Finance
Finance software for schools. One less thing to worry about
Confidently manage your school finances and save money with Access Education's cloud-based financial management system.
Supporting features such as DfE automation and the new standard chart of accounts, our finance software for schools ensures thousands of schools across the UK are streamlined, up-to-date and making best use of their budget.
Access Education Finance software is designed with education in mind
We’ve worked with school finance managers and leading education figures to make our school and academy accounting software fit for purpose, easy to use and fully compliant with DfE and ESFA requirements.
And, because all our school accounting software is delivered through our cloud-based platform, Access Workspace, it can be accessed all in one place, anytime, anywhere, on any device – with no extra IT costs and single sign on.
Why choose our school finance software?
Compliant with local authority requirements
Customisable reports are aligned to the local authority requirements making submission quick and easy.
School specific
Simple and easy to use double entry automated finance system – for non-finance staff as well as school finance professionals.
Cloud based
100% cloud based with secure access through Access Workspace, anytime, anywhere.
DfE & ESFA compliant
Supports accounting processes in line with DfE and ESFA requirements including production of the statutory CFR and SOFA returns.
Comprehensive reporting suite
Access comprehensive reports that provide high level insights into the financial performance of your school.
Consistent Financial Report (CFR) return
CFR reports can be produced quickly and easily for submission to the local authority.
Dynamic integration
Seamless integration with Access Education Budgets to reduce manual importing while increasing visibility across the school
Electronic bank reconciliation
Reconciling multiple or single bank accounts can be time-consuming. Upload a CSV statement to auto-match transactions.
Access Education Finance product tour
See what our software can do for your local authority maintained school by watching our video demo below.
Manage, control and report on your finances
The fully customisable chart of accounts, ledger options and defaults allow you to accurately represent how your school or academy works, letting you record and report information as you need to. Our school management software gives you the freedom to manage transactions, payments, receipts and reconciliations quickly and accurately, with built-in double-entry posting, tolerance and transaction warnings.
Customisable user-access profiles allow you to delegate responsibility appropriately. Plus, customisable document templates and online document management means you can keep everything in one place with the added comfort of knowing it is securely, stored online.
Easily monitor school budget and cashflow
Data import from our budget and forecasting tool, school budgeting software, means you can track real-time spending against planned expenditure. You can quickly create cashflow forecasts and get a full picture of past, present and future financial performance.
Reports are built against the suggested DfE format and can be run by the school at any time.
Education finance software all in one place, anytime, anywhere, on any device
Access detailed school finance reporting in real-time
The real-time information dashboard gives an up-to-date picture of your school’s financial performance quickly and easily. While detailed reports let you analyse your school’s finances to reveal critical trends.
You can create easy-to-understand monthly, termly and annual reports for governors and trustees and meet your regulatory responsibilities with simple-to-produce DfE and ESFA returns.
Management reports can be run at the click of a button and you can easily access real-time information at a high-level by a ledger code group or detailed data through your ledger codes. The management report is built to the suggested DfE format, in our school management software.
Compliant with DfE and ESFA requirements
As a UK-developed and hosted platform, it's compliant with DfE and ESFA requirements, and you will be ready when tax goes digital.
Access Digital Tax retrieves relevant data from Access Education Finance ready for your review and submission to HMRC.
Straightforward set-up - Nothing to install and limited IT support needs means minimal disruption and the most up-to-date version every time you log in.
Why schools love our finance software
More than just great school finance software
We are dedicated to providing our customers with award-winning implementation and support to help them get the most out of their software.
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Leading Change
Great CSM team
Very good support from Devakar (Dev) Amy and Claudiu
Training - the way it should be given
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Finance resources
On-demand webinar: Software support when you switch to Access Education Finance
Watch our 30 minute webinar, where our hosts tell you about:
- How to prepare for our onboarding experience
- What our support package entails
- What you can expect from Access as your technology partner
On-demand webinar: Trends & challenges local authorities are facing in the education sector
The one hour session will cover:
- Panel discussion addressing some of the priorities and challenges local authorities are facing and the difference between councils
- Short overview of how technology can help schools and local authorities overcome these challenges
On-demand webinar: Switching school finance systems
Watch our 45 minute webinar where we cover:
- Key signs it’s time to change your school finance software
- How to select the right supplier for your school or local authority
- See a demo of our finance software exclusively for the Education sector, used by thousands of schools and academies
- Hear about our exclusive “Pay on YOUR terms, not this term” offer
Choosing the best finance system for your school
Covered in this guide...
- Benefits of implementing the right finance system
- Common concerns and solutions for finance systems in schools
- Choosing the right finance system for MATs or academies
- Implementing a finance system for schools
Building a business case for a school financial management system
If you’re looking to get support and investment in a new financial management system, we can help. We’ve put this guide together to:
- Help you present a convincing argument
- Show how specialist software can streamline processes, cut costs and help the school, academy or trust meet its goals
- Show how the right technology can help you deliver better value for parents, pupils and staff
What to include in your tender document
Procuring back-office education software but don’t know where to begin? In this guide, we cover everything you need to create the perfect tender document.
On-demand webinar: Benefits of integrated Budgets & Finance
A webinar for schools and local authorities.
Watch the webinar to:
- Discover what’s ahead for your Budgets software - roadmap and plans for Access Education Budgets
- Learn about how to increase your school’s back-office efficiency with integrated Finance & Budgets – Short demo
School finance software FAQs
Can Access produce the financial returns and reports my academy/MAT needs?
Yes, Access provides a range of standard and customised reports to meet all your MAT/academy’s needs. Read about our school finance reporting.
Do I get access to a budgeting tool?
Yes, we also have a market-leading budgeting tool that is used by more than 9000 schools in England. It is fully integrated with Access Education Finance and can help you to plan, forecast and reforecast your budget aswell as model the impact of different scenarios.
Does Access’ contract include implementation and training?
Yes, as part of the project our consultants work with you to ensure the implementation covers all training your requirements.
What support do I get with the system?
Access provides telephone support, account management and online support. You can pick up the phone and speak with a member of our team when you need assistance.
Do you copy my existing Chart of Accounts structure?
We can build you a new Chart of Accounts structure, copy/amend your current structure, or work with you to establish a uniform CoA structure which can be rolled out to all academies.
Does the system integrate with other systems?
Yes, our finance solution integrates with a number of Access and other systems. We’d be happy to talk to you about these, please do get in touch.
Is the software Cloud Hosted?
Yes, all of our software is purpose built for the cloud.
What is a school finance system?
School finance software helps schools, academies and trusts track and report on the financial status of their educational establishment. The school’s financial management system is in place to increase visibility across the site as well as reduce administration. Our finance software for the education sector helps thousands of schools across the UK do this and more.
How does accounting software help schools?
School accounting software helps to simplify and streamline finance process in schools and Trusts. Often integrated with other software, it allows schools to become scalable and grow in a more efficient manner due to the ability to centralise resources.
Providing detailed insights in a secure manner, school accounting software can also help schools in their mission to become paperless and provides remote, easy access to real time data and reporting in line with school requirements. The primary benefit schools see when implementing school accounting software is time savings.
Which accounting software is best for schools?
The best accounting software for schools is cloud-based, allowing you to access your school finances anytime, anywhere, no matter your location. Education finance software should help to reduce the administrative burdens across your school, academy or Trust and aim to increase your visibility, control and reporting over school finances. Our finance software for the education sector helps thousands of schools across the UK do this and more.
What is finance and accounting software for education?
Finance and accounting software for education is software that helps people within local authorities or academy trusts conduct various accounting and bookkeeping tasks. More commonly known as school finance software, the terms ‘accounting software for education’ and ‘finance software for education’ all refer to the same kind of software packages used to manage a school or trust’s finances.
There are many finance management solutions on the market, but finance and accounting software designed specifically for schools can provide many benefits for those working in the education sector. The software tends to be suitable for use by those without a formal accounting background, such as school business managers and headteachers who manage school’s finances alongside their other responsibilities. Have a look at some considerations for best accounting software for schools.
Why is education finance and accounting software important?
Like any organisation that deals with money, schools and trusts need to manage their finances to make sure income covers outgoings like the staff wage bill and school running costs. Without education finance and accounting software, staff need to conduct manual bookkeeping which takes a lot of time and poses various compliance risks.
Finance and accounting software improves flexibility, visibility and automation of education finance management.
What accounting systems do schools use?
There are many providers of accounting systems to schools, including but not limited to Iris, Orovia, IMP, Sage and more – as well as Access Education Finance. Providers offer a range of packages for schools and trusts with different functionality suiting each school or trust’s unique requirements. When investing in a new accounting system it is important for schools and trusts to consider a range of factors including price, compliance, flexibility and more. Take a look at guide to choosing the right financial system for your school or trust.
Education software created by educators, for educators
The Access Education software suite is purpose-built to address the unique needs and challenges of educational institutions. Created by education experts, it's not just another solution – it's a comprehensive approach to improving the entire educational experience.
We've collaborated closely with educators at every stage of development to ensure our software reflects their insights, needs, and goals. It goes beyond functionality, becoming a strategic ally for schools, MATs, and local authorities.
Our ultimate goal is to empower educators to focus on what truly matters: delivering exceptional learning experiences to their students.
Ready to increase efficiency and cut administrative overhead? Want more time for teaching, mentoring, and inspiring the next generation? Click on our each of our products to find out how they can improve processes within your setting.
