should then tell them a financial story that they can more easily understand and analyse. By giving your Governing Body accurate and succinct information, you will help them make the right decisions for the future of your school.

Disclaimer:

The contents of this article are generic in nature and do not represent advice that can be relied upon. You should seek professional advice based on your own personal circumstances. The author and any other parties involved in the preparation or distribution of this article expressly disclaim any form of liability to any person in respect of this article and any consequences arising from its use by any person in reliance in whole or any part of the contents of this article.

About the Author

Colette Pretorius is an Associate Director – Audit and Assurance, Moore Stephens (www.moorestephens.com.au), accountants and advisors who provide personalised and commercially astute auditing, assurance, risk management and accounting services. Drawing on over 19 years’ experience, Colette specialises in advice to the not-for-profit sector. Colette was previously Chief Financial Officer/Board Secretary at Brisbane Girls Grammar School. She can be contacted on (02) 8236 7700 or cpretorius@moorestephens.com.au.