A1 – Basic double-entry bookkeeping to trial balance

Home /place of work-based assessment to include:

• Underpinning knowledge
  • Knowledge of the different categories of business that exist
  • Terms in bookkeeping (assets, liabilities etc.)
  • Banking procedures
  • Understanding the different categories of VAT (standard, reduced, zero, exempt, outside the scope)
• Calculation of the value of the capital investment for a sole trader
• Calculation of business documents including calculation of VAT
• Showing an understanding of the effect of entering transactions into a bookkeeping system for sales, purchases, overheads, capital items, returns, personal items etc.
• The effect of making and receiving payments including bank, cash and petty cash transactions
• Calculation of account balances
• Production and explanation of a trial balance

A2 – Further double-entry bookkeeping to trial balance

Home/place of work-based assessment to include:

• Underpinning knowledge
  • Ethics
  • Legislation relevant to the bookkeeper
  • Accounting concepts
• Further double entry including the following
  • Topics from paper 1
  • The content of control accounts
  • Writing off a bad debt
  • Construction Industry Scheme
  • Posting non-sole trader entries (subscriptions, donations, drawings of partners, directors’ loan accounts etc.)
• Entry of payroll journals
• Calculation of the value of a suspense account in a system that does not balance
• Reconciliation of debtors, creditors and bank balances
• Correction of errors that do not affect the trial balance
• Production and explanation of a trial balance

A3 – Data entry to trial balance using a computerised accounts package

Home /place of work-based test to include the use of a computerised accounting package to include:

• Opening of entries
• Entry of cash and credit transactions
• Production of a trial balance
• Production of reports for debtors, creditors, banks, VAT and the audit trail

The three assessments should be taken in the order listed above. Each assessment will generate an accreditation notification. Successful candidates will need to pass all three assessments to gain the full qualification.

M4 Reconciliations and Final Accounts of a Sole Trader

Home/place of work-based assessment to include:

• Underpinning knowledge
• Reconciliation and correction of errors (customer and supplier reconciliations, bank reconciliation, correction of errors including the clearance of a suspense account balance)
• The calculation of summary figures for control accounts
• VAT Returns (cash and standard VAT Returns only but including EU transactions)
• Posting adjustments including disposal and acquisition of fixed assets
• Revaluation of assets
• Final accounts of a sole trader (profit and loss account and balance sheet)

M5 Final Accounts of a Partnership

Home/place of work-based covering knowledge and skills assessment to include:

• All of the requirements for paper M4 but set in a partnership scenario plus:
• Underpinning knowledge
• Ethical considerations
• Underpinning knowledge of the legal requirements for a partnership
• Final accounts of a partnership including the appropriation account and production of partners’ current accounts
• Calculations and bookkeeping entries to record a change of partnership (partnership ratios, goodwill, the effect on capital and current accounts etc.)

M6 Final Accounts for a Not-for-Profit Organisation

Home/place of work-based knowledge and skills assessment to include:

• All of the requirements of paper M4 but set in a not-for-profit scenario plus:
• Underpinning knowledge regarding not-for-profit organisations
• Understanding the different requirements of a chart of accounts for such an organisation
• Understand the concepts of the different forms of income for not-for-profit organisations including a subscriptions account
• Posting adjustments including the subscriptions account and disposal and acquisition of fixed assets
• Final accounts of a not-for-profit organisation 

M7 Final Accounts for Incorporated Businesses

Home/place of work-based assessment to include:

• Final accounts including adjustments for a limited company (internal management accounts format only)
• Limited liability partnerships
• calculation and interpretation of ratios

There are no prerequisites, but you need to have basic numerical skills and a good understanding of the English language.

If you have any questions please contact us.