Equal Second Round

1
Equal Second Round

• ESF Administration and Monitoring
• Overview and Introduction

2
Objectives

• For DPs
• to understand payment and monitoring arrangements
  in Action 1
• to understand ESF monitoring and record-keeping
  requirements
• to pose questions
• to share issues, experiences and good practice
  with other DPs

3
Objectives

• For Support Unit / ESFD
• to identify issues or problems arising
• to provide additional support and guidance
• to identify and disseminate good practice
• What, as well as How

4
Agenda

• Action 1 payment and monitoring arrangements
• Payment cycle
• N2
• Significant changes
• Public match and audit certification
• ESF monitoring and record-keeping
• Beginners
• Good practice

5
Action 1 Payment Cycle
6
Action 1 formal approval

• Address Immediate Actions
• Receive approval letter from Support Unit
• Sign 2 copies of Agreement and return 1 copy to
  ESFD (not Support Unit)
• Formal contract with the lead partner for whole
  of the programme
• Confirms ESF amount and intervention rate for
  Action 1, and ESF amounts for Actions 2 and 3

7
Action 1 advance payment

• Serves as a float towards actual, eligible
  expenditure
• Equals 30 of approved ESF amount for Action 1

8
Action 1 interim payments

• Start submitting on receipt of approval letter
• Made every month on receipt of Progress Report
  and Interim Claim Form
• First month September 2004
• Last month last month of Action 1
• Made up to the approved ESF amount for Action 1
  minus 30 advance payment and 20 retention
  amount

9
Progress Report andInterim Claim Form

• Details
• actual, eligible expenditure that has been
  incurred and paid for
• how the expenditure has been funded
• Action 1 activities and progress
• Bank account details

10
Progress Report andInterim Claim Form

• Works on cumulative basis
• from the start of Action 1 (9th September 2004)
  to end of month
• except for Progress Report (which only details
  activity since previous claim)
• Must be submitted within 10 working days of end
  of claim period
• Must be submitted even if no interim payment is
  due

11
The form close upSection 2a
Section 1 Development Partnership details
Section 2a Expenditure incurred (actual) Please
confirm that you have completed and attached the
Expenditure and Revenue Spreadsheet to this claim
by ticking this box.
12
The form close upSection 2b
Section 2b Match funding contributed
(actual) Please make sure that the ESF meets all
the requirements detailed in Chapter 4 of the
guidance on preparing progress reports and
claiming payments in Action 1.
13
Progress Report

• Progress in building
• domestic and transnational partneships
• Progress in developing
• Development Partnership Agreement
• Mainstreaming Partnership Agreement
• Transnational Co-operation
• Equal Opportunities Policy (and implementation
  strategy)
• Progress in addressing Points to Note and
  Assessment Feedback Report

14
Expenditure and Revenue Spreadsheet

• Provides a breakdown of
• Staff Costs
• Other Costs
• Transnational Costs
• for claim period only

15
Expenditure and Revenue Spreadsheet

• Adds breakdown to figures carried forward from
  previous interim claim
• to give overall cumulative figures for current
  interim claim
• Must correspond with Section 2a of Progress
  Report and Interim Claim Form

16
Minimum levels of detail

• In general, total costs for whole DP under each
  sub-heading
• For some sub-headings (staff salaries costs /
  premises overheads), total costs for each
  partner is required
• For other sub-heading, description of
  expenditure item is required

17
Minimum levels of detail

• Do not include pence
• If grouping expenditure items, they must be
• actual (i.e. no averages, commercial or notional
  rates)
• supported by full and robust audit trail
• Lead partners responsibility to ensure
  expenditure and calculations fully meet ESF
  requirements

18
The ERS close up
19
Please remember

• Progress Report and ERS are integral to interim
  claim - payment cannot be made without them
• It takes time to collect information from
  partners and to get the form signed off plan
  carefully and allow adequate lead-in times
• Action 1 needs adequate resourcing

20
Action 1 final payment

• Held back until Action 1 closure
• Equals remaining ESF for Action 1, taking account
  of 20 retention amount
• Made on clearance of
• Action 1 Closure Report
• General Statement of Expenditure for each public
  match funder
• audit certificate

21
Action 1 Closure Report

• Validates all actual, eligible DP activity and
  expenditure for Action 1
• Indicates the amount of ESF being claimed as
  final payment
• Must be submitted within 40 working days of
  Action 1 end date

22
N 2

• ESFD has agreed minimum expenditure target with
  European Commission (N 2) for each year
• If target is not met, funds are returned to
  European Commission, which can affect funds
  available for DPs

23
N 2

• Please play your part in meeting target by
• maximising expenditure claimed
• addressing Immediate Actions
• submitting interim claims accurately and on time
  (10 working days)
• Responding to Support Unit queries promptly (2
  working days)

24
Significant change

• Prior agreement required
• Examples include
• extra items of expenditure in Action 1
• change of lead partner or DP name
• major changes to management, delivery structure,
  objectives or target group
• change to match funding sources, types or amounts
• major changes to the Action 1 workplan
• change to the Action 1 end date

25
Public Match Funding Certificate

• Confirms
• public match funders eligible status
• how much public match funder expects to
  contribute to DP
• public match funding is clean
• public match funder will notify DP of any changes
  to match funding
• if appropriate, public match funder will
  undertake lead monitoring responsibilities

26
General Statement of Expenditure

• Confirms
• how much public match funder actually contributed
  to DP
• public match funding was clean
• if appropriate, public match funder undertook
  lead monitoring responsibilities

27
Audit Certification

• Provides independent assessment of validity of
  Action 1 Closure Report
• Verification Certificate - VC
• Audit Commission Certification - applies to lead
  partners who use Audit Commission-appointed
  auditors (e.g. Local authorities, NHS Trusts
  etc.)
• Required if total costs exceed 50,000

28
Key Documentation

• Guidance on preparing progress reports and
  claiming payments in Action 1
• Section 8 of Equal Handbook
• Sample monitoring forms in Equal Handbook
• Guidance Note and Good Practice Guide to
  Monitoring and Record Keeping
• www.equal.ecotec.co.uk

29
Please remember

• E Evidence
• Q Quality check
• U Uniformity
• A Accuracy
• L Liaison
• D Deadlines
• P Prepared