An update on Financial Sustainability
The University continues to face some significant financial challenges as a result of the current circumstances, and the spend controls introduced last year will remain in order to maximise the University’s ability to adapt to the challenges we face in the coming year.
In practical terms this means:
- Spend restrictions are still in place ;
- Procurement Card limits will remain lowered ;
- Travel is very much the exception until Covid-19 is resolved ;
- Budgetary restrictions remain in place for the time being ;
- The “No PO, No Pay” process is still in effect ;
- Variations to our Terms & Conditions can only be agreed by the Procurement Team.
The University should not make payment in advance of delivery unless agreed by the Procurement Team and only where specific, limited circumstances apply
If you have any queries please contact the Procurement Team.
IR35
From 6th April 2021 there will be extra responsibilities when deciding whether off-payroll working rules apply. This is where consultants or contractors engage with the University through an intermediary, such as a Personal Service company.
- We will need to provide both the worker and the agency (where applicable) with a status determination statement, as well as the reasons behind this determination. Do this on or before the contract is entered into, or when the work starts if that is later
- Detailed records of the employment status determinations must be kept, including the reasons for the determination and any fees paid
- The worker will be able to dispute the employment status determination. The University must consider the reasons given for the disagreement and respond within 45 days
- If the worker is not informed of the status determination then the University will become responsible for paying the tax and National Insurance contributions due.
In order to assist you to understand these changes, and how they may affect you, there is an IR35 tab with commonly asked questions and answers. Within this tab you will find links to template letters which can be sent to the agency and/or worker, plus a Service Provider (IR35) questionnaire which can be completed and sent to IR35help if you are unable to reach a determination. Copies of these templates can also be found in the Document Library.
If you have any queries regarding these changes, please contact IR35help@kent.ac.uk
Taxi Contract
The University has awarded a contract for the provision of Taxi Services which will go live in April 2021. This contract will work on the basis of a single consolidated monthly invoice for each segment of the University that will be paid from a single purchase order by month, with the aim of reducing the number of card transactions, very low value invoices, and expense claims relating to Taxi services. University employees will be able to self-register with the suppliers.
The suppliers are :
- Longleys, for journeys around the Canterbury area, including Canterbury-Airport bookings.
- Vokes, for journeys around the Medway area, including Medway-Airport bookings.
More details will be published later in April.
Best Practice Guidance
Procurement will also publish a full and comprehensive set of Best Practice guidance in April alongside a list of available contracts to help you in your decisions around which suppliers to use.