Accounting for Non-Accountants — Public Sector

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This 2 day course is designed for anyone who requires a better understanding of public sector accrual accounting and reporting requirements. The accounting process will be reviewed to enable participants to better understand the end result - the financial statements. There will be both a monthly management accounting focus as well as year end financial reporting requirements within the public sector.

Course Aim The aim of this course is to provide participants with an understanding of accrual accounting and its impact on the financial information presented in the financial statements.

Key Learning Objectives At the conclusion of this course participants will:

• appreciate the differences between the Accounting frameworks - accrual accounting and cash accounting
• Understand the definitions of the five major categories of the financial data: assets, liabilities, equity, revenue and expenses
• know the process of how the financial information is recorded, in order to build the financial statements under the double entry process
• Know the different levels of accounting, management and financial, and understand their differences, including
  • What reports are generated at each level
  • What regulations exist at each level
  • What are the reports purpose
• Develop an understanding of the typical period-end adjustments under accrual accounting and why they are performed, including depreciation and provisions
• Understand the information presented in Australian Government agencies financial statements:
  • the balance sheet, income statement, cash flow statement, schedule of commitments and the schedule of quantifiable contingencies
• Develop an understanding of the Australian Government financial reporting framework and its impact on the preparation of financial reports.