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Account Structure

Every cashbook entry needs a breakdown/analysis in terms of what it represents: Payments represent expenditure, e.g., grass cutting, clerks salary; Receipts come from a particular source, e.g. Precept, VAT refund.

The analysis is achieved by allocating the amount of the cashbook entry to one or more accounts. The account represents the expenditure or source of income, e.g., there will be an account for clerk's salary.

There are 2 sorts of Account: one that starts each year with its balance at zero (1) ; the other has its balance brought forward.

Accounts that start each year with their balance at zero are for the precept and expenditure funded by the precept.

Accounts that have their balance brought forward are those that represent a liability/asset of the council ,such as VAT to be reclaimed, or CIL.

The Accounts are structured hierarchically, as can be seen in the above screen shot. Accounts under RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS, e.g., PRECEPT and SALARY, start each year with their balance at zero. Accounts outside of RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS, e.g., VAT and CIL have their balance brought forward. Consequently, it is only these accounts that can have opening balances entered.

The accounts have an initial structure, that is determined by the requirements of the AGAR and the functionality of the software. These initial Accounts cannot be deleted, but new Accounts can be added as a Sub-Account. Most of the Accounts that you create will be under PAYMENTS. You can create a flat structure, as you would have with a spreadsheet, with all the expense accounts under PAYMENTS or you can structure it more hierarchically.

Accounts under PAYMENTS have debit balances shown as positive, all other Accounts have credit balances shown as positive.

Initial Structure

• CIL

  Used to keep track of payment to and from Community Infrastructure Levy

• RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS

  All the accounts under this start each year with their balances at zero.

  • RECEIPTS

    Create extra accounts under this account if you have sources of income other than the precept.

    • PRECEPT

  • PAYMENTS

    Create all the necessary accounts to analyse the council's expenditure under this account. You can arrange the accounts hierarchically.

    • LOAN REPAYMENTS

    • STAFF COSTS

• TRANSFERS

  Use this account for transfers between cashbooks, e.g., from the bank account to petty cash.

• VAT

  This is used to accumulate VAT to be reclaimed by a VAT126

• VAT126

  This records VAT refund claims and the receipts from HMRC

Adding Accounts

1. Select the Accounts tab.
2. In the tree view on the left, expand the tree until you can see the Account under which you wish to create the Sub-Account.
3. Select the Account.
4. Click the Add Sub-Account button (the Name and Description fields will clear).
5. Enter the Name and the description.

   The Name identifies the Account and must be unique. It must consist of one or more strings of uppercase characters separated by a single '.', '/', '-' or ' '. E.g. 'GRASS', 'GRASS CUTTING', or 'GRASS-CUTTING'.

6. Press Save

Entering Budget

1. Check the Associated Budget check box.
2. The Budget field will appear.
3. Enter the buget for this year.

Budget performance can be monitored here.

Notes

(1) Technically speaking that is not what happens. At the end of the year, these account all have the balances consolidated into RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS, and the balance of RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS is carried over. However, the effect is the same.