34 Virtual Brochure – February 2024 3. Expenses Benchmarking – Nov 2023 Overview In recent months, we have completed expenses reviews and included a benchmarking analysis. Regarding the latter, this note details allowable expenses and summarises relevant policies from nine institutions. The information provided is intended to aid institutions as they consider revising rates and limits and also act as a prompt on what stipulations should be included in related policies and procedures. Institutions have been updating their expenses policies driven, in part, by reflections on need and value for money in a more virtual environment. The institutions included range in size (and we give detail on student and staff population). To note: • subsistence rates / limits (travel, accommodation, food and alcohol) are broadly similar and one institution puts the onus on staff / students to claim based on a ‘reasonableness’ assessment • not all the supporting procedures make reference to the consequences of non-compliance – we suggest that the consequences of false / fraudulent claims should be detailed and a link to the related policy provided e.g., anti-fraud and corruption. This analysis concentrated on expense submission. We are seeing institutions also reflect on prior approval i.e., expenditure over a certain value needs pre-approval including some form of business case (with the level of detail depending on the scale of the expenditure) including the benefits (and to whom) from the activity.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTI5NzM=