Description

Our Budgeting Course provides practical training in preparing, understanding, and managing business budgets. Designed by a Chartered Accountant and Financial Analyst, the course is delivered by an experienced finance trainer in a live, interactive Virtual Classroom. Practical exercises are used throughout the training to help you apply budgeting principles to realistic business situations. The course is ideal for managers, professionals and finance staff who work with budgets but have not received formal training in budget preparation and management.

No previous finance or accounting qualification is required.

Introduction to Budgets Course

This one-day Introduction to Budgets Course provides a practical understanding of how budgets are created, managed and used within a business. You will learn about the different types of budgets, how financial information is brought together to create a budget and how actual performance can be compared against budgeted figures. The course also introduces important areas such as cash flow forecasting, working capital, variance analysis, cost management and financial forecasting.

Budgeting Course Content

Understanding Budgets

Develop a clear understanding of what a budget is and why businesses use budgets for financial planning and control.

Topics include:

  • Defining a budget
  • The principles of budgeting
  • Benefits of good budgeting practices
  • Different types and styles of budgets
  • Cost budgets
  • The different business uses of budgets
  • Financial terminology used in budgeting

Understanding Financial Information

Learn about the financial information and terminology required to prepare and interpret budgets, including:

  • Income and expenditure
  • Capital expenditure
  • Cash flow
  • Profit and Loss
  • Balance Sheets
  • Cash Flow Statements
  • Financing costs

Understanding the Financial Elements of a Budget

  • Define each element: income vs expenditure, capital expenditure, cash flow forecasts, etc.
  • Developing budgets for Profit and Loss, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow
  • Accounting adjustments to be aware of: stock, accruals, prepayments, etc.
  • Profit margin ratios

Budget Planning and Preparation

  • Planning and preparation of your budget
  • Coordinating and bringing your budget together
  • Practical exercise defining and preparing Profit and Loss, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow
  • Justifying your business reason for the budget

Expenditure and Variances

  • Ascertain expenditure and variances
  • Explaining variances

Cash Flow and Working Capital

  • Cash flow and working capital cycles
  • How to forecast cash flow

Forecasting Financing Costs

  • How to forecast financing costs

Practical Budget Management Skills

This course is designed to provide more than a theoretical introduction to budgeting. Practical exercises help you understand how financial information is used to create and manage budgets in a real business environment. The aim is to give you greater confidence when preparing budgets, monitoring expenditure, explaining variances and discussing financial performance with colleagues and Finance teams.

Who Is the Budgeting Course Suitable For?

The course is suitable for anyone whose current or future role involves preparing, managing, monitoring or contributing to a budget.

It can be particularly useful for:

  • Managers with budget responsibilities
  • Department managers
  • Team leaders
  • Project managers
  • Business owners
  • Professionals responsible for controlling costs
  • Employees contributing to departmental budgets
  • Finance staff who want to strengthen their budgeting knowledge
  • Non-finance professionals who work with financial information

You do not need a background in Finance to attend. The course is designed to make budgeting concepts understandable to non-finance professionals while also providing useful practical training for people already working within Finance.

Budgeting Course Dates and Duration

The Budgeting Course is delivered over the course of one day in a live Virtual Classroom.

Training runs from 10:30 to 16:30. The Virtual Classroom format allows you to interact directly with the trainer, ask questions and participate in practical exercises throughout the day.

Benefits of the Budgeting Course

Completing the course can help you:

  • Develop practical budget preparation skills
  • Build confidence creating and managing budgets
  • Understand different types and styles of budgets
  • Improve your understanding of financial terminology
  • Develop cash flow forecasting skills
  • Understand and explain budget variances
  • Monitor expenditure against financial targets
  • Understand how budgets relate to Profit and Loss, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow
  • Improve your understanding of working capital and profit margins
  • Communicate more confidently about budgets and financial performance
  • Apply budgeting principles more effectively in the workplace

CPD Accredited Budgeting Course

The Budgeting Course is CPD accredited. Following successful completion of the course, you will receive a CPD certificate recognising your professional development. Alongside certification, the objective is to give you practical budgeting skills that you can apply when planning, preparing, monitoring and managing budgets in the workplace.