Public Sector Accounting uses an integrated approach to the study of public sector accounting by linking accounting theory and practice for each of the main areas of financial accounting, management accounting and auditing. Examples from a range of Public Sector experiences are woven into the text to illustrate the issues involved. The introduction of the book reflects managerial developments in the public sector, by giving a brief history of these in the UK and internationally then commenting on the adoption of quality assurance in the public sector. The management accounting section discusses developments in the use of internal markets and compulsory competition and the more recent emphasis on public-private partnership and performance indicators and also explains the techniques of programme and zero-based budgeting and investment appraisal. The financial accounting section updates and internationalises the discussion of financial accounting theory and regulation. The final section of the book is on auditing has been updated with UK and international developments.

Table of Contents

Contents Preface 1 The nature of the public sector The nature of government Governance and public management Public finance Public money Accountants and the public sector Further reading 2 Performance measurement Non-financial performance measurement Challenges of performance measurement Further reading 3 Fundamentals of accounting Elements of accounting Bases of accounting National accounting and government budgeting Further reading 4 Budgetary policies and processes The rational control cycle Fiscal years Budgeting for inputs, outputs and outcomes Budgetary processes Further reading 5 Form and contents of budgets Organizational structures and programmed structures Capital budgets Line-item, incremental budgets Output measurement and outcomes Zero-base reviews Further reading 6 Budgetary control Central financial control Devolved forms of financial control Budget reporting Further reading 7 Costing Organizational units, programmes and products Pricing and reimbursement Incremental changes in output Outsourcing Further reading 8 Financial reporting Form and content of published financial reports Accrual accounting special topics Policy-making Conceptual frameworks Further reading 9 Auditing External audit Financial and regulatory audits Performance audits Internal control Materiality Budget auditing Further reading Index

About the Author

Rowan Jones is a professor of Public Sector Accounting at the University of Birmingham Maurice Pendlebury is a professor of Accounting at Cardiff Business School Cardiff University.