Case studies
- > Funding and performance review
- > Mergers and due diligence
- > Capital developments
- > Risk management
- > Financial recovery planning
- > Management recruitment
- > Payroll services
- > Special investigations
- > The impact of VAT
- > Internal Audit services
- > External Audit (Tenon Audit)
Funding and performance review
Facing a future of financial constraints is tough. Tenon can help you with all aspects of Management Information systems.
We have regular contacts with both national and local Learning & Skills Council staff and can help you to effectively engage with them as they focus on curriculum mix when determining your future funding.
Recent experience:
- > Health checks on ILR data to see if colleges are meeting and
maximising income streams and addressing government targets such as:
- > 16-18 full time students and FTEs
- > Basic skills counting towards target
- > Adult level 2 and 3 entitlement
- > Delivering learning aims accredited under the NQF
- > Success rates.
- > Help with policy steers on partnership provision including franchising and operating out of the locally agreed geographical areas.
- > Advice on short course funding issues, especially where you have legal obligations.
- > Work with colleges to improve processes and procedures including mentoring of existing staff – all ensuring smooth flow of MIS reports to the LSC, Governors, senior managers and academic staff.
- > Review of existing processes and procedures. New ones too, maximising efficient use of human and physical resources.
- > Analysis of your retention, achievement and success rates. Also data preparation for inspection to analyse trends.
- > Training of staff across many software platforms.
- > Data checks to ensure the correct coding is being used and you are claiming the correct level of funding.
Mergers and due diligence
You may be thinking about strategic partnerships, perhaps even a full merger if you’re a Further/Higher Education institution. Our substantial experience gives you the help needed to navigate the complications. You can rely on us for feasibility studies, curriculum planning; estates strategies; risk analysis; and financial modelling. Tenon delivers comprehensive support to you when you’re preparing formal merger proposals for submission to the relevant funding and planning bodies.
In partnership with our leading legal partners we also offer a full due diligence service. Just a couple of examples of what we’ve done for clients recently:
Case A
Tenon conducted a due diligence exercise on a HE institution for a major Further Education college. We were called in as part of a proposed strategic partnership and possible institutional merger and we highlighted some important issues. In particular, the College Corporation was made aware of key risks. Legal due diligence also found significant inherited contractual obligations. A successful agreement of a merger proposal followed.
Case B
Two colleges asked us for a full due diligence exercise when they were contemplating merger. We prepared a report on key issues that would face a merged entity.
We wanted to guarantee independent opinions and also value for money. That’s why we used people from three different Tenon offices.
- > Respective corporations were shown potential financial risks facing the colleges, both merged and apart.
- > We analysed areas of potential cost saving and associated merger costs.
- > We revealed key merger issues and showed the work required and potential timescales.
Capital developments
You can ask Tenon for help if you’re facing a major capital project, up to and including complete relocation.
An example of a recent large-scale project is a specialist higher education institution that had a well-established reputation in its field. A suburban location and outdated buildings were holding back future growth.
Looking for a more central location, the college wanted better facilities and greater interaction with its industry specialism.
Tenon helped with feasibility studies and relocation was recommended involving the sale of current buildings for redevelopment. The new college site was part of a wider publicly financed development area.
Our workshop identified and evaluated risks – it also created the business case for relocation which was vital for external funding.
We also provided an independent report to Governors commenting on whether their decision was well informed by advice and information provided by the institution’s management and professional advisers.
Risk management
You may find that like many organisations you are struggling to find and maintain good risk management processes. Of course they’re important because they add value to your management and minimise time and effort, but establishing them is tough.
Tenon provides a wide range of risk management services, from risk workshops and pro forma IT based analyses through to training and facilitating the consideration of risks as part of business planning.
We also help organisations to develop practical and robust risk management solutions – solutions that are tailored to fit into your routine management practice. Ask us for the input needed to achieve:
- > A capacity for risk acceptance, choosing activities that give the best risk- reward return.
- > Effective support for creativity.
- > Stakeholder confidence.
Financial recovery planning
Financial recovery is a very specialist field and Tenon has the experience needed to guide you through it to a successful conclusion.
A recent client illustrates our service. It had been receiving exceptional government support for some time and had already made some unsuccessful false starts to recovery. We helped the College Corporation and the new Principal to develop a recovery plan that included all of the following:
- > A new curriculum model using e-learning that allowed ‘classes’ to be combined and cost effectively increased programme group sizes.
- > Help for the College in negotiations with the LSC, ensuring that contact time was appropriately recognised and eligible for funding
Management recruitment
When you’re looking for the right candidates, you can rely on our extensive experience in recruiting at management and senior post holder levels.
Tenon knows the special requirements of the public sector. We can help you with finding candidates, screening applicants and also with the final selection. You’ll benefit from access to a variety of selection methods including the development of a comprehensive assessment programme.
For example, we recently helped with the appointment of a Financial Director for an FE college. Two previous jobholders had failed and a more rigorous approach to selection was required. Financial pressures meant that the recruitment budget was low.
Our solution was tailored around those requirements.
- > We developed a comprehensive job and person profile with a clear focus on identifying the reasons for previous failures and determining both the experience and personal qualities for success.
- > We used the internet to find candidates cost effectively (which helped with quantity, quality and speed of response).
- > A thorough interview and screening process created a shortlist of four applicants.
Designing the content of the final selection day, Tenon put together a number of case studies specially developed to highlight the strengths required in the role. There was also a series of individual and panel interviews.
All short listed candidates were seen as suitable for appointment. An offer was made and accepted and the overall cost of hire represented excellent value for money. The Principal said that Tenon had restored his faith in recruitment consultants.
Payroll services
If there is one thing that you can’t afford to get wrong in the public sector it’s your payroll. You can depend on us for the levels of mission-critical accuracy that you need, all backed up by access to our in-house experts and a full support service. Tenon is one of the UK’s foremost providers of outsourced financial solutions to commercial and public sector organisations.
We recently tendered successfully to provide payroll services to one of our public sector clients employing 600 permanent and 100 casual staff. Existing and outsourced payroll ran parallel initially for three months to mitigate any risk and the new system had all of the following features:
- > The organisation had remote access to Tenon payroll system, giving them the ability to input data including starters, leavers and other changes directly.
- > Payroll was processed and released for payment by a Tenon specialist team.
- > Remote access to the payroll system allowed the client to design and run reports as necessary.
- > Full access to system and support team fully versed in the specific requirements of public sector payrolls such as pay-spines.
- > Full access to Tenon specialist payroll team ensured full resourcing at all times and full compliance with latest legislation without the need to recruit more staff.
The reliable, effective and scalable payroll software provided gave further cost benefits by removing all need to invest in a new system.
Special investigations
You inevitably face unexpected demands from time to time – anything from whistle blowing allegations to management concerns. Because Tenon has undertaken so many special investigations for institutions in the public sector, we are well placed to deliver a smooth outcome.
Our staff are trained in PACE and can help you with internal investigations where needed. We have conducted investigations related to financial, IT and probity issues. Within the education sector we’ve specifically tackled funding and curriculum issues.
One recent example involved a departmental team leader not fulfilling contractual obligations and failing to disclose conflicts of interest. The institution faced a threat to its Government funding.
Tenon provided supporting evidence for management in the suspension of the individual concerned, pending a disciplinary hearing. We also did the same with a second individual who hadn’t previously been implicated. Crucially, we gave management a methodology and practical guidance for assessing the level of funding at risk.
By assessing the existing control framework across the institution for similar issues, and providing practical recommendations based on sector good practice, we helped the institution minimise the potential for any future problems.
The impact of VAT
VAT impacts on public sector, charities and educational organisations in numerous ways. If you find it complex and difficult to understand then you’re not alone. You almost certainly face issues concerning the recoverability (or avoidance) of VAT on expenditure and with the treatment of income streams.
Our VAT Team has considerable experience with a wide range of organisations. We give you guidance and assistance from low-level ad-hoc advice through to full scale VAT project management, negotiation and dispute resolution.
The Tenon VAT Team has worked with many educational organisations in achieving zero-rating of new build projects. HMRC has significantly tightened policy, making what was once a relatively straightforward exercise in most cases extremely onerous for most. Rejection is now far more common.
For example, a college had recently constructed a new ‘enterprise
centre’, incurring a significant amount of VAT on the build costs.
Original discussions with HMRC (formerly HMC&E) had enabled recovery
of 28% of the VAT. We took another look at the planned use of the building,
the potential occupants and the existing arrangements. Our findings meant
the college negotiated a 100% recovery of the VAT and an agreed substantial
refund for the college.
Another case: a national charity commissioned our VAT Team to undertake
a review of its VAT recovery method. We were asked to ensure compliance
and possibly improve efficiency. Our ‘back-to-basics’ approach
involved revisiting the structure and organisation of the charity.
We devised a more lateral method, working closely with HMRC, and gained
approval for its use. An immediate refund in excess of £200k
resulted as well as ongoing annual savings for the charity.
A final case: our VAT Team have worked with many educational organisations in achieving zero-rating of new build projects. HMRC have significantly tightened their policy in this area, making what was once a relatively straightforward exercise in most cases extremely onerous for most and increasing the likelihood of rejection. A notable recent achievement has been our securing of HMRC’s agreement to ‘across the board’ zero-rating for one of our clients, in respect of the new-build of all of its local and dispersed buildings.
Internal Audit Services
Tenon has considerable experience of internal audit in the government and public sector. We act for 90 colleges, providing internal audit services. That means everything from minimal compliance audit work in high performing colleges through to systems design audits for colleges in recovery.
You can come to us whether your needs are simple or complex. For example, we recently acted for a general FE college in a recovery situation. Our approach was very risk based, focusing on introducing standards to ensure compliance with LSC requirements.
We gave the college good practice examples – particularly relevant because of the lack of reliable control processes in place. We also brought about a more positive and robust relationship between college management and its Audit Committee.
External Audit – Tenon Audit
External audits pose particular challenges when you’re managing an institution. Tenon can give you a robust and effective service – we are third largest provider of external audit services to the Further Education Sector (based on the latest statistics produced by the LSC).
You can count on our advice because we work closely with the LSC in the development of the sector. That includes involvement in advisory working groups such as: Regularity (previously undertaking pilot audits), Emerging Audit and Accounting Issues and Audit Code of Practice.
Tenon is one of just three firms awarded contracts to continue providing
ILR audits to the sector (there were seven firms before plan led funding).
We also acquired one of three contracts to develop the new Learner Eligibility
and Existence audit approach.
Higher Education Institutions ask us to play a leading role on the
Audit working groups with HEFCE and we provide audit services to leading
private training providers and charities.
You can count on us for more than a true and fair opinion on financial statements. We also offer regularity opinions to the LSC and undertake numerous grant claim audits for various funding bodies such as Regional Government Offices, Development funds, European monies, Federal agencies, etc.
You already know that external audit is more than looking at numbers. Tenon sees audit as an opportunity to give you pro-active advice on best practice within the sector. We also offer independent assessments on internal systems and controls.
In a recent example, a college lost a dispute with a third party that resulted in the payment of a significant settlement. They not only had to deal with the LSC but they also needed to show appropriate use of public funds. Tenon reviewed transactions and highlighted the likely cost of alternatives, including costs of independent advice. We showed that the settlement did represent value for money, helping officers and governors to discharge part of their responsibility.
A separate review on cash flow projections gave assurance to the LSC that appropriate assumptions have been adopted and the college was able to continue as a going concern.
Although financial statements could not be approved until the settlement was concluded we were able to confirm to the LSC that funds had been appropriately used and this confirmation allowed the local LSC to sign off the college’s annual assurance statement.
Tenon Audit Limited is a company registered to carry out audit work by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. Tenon Group PLC is a separate company that provides professional resources and certain services to Tenon Audit Limited under the terms of a formal agreement on an arms-length basis.