CIPFA to Partner on NHS Scotland National Training Scheme

NHS Scotland’s Finance Training & Support Unit (FTSU) has recently gained approval for the re-establishment of a National Training Scheme for NHS accounting staff. The scheme will assist effective recruitment of high calibre graduates into the NHS finance community and support succession planning across a range of NHS Board partners. The scheme will be piloted from 2008 to 2012. The FTSU has selected CIPFA as the scheme’s professional training partner.

Head of the FTSU Elaine Lawther, said “We are delighted to be moving ahead with the professional training scheme and we hope to have trainees on board by December 2008. It is critical to the success of NHS Scotland’s staff development strategy that we position this pilot scheme in the context of an active programme of events for a wide range of finance staff, and have been delighted to see almost 60 members of staff participate in CIPFA’s Principles of Accounts workshop”.

CIPFA’s comprehensive range of topical events, publications and networks offers the latest insights and guidance for finance professionals working in and with the public services.

‘Do You Want to Know a Secret?’ - The Long and Winding Road to Effective Governance’
16 October, Liverpool

CIPFA’s Better Governance Forum (BGF) Annual Conference 2008 will take place on 16 October in Liverpool, European City of Culture 2008.

‘Do You Want to Know a Secret?’ - The Long and Winding Road to Effective Governance’ will address the ever-growing challenges of delivering effective and workable governance models for public services in the 21st century. It will also consider responses to the increasing menace of public sector fraud and showcase key lessons learnt from the infamous Heathrow Terminal 5 project.

Speakers include: Colin Hilton, Chief Executive of the host city council, Liverpool, and Derek Elliott, Head of Governance and Counter Fraud Practice, Audit Commission, Joshua Rozenberg, former Legal Correspondent — BBC and now a freelance journalist.

The BGF conference is one of the most well regarded annual gatherings of public sector practitioners. Attendance is open to all public sector governance practitioners and is free to subscribers of the CIPFA Better Governance Forum. For full details of the programme and booking information see the website http://www.cipfanetworks.net/governance/

To Bankrupt or Not to Bankrupt

The CIPFA Benefits and Revenues Service (CBRS) is not afraid to tackle the more contentious issues practitioners in this field regularly face. In September we will run a series of regional events looking at the difficult subject of bankruptcy.

By attending these events you can:

• Update your knowledge on current issues in insolvency as it relates to local taxation
• Develop your awareness of current and impending issues (and case law) in local taxation
• Share experiences and network with peers across local government who face similar challenges

For more information and the programme for the day click here Programme or visit the CBRS web site at www.cipfanetworks.net/cbrs

Department for Transport funding scheme - what you need to know

On 16 July, Transport Minister of State, Rosie Winterton, announced that £23 million is to be made available to local authorities to assist with the development of their highways asset management capabilities.

To help local authorities understand more about the funding available and how to apply, CIPFA is featuring presentations by key personnel from the Department for Transport. These presentations will take place at the Highways Asset Management Planning (HAMP) network meetings during September.

• September 18 – Weston-Super-Mare
  
• September 19 - London
  
• September 23 – Nottingham
  
• September 24 – Wigan
  
• September 25 - Durham

72 local authorities are currently members of HAMP, which acts as a forum where members exchange best practice and work to develop the most efficient and effective solutions to highways asset management problems. Events are open to non-members as well as members.

To book a place on one of the events email: hamp@ipf.co.uk

Our NHS, our vision: Implementing the future - the CIPFA Health Conference
16 October, London

Book online at the CIPFA shop

Improvement Network: working in partnership to deliver better outcomes for local people

A new version of the Improvement Network partnership website www.improvementnetwork.gov.uk has been launched by its four sponsors CIPFA, the Audit Commission, IDeA and the Local Government Leadership Centre with the following mission statement:

‘Helping to lay the foundations for successful partnership working in local areas, the Improvement Network builds capacity for public sector managers and practitioners. It promotes its sponsors' collective knowledge and expertise on key improvement issues. It provides practical examples of cross-sectoral improvement.’

In the last two years, the website’s user base has increased significantly. Over 6,000 managers and practitioners working in health, police and local government sectors are registered to the Improvement Tools section www.improvementnetwork.gov.uk/tools

For more information on the Improvement Network and how you can input and promote it among your colleagues, please contact: Natasha Gray, Improvement Network Manager.

Managing the risks of climate change

How can public bodies respond to the risks of climate change? What are the likely impacts? What will you have to deal with if you don't plan now?

• 11 Sept Leeds
  
• 17 Sept London
  
• 18 Sept Edinburgh

These are the challenging questions addressed in this Better Governance Forum workshop led by Professor David Crichton. With key speakers from local government the workshop will identify practical steps risk managers, senior managers and those reviewing their organisation’s progress can take.

Book event

CIPFA Financial Advisory Network (FAN) autumn 2008 programme

The CIPFA FAN is looking ahead to an active autumn 2008.

A series entitled 'Helping Finance Managers prepare for the future' is scheduled for September. This series is aimed at strategic finance managers and will address the hot topics you need to know about, including:

• The Comprehensive Area Assessment
• Operational efficiency
• IFRS
• Participatory budgeting
• Audit Commission perspectives on efficiency research.

These events will be held in York, Manchester, Bristol and London and you can book online now.

In October CIPFA FAN will deliver a series on ‘Balance Sheet Management’, particularly topical given the greater emphasis HM Treasury will place on faster financial reporting and quarterly balance sheets.

‘The Definitive Introduction to IFRS for local authorities’ series of workshops will run from mid November to early December 2008.

To find out more about our programme for the autumn and beyond, have a look at our website www.cipfanetworks.net/fan/. Alternatively, Roman.Haluszczak@ipf.co.uk, Emma.Stabler@cipfa.org or new FAN advisor Mark.Kenyon@ipf.co.uk will be very happy to talk to you.

Audit Commission are recruiting ‘Principal Auditors’ across the whole of the UK. We want to make life better for everyone…

University of Ballarat in Australia are looking to recruit a Director of Management Accounting and Budget, find out more…

Lunchtime Event – Transforming the Finance Function by Merger
12 September, Spires Centre, Belfast

The focus on improving operational efficiency and reducing costs in the public sector has spurred the growth of shared financial services. These shared services are complemented by smaller and more specialised teams, responsible for dealing with strategic financial matters. This pressure to 'do more with less' is driving organisations to establish best practices and leverage technology to accelerate financial performance.

In this session, Jim O'Hagan, Finance Director in the Department of Finance & Personnel and Diarmuid McLean, CEO of Account NI, outline the establishment of the Northern Ireland Civil Service's shared service centre. They explain how to manage the residual finance department, highlighting the benefits and pitfalls of new ways of working to transform the finance function of a large organisation.

For further information and booking, please contact Nicola Greer at nicola.greer@cipfa.org Alternatively, please call Nicola on 028 9026 6770.

Download information on our autumn programme of public training courses in Northern Ireland here 

For further information on public courses, the Diploma in Public Audit (starting September) or the Advanced Diploma in Pubic Audit (starting October) please contact Anna Egner on 028 9026 6777 or e-mail anna.egner@cipfa.org 

Scottish Local Income Tax

In co-operation with SOLACE and the CIPFA Directors of Finance (Scotland) Section, CIPFA has submitted a joint response on the Scottish Local Income Tax consultation.

The response highlighted the desirable attributes of a local tax, practical issues to be considered and the potential shortfall in tax revenue from the application of an across-Scotland 3p local income tax. Read the response here.

Scottish Futures Trust (SFT)

Following previous submissions and evidence sessions CIPFA have been invited by the Scottish Parliament Finance Committee to participate in a 'round table' discussion on the SFT on 9 September.

Local Government Finance Technical Update
6 November 2008

This seminar will consider the latest developments in Scottish local authority accounting including IFRS, the Scottish Futures Trust, the future direction of financial reporting, the SORP 2009 and a review of the financial instruments experience.

Social Work Direct Payments
5 December 2008

Guidance and advice on accounting and record keeping arrangements for those implementing Direct Payments.

FOCUSING ON OUTCOMES TO DELIVER STRATEGY & PARTNERSHIP
PMPA/BT VISION@LUNCH SEMINAR, 14 October, 12.00, London

Chair: Sean Lusk, Head of Strategy Programmes & Research, National School of Government
Speaker: Rob Hutchinson CBE, Consultant on improving children’s well-being

The BT/PMPA Vision at Lunch sessions provide a forum in which public managers and those with an interest in public service can hear from expert speakers and explore topical issues in public service management with a wider group of colleagues.

PMPA and BT wish to contribute to building a community of public managers who are “reflective practitioners” and who want to learn from each other, from public service leaders and from academics in public management.

Rob Hutchinson was formerly Director of Social Services at Portsmouth City Council, and was instrumental in advising the UK government on the development of the ‘Every Child Matters’ outcomes for children and young people. He is now an advisor to local authorities and other bodies on outcomes based accountability and will speak about his experiences helping organisations to use a focus on outcomes to develop partnerships for children and young people.

Sean Lusk has over twenty five years' experience of both policy and operational management in the civil service and for the last ten years has been a senior trainer and consultant with the National School of Government. He is currently researching the place of strategy within government.

This event is free of charge and open to PMPA members and their colleagues. Please pass on this invitation to colleagues with an interest.

Date: Tuesday 14 October, 12 – 2pm. Sandwich lunch provided.
Venue: BT Government Innovation Centre, 29 Queen Anne’s Gate, London SW1

To book a place:
Email: info.pmpa@cipfa.org.
Call: Janet Grauberg 020 7543 5683 or Jane Jones 020 7543 5720
Write: PMPA, 3 Robert Street, London WC2N 6RL

CIPFA Education and Training Centre Launch New Courses

The CIPFA Education and Training Centre (CETC) is pleased to announce the launch of a series of short courses aimed at students who are unable to attend CETC’s full day/block release courses. The CETC Essentials courses are being offered in Manchester during September and October 2008.

The CETC Essentials courses focus on a number of key syllabus areas for each professional qualification module. There are one or two courses per module, each a day long. Expert tuition from CETC’s team of CIPFA-focused trainers, together with exam technique advice, will be provided. Extensive study materials, including plenty of exam-style practice questions, will be provided. There will also be opportunities during each course to ask tutors about areas of that module you may be finding difficult.

These courses complement other forms of CIPFA study and are wholly distinct from CETC’s programme of short revision courses.

We are keen to make available the modules you want in the locations you want, so if you are interested in taking a CETC “Essentials” course, contact us at the email address below.

Revision Courses

Reflecting the popularity of CETC revision courses CETC are pleased to offer, for the first time, courses in Manchester, in addition to our established revision courses at CETC venues in London, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff and Edinburgh.
 
Contact CETC on 020 7403 4300 or enquiries@cetc.org.uk or visit www.cetc.org.uk for details of the Essentials and Revision courses scheduled for Manchester and to register your interest to attend an Essentials course elsewhere in the UK.

Conferences

Central Government Finance Conference 2008: Delivering World Class Performance - London 07 Oct more

The CIPFA Health Finance Conference - London, 15-16 October more

The CIPFA Treasury Management Conference - London, 22 October more

Leaders in Finance - University of Warwick, 24-28 November (Rikki Ellsmore, 020 7543 5746)

CIPFA in Wales - Cardiff, 27-28 November
(Alex Goring, 020 7543 5751)

Seminars for September/October

Further & Higher Education Finance: Making the most of your finance committee - 9 September (Jess Cotton, 020 7543 5750)

Developing Treasury Management in Local Government – Practitioners’ Update - postponed to 9 September more

HM Treasury Trigger Point One - IFRS Opening Balances
Cardiff - 11 Sept - London - 12 Sept more

Asset Management, Development and Regeneration: Lessons learned - a focus on RSLs - 16 September (Trudy Baker, 020 7543 5765)

Best Practice in Performance Management - London 15 & 16 Sep more

Finance for Non-Financial Managers - Cardiff 18 Sep more

Essentials of Project Management
London - 23 Sep - Cardiff - 23 Oct more

Technical Developments in Adult Social Care Finance - 24 September more

Technical Developments in Children's Social Care Finance - 24 September more

Grant-Funding in the Public Sector - London 29 Sep 2008 more

An Introduction to Local Government Finance, 3 October more

PRINCE2 for the Public Sector - London 06 Oct more

Technical Developments in Children’s Services Finance, 21 October (Claire Howard, 020 7543 5628)

An Introductory Guide to Housing Finance in England (Fully Revised Fifth Edition 2008)
(Book) (CD-ROM)

The CIPFA Local Authority Housing Panel has comprehensively updated its housing finance guide. As the end of the decent homes programme approaches and legislation is likely to allow an opt-out from the subsidy system, a whole new set of finance issues present themselves.

With the constant changes to local authority housing finance, the guide is essential reading for finance managers and councillors, or indeed anybody needing to understand the finances of this important service.