Resource Planning

Staff Resource

Cash Staff Budgets

The Planning Division assists Heads of Departments and Service Leaders in understanding their staff resource position. The CSB1 form (or “establishment”) lists the posts at different salary bands available to Academic Departments and Professional Service Divisions; this form is maintained by the Planning Division. 

The CSB2 form (or “pay budget”) shows actual and forecast costs for existing post-holders in the Department or Division against the available budget and is maintained by the Finance Division. Departments and Divisions are encouraged to liaise with their Financial Planning and Analysis Manager on a regular basis to use their CSB resources effectively.  

Sickness Funding

The Division assesses funding bids for staff sickness cover for Departments and Divisions. 

Departments/ Divisions will be asked to complete a form to request funding for sickness cover from the Academic Planning and Resources Committee (APRC) Sickness Contingency Fund. 

The request will be considered in consultation with the Finance Division to determine whether any existing resource is available to contribute to the cost of the cover. 

Once the funding has been agreed the funds will be allocated to the Department or Division’s CSB1 form and the Department of Division will be advised of the outcome via email. 

Replacement Teaching Compensation

The Division maintains the guidance for the Replacement Teaching Compensation which covers replacement teaching arrangements for: 

  • Academic Office Holders 

  • Academic staff with University and College Union responsibilities 

  • Academic Staff on sabbatical leave in exceptional circumstance 

  • Departmental compensation relating to research leave after maternity leave, adoption leave, shared parental leave and certain other extended absences 

  • Heads of Department and Deputy Heads of Department taking sabbatical leave following their period of service 

  • Vice President and Pro-Vice Chancellors taking sabbatical following their period of service 

  • Academic Office Holder’s commutation. 

Compensation and Resource Recall

Heads of Department have considerable discretion during the admissions process to move offers between taught programmes and across fee statuses to ensure that they adhere to departmental offer targets. 

APRC has agreed principles for compensation and resource recall. When Departments exceed their enrolment targets, compensation will be made available to provide additional teaching and other services – this is intended to limit the impact on the student experience and not to incentivise overshoots. 

Departments falling below their enrolment target may be subject to resource recall; but this will not be applied to Departments that have made 95% or more of their departmental offer target. 

 

Non-Staff Resources

Departmental Funding

The Division maintains the Departmental Funding Guidelines which informs the Departmental Funding Model. The model allocates funding cross eight elements: 

  • Core department funding 

  • Student hospitality 

  • Special factors 

  • Premium fee allocations 

  • Moodle maintenance funding 

  • Staff Research Fund 

  • Funding for the replacement of IT equipment within Academic Departments 

  • Add-on fees for specific programmes 

  • Emeritus Research Fund. 

Queries relating to the model and guidelines should be directed to the Planning Division 

Queries concerning financial transactions and departmental budgets should be directed to the Financial Planning and Analysis Team in the Finance Division. 

Scholarships

The Planning Division reviews how scholarship funds are allocated between schemes and ensures they are aligned with financial planning, in liaison with the Financial Support Office and Finance Division. Revisions to the scholarships budget are considered via the Scholarships Group and the Student Numbers and Fees Group, with recommendations made to the Academic Planning and Resources Committee for decision.  


Annual Monitoring

The Planning Division models and reviews the resource requirements of Academic Departments through the Annual Monitoring (AM) process. The AM process is the Department’s only opportunity each year to put forward proposals for additional recurrent staff positions, non-staff resources and student places. Departments should submit requests for staff and non-staff resource via the Annual Monitoring pro forma. Requests will be discussed with the Pro-Vice Chancellor for Planning & Resources; recommendations for changes to resources will be submitted to the APRC for consideration and approval in January each year. 

Major Academic Initiatives

The Major Academic Initiatives (MAI) process provides a structure for the evaluation of the service requirements of new major teaching, research and other academic initiative. As part of this process, proposals must include a resource plan to take into account the full costs of undertaking the new initiative.  

Programme and Course Splits

Where programmes or individual courses are delivered by more than one Department, manual adjustments can be made to the student FTE data in order to recognise these arrangements in the student:staff ratio (SSR) and financial calculations for Departments. The latest document is circulated to Departments each term but new splits can be notified to the Planning Division at any time. 

For queries and matters relating to resource planning, please contact the Planning Division.

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