School News is designed to give our clients and contacts in the sector short, topical updates along with details of our seminar programme on a bi monthly basis.

1. School News
February 2012
Living within your means – how you can help secure your school’s future
The current economic climate continues to put financial objective of academic excellence. It’s very easy to cut
pressure on independent schools, with falling numbers of costs dramatically which leads to poor quality, a
students enrolling into private education, schools need to deterioration in standards and ultimately threatens the
focus their awareness around reducing costs to enable future of any institution. Any efficiency initiative should be
their establishment to run more effectively. carefully planned and coordinated to ensure that reductions
The two main areas we encourage your finance teams are sustainable.
to look at are greater efficiency in procurement activity
(utilities, bulk purchasing, contracts) and the restructuring Look at the big picture and have a plan
of support activities (Finance, IT, HR, Facilities, Substantial resource efficiencies can be made by revisiting
Property, General Administration). We have assisted the operating model for support. A simple review of where
our clients in achieving significant efficiency savings costs are incurred, the number of staff employed in providing
without compromising quality and in some cases seeing support functions and the quality of service provided will
improvements in service delivery. provide a good guide as to where savings may be found. In
The key to successful cost management and cost reduction most cases our clients have been amazed by the level of cost
is to look at cost in a coordinated way so that any reductions and administration incurred in providing support.
made do not have a serious impact on your primary
Virtual world, real risks Questions your senior management team should
be addressing
Social media’s biggest advantage is also its biggest Every board should be asking its senior management team
disadvantage – its pervasiveness. It has millions of to address the following questions to help establish the
frequent users, which means misinformation or malicious effectiveness of the organisation’s approach to managing
falsehoods can be spread as far and as fast as any positive social media risks:
publicity. • Do we have a clear strategy and policy in place for
social media?
Why do some organisations fail to manage their social • Who is in charge of social media?
media risks? • Are we listening?
Risk management is high on every school’s agenda, but • Do we have a response plan in case of a social media crisis?
effective control of social media often slips through the net.
The consequences when your presence on social media is Helping you protect your reputation
left unchecked can be so grave, that the only place where Grant Thornton’s Internet Intelligence team is uniquely
responsibility for ensuring the risks are being managed equipped to help companies proactively manage the risks
effectively should lie, is at the very top. associated with social media, including devising a social
media policy bespoke to your requirements, auditing
your brand on social media and assisting in legal and
regulatory matters.

2. Grant Thornton is ranked as a top three adviser to the charity, education and housing
sectors and we pride ourselves on providing specialist knowledge to them. We would
like to invite you to attend a series of seminars focusing on some of the current issues
affecting organisations within these sectors. Each of these sessions will address a
different issue and you are welcome to attend as many sessions as you wish.
London Seminar programme
Grant Thornton House Housing Finance workshop London
Melton Street Our accounting update for registered providers will offer practical guidance Thursday 8 March 2012
covering issues affecting your financial statements. Topics will include: 8.30pm Registration and coffee
Euston Square component accounting, capitalisation policies and asset impairment, 9.00pm Seminar commences
London NW1 2EP together with reporting on governance and internal controls under new 12.00pm Lunch
regulatory requirements as well as an update on tax issues in the sector.
T 020 7383 5100 Leeds
Friday 9 March 2012
F 020 7383 4715 9.00am Registration and coffee
9.30am Seminar commences
RSVP 12.30pm Lunch
E ava.kimpton-pasfield@uk.gt.com
When social media becomes a liability London
Social media’s biggest advantage is also its biggest disadvantage – its Wednesday 25 April 2012
pervasiveness. It has millions of frequent users, which means misinformation 3.30pm Registration and coffee
or malicious falsehoods can be spread as far and as fast as any positive 4.00pm Seminar commences
Leeds publicity. The not for profit world is particularly vulnerable to this and our 5.30pm Drinks and canapés
team of specialists can take you through ways of mitigating these risks and
No 1 Whitehall Riverside what you need to be thinking about.
Leeds
Tax/VAT/Employee issues update London
West Yorkshire Our tax seminar will provide an update on developments in direct taxes, Thursday 24 May 2012
LS1 4BN VAT and an update on employee issues as they affect the sector, as well as 3.30pm Registration and coffee
providing timely reminders on topical issues. 4.00pm Seminar commences
T 0113 245 5514 5.30pm Drinks and canapés
F 0113 246 5055 Financial health of the Higher Education sector London
Following the release of the Grant Thornton report on the UK’s higher Wednesday 4 July 2012
RSVP education institutions, our education specialists will report on the findings 3.30pm Registration and coffee
E beverley.a.johnson@uk.gt.com from the analysis of the financial statements as well as themes coming out 4.00pm Seminar commences
of the sector including the tuition fee debate one year on. Discussion will 5.30pm Drinks and canapés
also include topics such as, internationalisation, shared service options and
student recruitment.
Education update Leeds
The session will concentrate on key sector issues and developments within Friday 6 July 2012
the higher and further education sectors over the past 12 months and offer 9.00am Registration and coffee
timely reminders on topical issues 9.30am Seminar commences
12.30pm Lunch
An update on IFRS London
As the migration of UK GAAP to IFRS continues to develop, this session Wednesday 10 October 2012
will provide an update on the latest position for the not for profit sector, 8.30am Registration and coffee
highlighting key developments, areas of concern and practical issues which 9.00am Seminar commences
need addressing. Specialists from our not for profit and IFRS conversion 5.30pm Finish
teams will lead the session with plenty of opportunity for debate.
Charity topical update Leeds
This session will concentrate on key charity sector issues and developments Friday 5 October 2012
over the past year. 9.00am Registration and coffee
9.30am Seminar commences
12.30pm Lunch
London
Tuesday 13 November 2012
3.30pm Registration and coffee
4.00pm Seminar commences
5.30pm Drinks and canapés
Tax/VAT/Employee issues update London
© 2012 Grant Thornton UK LLP. All rights reserved.
Our tax seminar will provide an update on developments in direct taxes, Wednesday 5 December 2012
‘Grant Thornton’ means Grant Thornton UK LLP,
VAT and an update on employee issues as they affect the sector, as well as 3.30pm Registration and coffee
a limited liability partnership.
providing timely reminders on topical issues. 4.00pm Seminar commences
5.30pm Drinks and canapés
Grant Thornton UK LLP is a member firm within
Grant Thornton International Ltd (‘Grant Thornton International’).
Grant Thornton International and the member firms are not
a worldwide partnership. Services are delivered by the member
firms independently.
www.grant-thornton.co.uk
V21228