Introduction
The Education and Skills Funding Agency released updated guidance on the financial requirements for single- and Multi-Academy Trusts, effective 1 September 2023.
The complete financial management obligations are available on the official government website or in the Academy Trust Handbook 2023, also known as the Academies financial handbook.
We highly advise all academy stakeholders, including members, trustees, local governors, accounting officers, chief financial officers, auditors, and governance professionals, to review the document and familiarise themselves with the most recent guidelines.
In this blog, our website and auditing experts have outlined the financial information that Academy Trusts must share on their website, in addition to the DfE Requirements for Academies, free schools and colleges.
The financial information you need to display on your trust website
Being transparent about your governance
The Trust must publish on its website up-to-date details of its governance arrangements in a readily accessible format, including:
- The structure and remit of the Trust’s members, Board of Trustees, committees and local committees/governing bodies (the Trust’s scheme of delegation for governance functions), and the full names of the chair of each.
- For each Trust member serving at any point over the past 12 months, their full name, date of appointment, the date they stepped down (where applicable) and relevant business and financial interests, including governance roles in other educational institutions.
- For each Trustee and local governor serving at any point over the past 12 months, their full names, date of appointment, term of office, the date they stepped down (where applicable), who appointed them, and relevant business and financial interests, including governance roles in other educational institutions.
If the accounting officer is not a Trustee, their business and financial interests must still be published:
- For each Trustee, their attendance records at board and committee meetings over the last academic year.
- For each local governor, their attendance records at the local governing body meetings over the last academic year.
(Section 1.44)
Publication of executive pay
The Trust must publish on its website in a separate, readily accessible form the number of employees whose benefits exceeded £100k, in £10k bandings, for the previous year ended 31 August. Benefits for this purpose include salary, employers’ pension contributions, other taxable benefits and termination payments. Where the Academy Trust has entered into an off-payroll arrangement with someone who is not an employee, the amount paid by the Trust for that person’s work for the trust must also be included in the website disclosure where payment exceeds £100k as if they were an employee.
(Section 2.29)
Whistleblowing
The Trustees must agree a procedure for whistleblowing, and publish it on the Trust’s website, to protect staff who report individuals they believe are doing something wrong or illegal.
(Section 2.40)
Information about key individuals in the Trust
The Trust must notify DfE of changes to the governance information described in this section within 14 calendar days of the change and update its website and Companies House accordingly.
(Section 2.46)
Preparation and audit of accounts
The audited report and accounts must be published on the Trust’s website by 31 January
(Section 4.4)
Register of interests
Trusts must publish relevant business and financial interests of members, trustees, local governors and accounting officers on their websites. Trusts have discretion over the publication of other individuals' interests on the register. The Charity Commission offers guidance in: Managing a conflict of interest in your charity and CC29: Conflicts of interest: a guide for charity trustees.
(Section 5.48)
Intervention powers
The department will notify the Trust of the date on which the department has published the NtI. The Trust must then publish the NtI on its own website within 14 days and retain it on the website until the department lifts the NtI.
(Section 6.19)
Other essential financial requirements
Although these may not be mentioned in the Academy Handbook 2023, don’t forget there are other essential website requirements associated with education finance.
Academy funding agreements
Trusts must publish their funding agreement on their website.
Gender pay gap
Under the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulation 2017, organisations with 250+ employees have to publish information on their website and the government reporting website about the gender pay gap within their organisation.
It is also worth noting that schools also need to report the following financial information on their school website:
Charging and remissions policies
Academies should publish their charging and remissions policies (this means when you cancel fees). The policies must include details of:
- The activities or cases where your school will charge pupils’ parents
- The circumstances where your school will make an exception on a payment you would normally expect to receive under your charging policy
Pupil Premium and Recovery Premium
All schools that receive pupil premium funding must publish a pupil premium strategy statement on their website each year by 31 December
In the strategy statement, you must explain how your pupil premium and recovery premium is being spent and the outcomes that are being achieved for pupils.
PE and sport premium for primary schools
If your school receives PE and sport premium funding, you must publish:
- The amount of premium received.
- A full breakdown of how it has been spent (or will be spent).
- What impact the school has seen on pupils’ PE and sport participation and attainment.
- How the improvements will be sustainable in the future.
Conclusion
Understanding and adhering to the financial information requirements outlined in this blog is essential for Academy Trusts to maintain transparency and compliance with regulatory standards, but it’s not an easy task.
Deciphering the information and knowing what guidelines you must adhere to can be complex and time-consuming, but it’s essential to get it right.
Support from our experts
We've partnered with over 300 Academy Trusts to create visually appealing and fully compliant websites.
Our expert website team, specialising in standalone sites or trust-wide projects, can help your trust shine online while maintaining compliance.
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Book a free consultation with our team today and ensure your trust remains fully compliant online.
