HN Accounting Review

Background  Review team set up April 2008, comprising representatives from 6 colleges  ‘Limited’ review –structure of HNC and HND awards unchanged –content of mandatory Units remains broadly similar

Scope of change  Overall requirements –Reduce volume of assessment –Remove/reduce prescriptive assessment conditions –Improve statement of standards – 70% cut off considered inappropriate for competence based qualification –Improve Core Skills signposting and guidance

Scope of change (cont.)  Also consider –Retain existing links with professional body qualifications and exemptions (ACCA, CIMA) –Ensure in line current disability/discrimination legislation –Map to National Occupational Standards

Current status  All individual Unit Specifications re-written, vetted and mostly validated  Graded Unit Specifications re-written and vetted  Credit transfer possible for all existing Units to revised Units – same Unit Titles and Credit Values in all cases  Bulk credit transfer arrangements being finalised

Current status (cont.)  Core Skills audits completed for all revised Unit Specifications – core skill elements embedded and/or signposted  Current disability/discrimination legislation complied with  Units mapped to current National Occupational Standards (NOS)

Assessment conditions and marking  70% cut off considered inappropriate for competence based qualification and has been removed  ‘Error tolerance’ has been allowed for most Outcomes, as appropriate  Specified maximum numbers of ‘errors of principle’ and/or ‘arithmetic/computational errors’

Assessment conditions and marking  For some Outcomes, assessment conditions changed from closed book to open book or open book with access to a layout/formulae only  Mostly remain under supervised conditions  Recommended assessment time remains as a guideline only

Main changes to unit content - HNC  Recording Financial Information –Now 4 Outcomes (but can still be assessed together, if required) –Removal of journal from books of original entry –Removal of control accounts  Cost Accounting –Now 5 Outcomes –Removal of coding (as a separate Outcome) and process costing –Job costing added

Main changes to unit content - HND  Management Accounting for Planning and Control –Removal of flexed budget –(Allow use of formulae for variances)  Financial Reporting and Analysis –Removal of accounting models and word processing of report on ratios –Main differences in presentation between UK GAAP and IAS1 added

Optional units  Payroll and Income Tax – revised Unit Specifications being written  Auditing – lower demand and existing Unit Specification remains valid; plan to revise in session 2010/2011  Other Units – may be revised as part of HN Business and AIT Reviews

International Accounting Standards  FR&A –Unit Specification allows the continued use of UK GAAP or IAS –EV advice concurs and Centres must ensure that assessment materials clearly identify which standards have been adopted  Other units – guidance on delivery suggests that candidates are made aware of the main differences in presentation of financial statements

Next steps  HNC and HND Accounting Validation – January 2010  Assessment Exemplars –One new exemplar for each Unit including Payroll and Income Tax –Two new exemplars for each of Graded Units 1, 2 and 3  Confirm exemptions from professional bodies (ACCA and CIMA)

Next steps (cont.)  Investigating e-assessment opportunities  Arrangements documents  Launch April 2010  Revised awards can be delivered from Session 2010/2011