Effective Governance and Financial Management in Academies

The funding agreement between the secretary of state and academy trusts refers to the need for academies to comply with the requirements of the Academies Financial Handbook (AFH) published by the Department for Education.

This CIPFA guide will complement the AFH, and become the companion for those responsible for governance of academies and the management of academy finances.

Drawing on the overall financial requirements specified in academy funding agreements, the AFH and CIPFA’s own guides, it provides an understanding of the context for governance of academies and guidance on a wide range of financial management, funding and accounting issues.

The guide seeks to help academies satisfy the monitoring needs of the funding and regulatory agency, and to meet the Companies Act and Charity Commissioners requirements, without imposing unnecessary administrative burdens on governing bodies or senior staff. The overall aim is to ensure that there is, and is seen to be, effective use of public funds and that the mechanisms are in place to ensure accountability for their use.

This publication provides a practical source of guidance and advice for:

• academy principals/headteachers
• finance directors (and other senior staff with responsibility for finance matters, including bursars and business managers)
• chairs of governors, chairs and members of finance and audit committees.

It will also be valuable to other governing body members and interested parties, for example, some local authority officers, academy auditors, charities and businesses involved with or considering involvement with academies.

This title is available in book format. The terms of licences for other categories of purchaser, which includes those organisations operating shared service arrangements, are available on request from CIPFA’s Publications Department.