1. Finance Presentation

2. Apologies

3. Introduction Jean Hynes – Finance Officer Agata Dabal – Finance Clerk
Suzanne Price – Finance Compliance
Sam Brant – Senior Finance Officer
Ben Hill – Extranet and Cognisoft Support –

4. Grant holder survey response
To date 240 responses received
25% were lead organisations, 75% were partners
24 of the 38 LEP areas were represented within the survey

5. ESF requirements
Ongoing challenges envisaged in the need to meet ESF requirements included:
Participant eligibility or evidence gathering (29%)
Changes to guidance or requirements (18%)
Bureaucracy or paperwork (15%)
Initial or ongoing engagement of participants (12%)
Project management or co-ordination of communication (11%)
Data collection, entry or storage (10%)

6. First Lottery Submission (Claim)
Deadline 14th April
Submitted 3am 14th (Long hours leading up to submission)
So much work in a short window

7. What would have made it easier?
Right first time
Correct Forms
More Time
Some Partner Claims Received Late
Faster Response to Errors from Partners
Errors corrected first time
Work together we are a partnership

8. Who’s getting it right first time?
The Partners who have asked more questions?
The Partners that raise queries, when unsure
Partners with robust internal checks (time sheet, expenses etc)

9. How have we helped? Spent time on telephone with partners
ed Examples
Completed Annex O for partners to use in future
Completed 1720 calculations for partners to use in future
Made amendments where necessary
Our door is always open

10. Case study – Wem Town Hall
I am very grateful for the help and support I have received from the finance team at Landau.  This is the first esf funded project that my organisation has been a part of and I didn’t feel confident in how I was completing the paperwork.  Jean and Aga were incredibly approachable and happy to help with my concerns about getting the finance paperwork correct.  They were able to give me time that fitted in with my schedule at short notice and go through documents in detail, column by column until I was satisfied my understanding was the same as theirs.  I’m sure there will be other months when template documents are updated and I feel confident that I can call the team with any queries for support – Thank you   

11. Partner visits
In June we have visited partners to go through some claims in detail and helped them with what they need to check before submitting.
We will be doing more of these in the near future and they are nothing to worry about its just easier to go through things face to face.

12. RSM Audit Results (1st Quarter Submission)
10% Value Checked
Zero Error Rated claim
No ineligible expenditure
All Paperwork and Forms approved
1720 sheet met the guidelines
Carried out by RSM and Big Lottery Fund on site at Landau

13. RSM Audit Results (1st Quarter Submission)
BLF yet to submit a claim to the Managing Authority (DWP)
MA submit claim to EU trigger article 127
Once article 127 is triggered all Grant Holders and Delivery Partners are open to audit from the EU or National Audit Office (NAO)
Projects Leads and partners will be audited not BLF or MA

14. Claims timetable 1st July – We receive your claims
2nd July – We pay you if claim received and meets basic checks.
2nd July pm onwards – Start to check claims in more details and return rejected elements.
During this time everything must be entered on Annex O and after being checked. Documents Scanned. NUMBER**************
14th July noon - Claim submitted – Failure means delayed payment
19th July – Make late payments only if claim was received in time to be added to claim and submitted
1st August – Start again 

15. Any Questions?????