Financial Monitoring Preparation Checklist for Job Clubs

Transcription

1 Financial Monitoring Preparation Checklist for Job Clubs Items which should be sourced before undertaking a Financial Monitoring visit to a Job Club; Notification of Financial Monitoring Visit letter sent to Contractor Check that the contract for current year is on file and is fully completed and signed by both parties Note approved budget allocations under each nominal code (salary, overhead and participant allowance) Note staffing levels outlined in contract Print Job Club Financial Monitoring checklist and procedures Print list of payments from DSP to the Contractor Select 1-2 monthly financial claims for vouching purposes during visit Note the Job Club bank details on Job Club file Check the Job Club file for any outstanding issues that need to be followed up with the Contractor A5JC V1.1 January

2 Financial Monitoring Procedures for Job Clubs SECTION 1 BANK ACCOUNT 1.1) Question: Is there only one bank account in use for DSP-funded Job Club activities? Contractor must be asked how many bank accounts are being used for the Job Club If more than one bank account is in use follow up with administrator immediately and thereafter to Contractor in Monitoring Feedback letter 1.2) Question: Is the bank account the same as that advised to DSP? Compare bank statement details to bank details on Job Club file If they are the same details are in order If details are not the same the administrator should be advised initially and query recorded in writing to Contractor in Monitoring Feedback letter 1.3) Question: Are bank statements received by the Contractor monthly and filed correctly? Check name and address on the bank statement Sight the bank statement file and confirm that the statements are filed numerically/by page number and are up to date if not filed correctly recommend that this be undertaken If bank statements are not addressed to the Contractor the administrator should be queried initially and recorded in writing to Contractor in Monitoring Feedback letter 1.4) Question: Were all payments made by DSP lodged to the authorised bank account? Compare bank statement details to payments made to date and confirm lodgement of DSP payments If no, the administrator should be queried initially and record in writing to Contractor in Monitoring Feedback letter 1.5) Question: Were there additional lodgements to the bank account from sources other than DSP? Check and record additional lodgements made Identify source and reasons for any non DSP lodgements The administrator should be queried initially on any issues and record in writing to Contractor in Monitoring Feedback letter A5JC V1.1 January

3 1.6) Question: Were there any payments other than cheques/direct debits/eft's withdrawn from the bank account? Procedure Check all bank statements and confirm the only withdrawals were by way of cheque, direct debit or EFT Record any transaction referred to as cash, withdrawals and transfers Are there any standing orders/direct debits? If standing orders/direct debits exist, support paperwork should be examined and confirmed as relating to the Job Club If any cash, withdrawals and transfers exist query with administrator and record in Monitoring Feedback letter to Contractor 1.7) Question: Were monthly bank reconciliations prepared and the current reconciliation verified? Procedure Request to see the current bank reconciliation Using one of the selected monthly claim forms, verify the copy of bank statement attached to claim against the original on the Job Club file. Verify the figure from the bank statement being used in the bank reconciliation From the listing of outstanding cheques (if any), confirm that they are cashed by following through to later bank statements Verify that outstanding cheques are not more than six months old Check any other adjustments/entries that may be on the bank statement If no bank statement is available or bank statement is not in order, the administrator should be queried initially and record in writing to Contractor in Monitoring Feedback letter 1.8) Question: Are the signatories to the bank account the same as those notified to DSP? Ask who are the signatories of the bank account Record the names given on the Monitoring Checklist Compare the signatories stated above to the bank details on the Job Club file If signatories are different the administrator should be queried initially and record in Monitoring Feedback letter to Contractor SECTION 2 INCOME 2.1) Question: Is Income for the Job Club recorded on a computerised or manual system? If computerised obtain print-out of Job Club income from administrator Record name of package/system in use If manual, request to see the cash receipts (income) sheet/book A5JC V1.1 January

4 2.2) Question: Is the income record analysed, completed and totalled on a monthly and cumulative year to date basis and lodged to the bank? Confirm all income is recorded and lodged Where there are direct lodgements, confirm that they have been recorded in the cash receipts (income) sheet/book 2.3) Question: Has any income generated by the Job Club outside of DSP funding been declared to DSP? Identify the areas where additional income is generated Identify sources of any additional income and ascertain how it is being used Check that any income has been declared on relevant monthly claim form SECTION 3 EXPENDITURE 3.1) Question: Is expenditure for the Job Club recorded on a computerised or manual system? If computerised obtain print-out of cheques drawn to date on the Job Club account from administrator If manual, request to see the expenditure record 3.2) Question: Is the expenditure record fully completed, analysed and totalled on a monthly and cumulative year to date basis? Confirm all cheques are recorded in numerical sequence Where there are transactions by EFT, confirm that they have been recorded in the expenditure record Confirm that bank charges and direct debits are recorded when the bank statements are received Confirm that all columns of the expenditure record are totalled and analysed at each month end 3.3) Question: Have blank cheques been signed in advance? Request to sight the current cheque book Verify that it is consistent with the cheque payments book Determine if there are any signed blank cheques If pre-signed blank cheques exist the administrator should be advised initially that this is in breach of best practice and A5JC V1.1 January

5 3.4) Question: Are all cheques "crossed" and cancelled cheques properly recorded and filed? Confirm all cheques are crossed and marked account payee only, not negotiable Review the cheque record and identify cancelled cheques if any If cheques have been cancelled they should be marked as such and retained in the cheque book. 3.5) Question: Were the totals on the monthly claims submitted to DSP in agreement with the relevant monthly expenditure record totals? Confirm, using the monthly claims copied, that the expenditure totals were in agreement with the relevant monthly totals in the payment record 3.6) Question: Is Job Club expenditure claimed from DSP fully supported? Select a monthly claim form, sight the support documentation for all expenditure claimed and examine whether: o Original invoice is addressed to the Job Club o If addressed to the Contractor, that apportionment has been clearly shown o There is evidence of receipt of goods/services o There is signed approval of invoices by Contractor o The invoice is marked as paid o The purchase is relevant to the Job Club o The invoice is cross referenced with the cheque number/direct debit/eft and date o Confirm that the amount of the cheque/direct debit/eft corresponds with the invoice, expenditure record and bank statement o Confirm the cheque was prepared and dated before expenditure was claimed from DSP o Check that PAYE and PRSI payments are remitted to the Revenue Commissioner in a timely fashion and that the payment matches the total obligation to Revenue as detailed in the salaries records; o Ensure that no payments are being made with/to a credit card. 3.7) Question: Is a capital/asset register maintained by the Job Club? Any single item with a purchase price in excess of 200 should be recorded on the capital (asset) register o DSP approval must have been received in writing prior to purchase Select and sight a number of items from the register A5JC V1.1 January

6 3.8) Question: Is there a Petty Cash system in use? Procedure if Yes: Determine average level of petty cash used per week is not excessive with reference to the size of the Job Club Sight the petty cash book and ensure it is maintained and up-to-date Agree the cash on hand to the book balance Was expenditure supported by receipts and analysis? Query any IOU s in the cash box The Administrator should be advised initially on any queries raised and record, if SECTION 4 PARTICIPANT ALLOWANCES 4.1) Question: Were participants in formal workshops paid a weekly attendance allowance? Determine from the claim form if any such payments were made Determine if the total allowances paid is in line with the total number of participants who attended workshops If yes, sight the expenditure records for a selected number of payments; o Record the relevant cheque number o Identify cheque on bank statement (number and amount) The administrator should be advised initially on any queries raised and record, if 4.2) Question: Have all participants signed for receipt of the participant allowance? (A1JC05 form) Sight a selection of A1JC05 forms (submitted as part of monthly claim) The administrator should be advised initially on any queries raised and record in Monitoring Feedback letter to Contractor. A5JC V1.1 January