Every three years Schools and all other University Institutions are required to produce Strategic Plans. These plans set the academic priorities and objectives for the Institution for the next five years and explain how they are to be implemented. The Strategic Plans are accompanied by detailed financial forecasts.
Although the Strategic Plans are generally only updated every three years, the financial forecasts are revisited annually in the Planning Round. The financial forecasts for Schools and all other Institutions are consolidated together to provide a University level financial forecast which forms part of the Budget Report (formerly called the Allocations Report). The second year of this forecast includes the Allocation of Chest Expenditure to Schools and Institutions. The first year is a revised estimate of activity in the current year.
To meet HEFCE's requirement that the University operates sustainably, the Budget Report is not just a consolidation of Schools' and other Institutions' financial forecast submissions. This is because financial forecasts at this level represent their Institution's aspirations. The Resource Management Committee (RMC) and Planning & Resources Committee (PRC) will consider the University's total expenditure plans in the context of its estimated future income and may cap or limit some (or all) Institutional plans. It is this iterative review process which generates the final numbers in the Budget Report.
The timetable below shows the main stages of the Planning Round.
Month/Year | Activity |
Jun/Jul | Formal planning guidance issued by the Planning & Resource Allocation Office (PRAO). |
Jul-Dec |
|
Sep/Oct | Actual income and expenditure for the last financial year is analysed by Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) into the same activity categories as used in planning. |
1 Dec | Submitted to PRAO
|
Dec | FP&A
PRAO
|
Jan/Feb | Strategic Plans are reviewed.
|
Feb/Mar | RMC/PRC
|
Apr | General Board and Finance Committee consider Plans and Allocations |
May | Council considers Plans and Allocations |
May/Jun | Budget Report published in The Reporter |
Jun | Budget Report graced |
Jul/Aug | Departmental budgets produced by Finance Managers and passed to FP&A |
Aug | Departmental budgets uploaded into UFS by FP&A |