Accounting Year End – July Retained, March Assurance Likely
Stuart McKay · Posted on: March 3rd 2026 · read
You may recall that, following the reclassification of the FE sector into the public sector, HM Treasury indicated a desire to align college financial year ends with the government financial year (31 March). A move away from the longstanding 31 July year end would have represented a significant operational and reporting change for the sector.
We understand that the Department for Education is not currently planning to mandate a change to a 31 March year end. Instead, attention has shifted towards developing an assurance framework that would allow colleges to retain their 31 July reporting date, while still providing HM Treasury and the National Audit Office with the information required for Whole of Government Accounts (WGA) purposes.
While detailed proposals have yet to be published, it is anticipated that colleges may be required to provide additional financial information or assurance covering the period to 31 March each year. This could take the form of:
A supplementary financial return aligned to the government financial year;
Targeted assurance procedures over that return; and/or
Enhanced reconciliation between March and July financial positions.
The objective appears to be a proportionate solution that satisfies central government consolidation requirements without imposing the disruption and cost of a full accounting year-end change across the sector.
For colleges, this would represent a more manageable outcome, albeit one that may introduce an additional reporting and assurance layer. Finance teams and audit committees should therefore be prepared for further consultation and potential testing during 2026.
We will continue to monitor developments closely and will provide updates as the framework becomes clearer. In the meantime, if you would like to discuss how a March assurance return might interact with your existing reporting timetable, financial health assessments, or audit cycle, please contact a member of our FE team.
