Monitoring expenditure
It is recommended that the Principal Investigator (PI) and
the Departmental Administrator (DA) monitor spending against budget
on a monthly basis and can provide evidence of this to ensure
that there is regularity of expenditure (i.e. money is spent on allowable items)
and that the project is operating to plan. Any budget variations should be
investigated and may need to be cleared with sponsors.
How can PIs view financial data for their award?
The PI is the Key Member for the award, and can view data for the award at any time with Grant Investigator status.
The Key Member can also ask the University Finance System (UFS)
to assign Grant Investigator Status to other users as required. To be set up with Grant Investigator status, please contact the Key
Contact in your department.
What information is available?
The Grant Investigator can generate an Award Status Report for the award.
The report produces the following real-time financial information for a particular award:
- budget
- expenditure
- remaining amount available to be spent
Please contact us if you have any queries on the VAT status of your award.
Your DA will have access to several useful reports that can assist with monitoring expenditure.
For any advice on running reports or monitoring expenditure, please contact us or consult the UFS Introduction to Research Grants.
Re-allocating funds
If you require funds to be re-allocated (vired) to another expenditure heading, please contact us to check that this is permitted within the sponsor’s Terms and Conditions.
Spending awarded funds
Awarded
funds are managed using the Grants, Purchasing and Accounts Payables modules within
the University
Finance System (UFS). Although UFS is accessed through a web
browser, you may need to install a compatible browser and supporting software
called JInitiator. If so, please contact the UFS Helpdesk
for further help and advice.
How do you spend the funds?
The PI
or the Departmental Administrator (DA) in the department where the award is
held raises purchase orders, which are approved by the Head of Department where
appropriate. The PI or DA then verifies that the goods are received and
authorises the payment of invoices. In some instances, the University’s
policies may require a bidding process before a supplier can be selected and a
purchase order raised. For detailed advice, please refer to the Central Purchasing Office,
whose role is to help departments maximise value for money.
When can funds be spent?
Purchase orders can only be raised in UFS between the sponsor’s start date and the
sponsor’s end date and within the sponsor’s Terms and Conditions. Invoices
associated with purchase orders can be paid until the project’s close date,
which is typically two months after the sponsor’s end date.
What happens when funds are spent?
Direct costs such as equipment and travel are posted to the award as a result of an
order being raised and the associated invoices being posted to the award. Staff
costs are generated by the University’s Payroll Section and posted
automatically to the award. Non Direct costs, such as PI time, Estates, Indirect costs, Overheads and Pooled labour,
are generated and charged automatically to the appropriate awards.
Attention to detail is important when producing purchase orders, invoices and posting to UFS to ensure that the paper trail of direct and non direct costs are accurate,
completed fully and done on time.
Training
Training and documentation for the UFS client and UFS procedures are available from the
University’s Finance Division.
Cross spending on grants
Please
note that this is generally a breach of the sponsor’s Terms and Conditions and
must be avoided. However if it is appropriate in the circumstances, please contact the sponsor in advance
so as to obtain permission.
Need further information?
Please contact the Administrator in your School Team.
