MANUAL FOR THE EURO-HEALTHY

Transcription

1 MANUAL FOR THE EURO-HEALTHY INTERNAL AND PERIODIC PROJECT MONITORING AND REPORTING Coimbra, May, 2015 EURO-HEALTHY project has received funding from the European Union s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under Grant Agreement No

2 Foreword The Manual for the EURO-HEALTHY internal and periodic project monitoring and reporting was designed for the purpose of fulfilling the reporting requirements stated under the EU Framework Program for Research and Innovation H2020 Framework. All articles stated in this document refer to the AGA-Annotated Model Grant Agreement Version 2.0.1, 12 May Important contacts: Project coordinator: Prof. Paula Santana Project manager, Alexandre Leal WP1: Iwa Stefanik 2

3 Table of contents Foreword... 2 Important contacts:... 2 INTRODUCTION REPORTING Article 20.3 Periodic reports Requests for interim payments Article 20.4 Final report Request for payment of the balance INTERNAL MONITORING Internal Technical Reports WP Leader Report Deliverable Reports Milestone Reports Internal Financial Monitoring Useful links INFORMATION: SUPPORT: List of figures Figure 1. Template for the WP Leader Report (internal and periodic) Figure 2. Template for the Deliverable Report-doc form (official and non-official one) Figure 3. Template for the Deliverable Report-excel form (official and non-official one) Figure 4. Template of a Milestone Report including contribution of a specific WP Figure 5. Template of the Milestones Report to be submitted by UC/IST Figure 6. Template of the Internal Financial Report to be submitted by each beneficiary Figure 6a. Template of the Internal Financial Report-zoom A Figure 6b. Template of the Internal Financial Report-zoom B Figure 6c. Template of the Internal Financial Report-zoom C Figure 7. Template for time recording provided by EU: basic version Figure 8. Template for time recording provided by UC: detailed version

4 INTRODUCTION The information contained in the document is meant to guide the EURO-HEALTHY partners to implement a mechanism to monitor and report all technical and financial activities related to the EURO-HEALTHY project. Accordingly the manual aims to assist WP Leaders and individual partners by setting out procedures and requirements for project administrative execution. Management WP1 will manage all the tasks of the EURO-HEALTHY project. As stated in the Grant Agreement, the management structure of the EURO-HEALTHY project will i) ensure that effective methods for planning, communicating, and decision making are in place, ii) manage the project work so as to be on schedule, iii) ensure that the deliverables and reports are on time and within the allocated budget, and in line with the expected research quality, and iv) to ensure that the project objectives and outcomes are achieved. For further information please see the Grant Agreement, section Management structures and procedures, page Purpose The main purpose of this manual is to help users understand and interpret their responsibilities towards the EURO-HEALTHY project reporting. The document is designed to help readers find answers to practical administrative requirements linked to the project. The end-results aimed at are regular reports and documents that comply with the European Commission (EC) regulations stated in the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme for and the EURO-HEALTHY Grant Agreement. The manual contains two distinct segments: REPORTING: This section outlines the role and responsibilities of the project coordinator and beneficiaries regarding mandatory reporting to EC. The chapter covers technical aspects of periodic reporting practice including financial and technical aspects. INTERNAL MONITORING: This part provides practical internal monitoring mechanisms that need to be processed to execute reporting requirements, within timelines, and communicate results to the project manager, project coordinator and the EC. 4

5 Contact point with European Commission The project coordinator will be the contact person with the European Commission. Except the coordinator, a partner shall never contact directly the EC Project Officer. Changes in the Grant Agreement and amendments If during the course of the project you identify any major change to your legal details or contractual deliverables as stated in the GA, eg. Change of name or address of a coordinator vs. update of beneficiaries' data in the Participant Portal; Changes to Annex 1: a significant change of the action tasks; Changes concerning in-kind contributions or subcontracts; Changes to Annex 2 = estimated budget: form of costs that is not in Annex 2; Removal of a beneficiary for non-accession to GA; Change of beneficiary due to universal takeover; Please inform as soon as possible the coordinator or the project manager. They will assess the situation and guide you on the best procedure to follow for updating this at the EC level, if needed by requesting an amendment to the GA. Important note: Please note that the Manual covers the basic elements for implementing reporting and internal monitoring requirements. The AGA Annotated Model Grant Agreement provides detailed information regarding reporting requirements, including technical and financial aspects i.e. cost eligibility, that should serve as a reference point for beneficiary-specific needs. Please find reference to the AGA at the end of the Manual called useful links. Please note that all templates provided in the Manual are available to upload on the EURO-HEALTHY Intranet. 5

6 1. REPORTING This chapter contains information based on Article 20 Reporting-Payments Request (AGA, 2015 p.160). Terms and Conditions (All Annexes are attached to Grant Agreement EURO-HEALTHY.pdf. Please note that Annex 4 in this Manual corresponds to Annex 5 in the above mentioned document). Annex 1 Annex 2 Annex 3 Annex 4 Description of the action Estimated budget for the action Model for the financial statements Model for the financial statements 1.1 Article 20.3 Periodic reports Requests for interim payments The coordinator must submit a periodic report within 60 days following the end of each reporting period. The EURO-HEALTHY project has two periodic reports (each 18 months). The Periodic Report must include the following: A. A Periodic Technical Report containing: o An explanation of the work carried out by the beneficiaries; o An overview of the progress towards the objectives of the action, including milestones and deliverables identified in Annex 1. This report must include explanations justifying the differences between work expected to be carried out in accordance with Annex 1 and that actually carried out. The report must also detail the exploitation and dissemination of the results and if required in Annex 1 an updated Plan for the Exploitation and Dissemination of the Results; o A summary for publication by the [Commission][Agency]; o The answers to the Questionnaire, covering issues related to the action implementation and the economic and societal impact, notably in the context of 6

7 the Horizon 2020 key performance indicators and the Horizon 2020 monitoring requirements; B. A Periodic Financial Report containing: o An Individual Financial Statement from each beneficiary [and from each linked third party], for the reporting period concerned. The individual financial statement must detail the eligible costs (actual costs, unit costs and flat-rate costs [and lump sum costs]; see Article 6) for each budget category (see Annex 2). The beneficiaries [and linked third parties] must declare all eligible costs, even if for actual costs, unit costs and flat-rate costs they exceed the amounts indicated in the estimated budget (see Annex 2). Amounts which are not declared in the individual financial statement will not be taken into account by the [Commission][Agency]. If an individual financial statement is not submitted for a reporting period, it may be included in the periodic financial report for the next reporting period. The Individual Financial Statements of the last reporting period must also detail the receipts of the action (see Article 5.3.3). Each beneficiary [and each linked third party] must certify that: the information provided is full, reliable and true; the costs declared are eligible (see Article 6); the costs can be substantiated by adequate records and supporting documentation (see Article 18) that will be produced upon request (see Article 17) or in the context of checks, reviews, audits and investigations (see Article 22), and for the last reporting period: that all the receipts have been declared (see Article 5.3.3); o o An explanation of the use of resources and the information on subcontracting (see Article 13) and in-kind contributions provided by third parties (see Articles 11 and 12) from each beneficiary [and from each linked third party], for the reporting period concerned; A Periodic Summary Financial Statement (see Annex 4), created automatically by the electronic exchange system, consolidating the individual financial statements for the reporting period concerned and including except for the last reporting period the request for interim payment. 7

8 1.2 Article 20.4 Final report Request for payment of the balance In addition to the periodic report for the last reporting period, the coordinator must submit the final report within 60 days following the end of the last reporting period. The Final Report must include the following: 1. A Final Technical Report with a summary for publication containing: An overview of the results and their exploitation and dissemination; The conclusions on the action, and The socio-economic impact of the action; 2. A Final Financial Report containing: Final Summary Financial Statement (see Annex 4), created automatically by the electronic exchange system, consolidating the individual financial statements for all reporting periods and including the request for payment of the balance and A Certificate on the Financial Statements (drawn up in accordance with Annex 5) for each beneficiary [and for each linked third party], if it requests a total contribution of EUR or more, as reimbursement of actual costs and unit costs calculated on the basis of its usual cost accounting practices (see Article 5.2 and Article 6.2, Point A). NOTE: General conditions for costs to be eligible (see Article 6.1) Eligible costs are costs that meet the following criteria: A. For actual costs: they must be actually incurred by the beneficiary; they must be incurred in the period set out in Article 3, with the exception of costs relating to the submission of the periodic report for the last reporting period and the final report (see Article 20); 8

9 they must be indicated in the estimated budget set out in Annex 2; they must be incurred in connection with the action as described in Annex 1 and necessary for its implementation; they must be identifiable and verifiable, in particular recorded in the beneficiary s accounts in accordance with the accounting standards applicable in the country where the beneficiary is established and with the beneficiary s usual cost accounting practices; they must comply with the applicable national law on taxes, labour and social security, and they must be reasonable, justified and must comply with the principle of sound financial management, in particular regarding economy and efficiency; B. For unit costs: they must be calculated as follows: {amounts per unit set out in Annex 2 or calculated by the beneficiary in accordance with its usual cost accounting practices (see Article 6.2, Point A) multiplied by the number of actual units}; the number of actual units must comply with the following conditions: o the units must be actually used or produced in the period set out in Article 3; o the units must be necessary for implementing the action or produced by it, and o the number of units must be identifiable and verifiable, in particular supported by records and documentation (see Article 18); C. For flat-rate costs: they must be calculated by applying the flat-rate set out in Annex 2, and the costs (actual costs or unit costs[or lump-sum costs]) to which the flat-rate is applied must comply with the conditions for eligibility set out in this Article [;][.] D. [OPTION] if lump sum foreseen in Article 5.2: for lump sum costs: the eligible amount is equal to the amount set out in Annex 2, and 9

10 the corresponding tasks or parts of the action must have been properly implemented in accordance with Annex INTERNAL MONITORING In order to facilitate submission of bounden reports mentioned in the 1st chapter Reporting, all beneficiaries are required to adapt an internal monitoring of all activities assigned to the EURO-HEALTHY project. For this reason WP1 has prepared five templates to simplify the monitoring process. The templates are designed in the line with requirements stated in the Annotated Model Grant Agreement 2014 and Fit for Health 2.0. All templates were specifically prepared to assure consistency while carrying out the project. They also quicken the process of documentation, planning and organization. Internal monitoring of: Activities done Person moths used Budget spent Process: Gathering data through internal reporting Continuous check of: o Status quo o Analysis of deviations o Adapted planning o Counter-steering if necessary When/how often? Duration of the EURO-HEALTHY project: 36 months 2 official reporting periods to the EC: each 18 months and Final Report 6 internal reporting periods: each 6 months 2.1 Internal Technical Reports They are prepared by the coordinator and the beneficiaries together. 10

11 There are two main objectives of submitting the Technical Reports. First one includes controlling the project progress by informing what has already been achieved. For this reason real achievements will be compared with the objectives, deliverables and milestones described in Annex 1. Second, if any differences are recognized between work expected to be carried out as described in Annex 1 and that actually carried, explanation and justification will need to be reported WP Leader Report All WPs Leaders are required to submit a WP Leader Report to the coordinator every 6 months counting a starting point of the project as January 1 st, Main objective of the WP Leader Report includes monitoring technical progress and financial statement. Accordingly the performance of each WP will be assessed based on information provided in the report. Each WP Leader Report (see fig. 1) includes data regarding: Progress towards objectives and details for each task; Significant results; Deviations on tasks and corrective actions; Person month used and; Budget spent Below please find listed deadlines for submission internal and periodic WP Leaders Reports: 1 st Internal WP Leader Report 15 th July 2015 (for the period January-June 2015) 2 nd Internal WP Leader Report 15 th January 2016 (for the period July-December 2015) 3 rd Internal WP Leader Report 15 th July 2016 (for the period January-June 2016) 1 st Periodic WP Leader Report 15 th July 2016 (for the period January 2015 June 2016) 4 th Internal WP Leader Report 15 th January 2017 (for the period July December 2016) 5 th Internal WP Leader Report 15 th July 2017 (for the period January June 2017) 6 th Internal WP Leader Report 15 th January 2018 (for the period July-December 2017) 2 nd Periodic WP Leader Report 15 th January 2018 (for the period July 2016-December 2017) Final Report - 15 th January 2018 (for the period January 2015-December 2017) 11

12 Figure 1. Template for the WP Leader Report (internal and periodic). Please find a doc form of the WP Leader Report to download on the EURO-HEALTHY Intranet. 12

13 2.1.2 Deliverable Reports Each WP will produce the outputs referred as deliverables. Accordingly the EURO- HEALTHY will have 56 deliverables, equally distributed by the participants and the timeline of the project. Due to European Commission's lack of capacity to assess all original deliverables, the number of deliverables that need to be reported to the EC has decreased to 20. Nevertheless, in order to accomplish the original project's goal all deliverables need to be delivered and reported. The high complexity and interconnection of the project's tasks among WPs prevent removal of any of deliverables. Therefore, it is obligatory that each (official and non-official one) deliverable will be submitted together with the Deliverable Reports: doc form and excel (see fig. 2 and fig. 3). This is of particular importance to monitor, forecast and fix potential delays caused by delayed delivery of interconnected tasks. Deliverable Reports must be submitted by a lead beneficiary of an assigned deliverable. There are two Deliverable Reports. First one (fig. 2) includes data regarding: Description of the task; Description of the Deliverable; Implementation of work; Results; Sub-contracting Second one (fig. 3) refers to inclusion of progress/deviations, requesting provision of listed information: Achieved yes/no/in progress Forecast delivery date Justification of delay Each WP leader should do and send to the coordinator the deliverable report on date (in accordance with the timing and conditions set out in the Grant Agreement). 13

14 Figure 2. Template for the Deliverable Report-doc form (official and non-official one). Please find a doc form of the Deliverable Report to download on the EURO-HEALTHY Intranet. 14

15 Figure 3. Template for the Deliverable Report-excel form (official and non-official one). IMPORTANT: Please note, that provided template is a screenshot of a randomly chosen WP. An individual excel spreadsheet document is prepared for each WP separately and accessible via the EURO-HEALTHY Intranet Milestone Reports The PSG defines eight milestones for monitoring the evolution of the project (figure 4). These milestones will allow the project coordinator, the Project Steering Group and the European Commission to chart the research project and confirm that it is running as planned. Milestones correspond to the completion of key deliverables, allowing the next phase of the work to begin or be needed at intermediary points. For this reason it is of significant importance to monitor progress of milestones achievements. Responsibility of submission the Milestone Report is divided into two beneficiaries: UC and IST. Accordingly UC will act as the lead beneficiary for milestones: MS1, MS2, MS5, and MS6, while IST will take the responsibility of MS3, MS4, MS7 and MS8. 15

16 To successfully achieve each milestone, input of all WPs is essential. To clarify contribution of each WP to each milestone please see figure 5. Additionally in the prepared templates each WP excel document contains two spreadsheets called: WP[nr]Deliverables and WP[nr] Milestones. The Milestone spreadsheet (see fig. 4) indicates contribution of certain WP to assigned milestones. It is crucial that each WP will monitor its progress towards achievement of linked milestones. Two Milestone Reports include information regarding progress/deviations: Achieved yes/no Forecast delivery date Justification of delay Figure 4. Template of a Milestone Report including contribution of a specific WP. Please find an excel form of a Milestone Report for each WP to download on the EURO-HEALTHY Intranet. 16

17 Figure 5. Template of the Milestones Report to be submitted by UC/IST. Please find an excel form of the Milestones Report to download on the EURO-HEALTHY Intranet. 2.2 Internal Financial Monitoring A. Internal Financial Progress Report: Each beneficiary must send the financial progress report to monitor person months used and budget spent on the Euro-Healthy project tasks. For this reason WP1 has prepared an excel file for internal financial progress report. All partners are required to send this document to the coordinator every 6 months counting a starting point of the project as January 1 st, The project manager will send the file during the last month of each period. Financial Progress Report includes: Person months planned/used for each WP; 17

18 Budget spent for different categories of expenses (Direct personnel costs; Direct costs of Subcontracting; Other Direct Costs); Comments about some problems/deviations. Figure 6. Template of the Internal Financial Report to be submitted by each beneficiary. 18

19 Figure 6a. Template of the Internal Financial Report-zoom A. Figure 6b. Template of the Internal Financial Report-zoom B. Figure 6c. Template of the Internal Financial Report-zoom C. 19

20 B. Record time (Time-sheets): Each beneficiary is obliged to monitor and record time, person months used and budget spent on the Euro-Healthy project tasks. As mentioned in the section WP Leader Report, WP Leaders must submit listed information in addition with the timesheet. For this reason WP1 has prepared a template for time recording. The manual contains two templates: one proposed by the EU (see fig. 6) and second one advised by the EURO-HEALTHY project manager, which is designed by Coimbra University (see fig. 7). Please note that both templates are examples of an acceptable timesheet. It is not a mandatory model. Beneficiaries are entitled to use any other model of timesheet provided that it fulfils the minimum conditions and it contains at least the information detailed below. Time records should include: The title and number of the action, as specified in the GA The beneficiary s full name as specified in the GA The full name, date and signature of the person working for the action The number of hours per day declared for the action The supervisor s full name and signature A reference to the action tasks or work package described in Annex1, to easily verify the work carried out matches the work assigned A description of the activities carried out, to understand and show what work was carried out Source: AGA Annotated Model Grant Agreement: H2020 General MGA: V2.0.1 May 2015, p

21 Figure 7. Template for time recording provided by EU: basic version. Source: 21

22 Figure 8. Template for time recording provided by UC: detailed version. Please find an excel template of UC timesheet to upload on the EURO-HEALTHY Intranet. 22

23 Useful links 1. INFORMATION: Time recording for a Horizon 2020 Action: Annotated Model Grant Agreement H2020 Online Manual: FAQs on the Participant Portal 2. SUPPORT: Fit for Health 2.0: 23