The Learning and Skills Councils Annual Report and Accounts for ...

Education Maintenance Allowance
Education Maintenance Allowance
(EMA) expenditure is recognised in the
accounts when the administrator of
the scheme has certified attendance
by invoice. Costs associated with
administering the scheme are charged
to the accounts on the basis of
activity completed by the end of the
financial year. This was first applied in
2009–10.
1.17 Employee benefits
Pension and superannuation costs
The LSC’s employees have been
covered by the provisions of the
Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme
(PCSPS), which is non-contributory
and unfunded. Although the scheme
is a defined benefit scheme, liability
for payment of future benefits is a
charge to the PCSPS and the LSC has
been unable to identify its share of the
underlying assets and liabilities. The
cost of pension cover provided for the
staff who were employed by the LSC
has been met by payment of charges
calculated on an accruing basis. The
accruing cost of providing for future
benefits for these employees has
been charged to the Net Expenditure
Statement so as to spread the total
cost over the estimated remaining
service lives of employees in each
scheme. For unfunded schemes such as
the PCSPS this is achieved by charging
the actuarially calculated accruing
superannuation liability charges paid
by each individual body.
There is a separate scheme statement
for the PCSPS as a whole.
Early retirement costs
Where the LSC was required to meet
the additional costs of benefits beyond
the normal PCSPS benefits in respect
of employees who retired early,
provision was made in full for this cost
when the early retirement programme
had been announced and was binding.
In certain circumstances, settlement of
some or all of the liability may have
been made in advance by making a
payment to the Paymaster General’s
account at the Bank of England for the
credit of the Civil Superannuation Vote.
The prepayment and provision are
disclosed separately.
Other employee benefits
This includes the value of untaken
holiday leave at the financial yearend,
which has been recognised on an
accrual basis.
1.18 VAT
Irrecoverable VAT is charged to the
relevant expenditure category or
included in the capitalised purchase
cost of fixed assets. Where output tax
is charged or input tax is recoverable,
the amounts are stated net of VAT.
1.19 Other income: European Social
Fund (ESF)
Funding for certain projects was
received from the European
Commission. This income has been
matched to the expenditure profile
for each project concerned and any
balance at the end of the financial
year transferred to deferred income
(or income may be accrued where the
expenditure exceeds income received
for any particular financial year as
appropriate). Other income principally
comprises fees and charges for goods
or services provided and is stated after
deducting recoverable VAT.
1.20 Segmental reporting
Under HM Treasury guidance in the
FReM, the LSC has been expected
to meet the requirements of IFRS 8
to report information concerning
operating segments where the criteria
under IFRS 8 are met.
The LSC considers that its activities
have contributed to an overall mission
within the same business environment
and there have been no separable
operating segments. The analysis
of programme and administration
expenditure and income in these
financial statements reflects the
presentation of financial information
in the LSC’s management accounts,
which have been reviewed regularly
by the LSC’s chief operating decisionmaker,
the Chief Executive, and the
senior management team.
Notwithstanding the division of assets
and liabilities as part of the Machinery
of Government changes at 31 March
2010, the LSC managed its assets and
liabilities at the entity level during the
year, and therefore the distribution
of assets and liabilities to those
programmes and administration has
not been disclosed.
1.21 Accounting judgments and
estimates
Other than for the determination of
provisions for liabilities and charges,
and financial guarantees, no material
accounting estimates or judgements
were made by the LSC in preparing
these accounts.
1.22 Accounting developments
Accounting standards: issued but not
effective
At the end of the reporting period,
the accounting standards and
interpretations detailed in Table 2
opposite were in issue but were not
yet effective and these have not been
applied to these accounts by the LSC.
52 LSC Annual Report and Accounts 2009–10