21. Pay Expenditure

21.1 Remuneration policy

21.1.1 All University staff will be appointed to the salary scales approved by the Council and in accordance with appropriate conditions of service. All letters of appointment must be issued by the HR office.

21.1.2 The Council will determine what other benefits are to be available, the basis of their provision (contributory or not) and the staff to whom they are to be available.

21.1.3 Salaries and other benefits for senior management will be determined by the Remuneration Committee.

21.2 Appointment of staff

All contracts of service shall be concluded in accordance with the University’s approved HR practices and procedures and all offers of employment with the University shall be made in writing by the Director of HR. Budget Officers shall ensure that the Treasurer and the Director of HR are provided promptly with all information they may require in connection with the appointment, resignation or dismissal of employees.

21.3 Salaries and wages

21.3.1 The Treasurer is responsible for all payments of salaries and wages to all staff including payments for overtime or other additional services rendered. All timesheets and other pay documents, including those relating to fees payable to external examiners, visiting lecturers or researchers, will be in a form prescribed or approved by the Treasurer.

21.3.2 The Director of HR will be responsible for keeping the Treasurer informed of all matters relating to personnel for payroll purposes. In particular these include the HR policies approved for application in the University together with the following in relation to individual staff:

• appointments, resignations, dismissals, supervisions, secondments and transfers;
• changes in remuneration other than normal increments and pay awards;
• information necessary to maintain records of service for superannuation, income tax and national insurance.

21.3.3 The Treasurer is responsible for payments to non-employees and for informing the appropriate authorities of such payments. All casual and part-time employees will be included on the payroll.

21.3.4 The Treasurer shall be responsible for keeping all records relating to payroll including those of a statutory nature.

21.3.5 All payments must be made in accordance with the University’s detailed payroll financial procedures and comply with HM Revenue & Customs regulations.

21.4 Superannuation schemes

21.4.1 The Council is responsible for undertaking the role of employer in relation to appropriate pension arrangements for employees.

21.4.2 The Treasurer is responsible for day-to-day superannuation matters, including:

• paying contributions to various authorised superannuation schemes;
• preparing the annual return to various superannuation schemes;
• administering the University’s pension fund.

21.4.3 The Director of HR is responsible for administering eligibility to pension arrangements and for informing the Treasurer when deductions should begin or cease for staff.

21.5 Travel, subsistence and other allowances

21.5.1 All claims for payment of subsistence allowances, travelling and incidental expenses shall be completed in a form approved by the Treasurer and will be in accordance with the Travel and Subsistence Policy. See Finance Department : Travel, subsistence, hospitality and other staff expenses policy and procedures manual - Durham University

21.5.2 Claims by members of staff must be authorised by their Budget Officer (or Faculty Dean in the case of Budget Officers). The certification by the Budget Officer shall be taken to mean that:

• journeys were authorised;
• the expenses were properly and necessarily incurred;
• the allowances are properly payable by the University;
• consideration has been given to value for money in choosing the mode of transport.

21.5.3 Claims for expenses by the Vice-Chancellor or members of the Council shall be approved by the Chair of the Council.

21.6 Staff reimbursement

21.6.1 The University’s purchasing and payments procedures are in place to enable non-pay supplies to be procured through the creditors system without staff having to incur any personal expense. However, on occasion, staff may incur expenses in person and are entitled to reimbursement whilst away from Durham on University business.

21.6.2 Where such expenditure by staff is planned, the Treasurer and the relevant Budget Officer may jointly approve cash advances to staff who are going to incur expenditure on the University’s behalf. Within one month of completion of the travel or project to which the advance relates, a final account must be prepared to demonstrate how the advance was disbursed and any unspent balance repaid. Under no circumstances will a second advance be approved when the final account for an earlier advance to an individual is still outstanding.

21.7 University travel cards

Where appropriate, the Treasurer may approve the issuing of University travel cards to staff who travel regularly on University business. Such travel cards shall be used for the payment of valid business expenses only, and the misuse of such cards shall be grounds for disciplinary action. The Treasurer will be responsible for setting in place a system to monitor the use of University travel cards and account for expenses charged through them.

21.8 Giving hospitality

21.8.1 Staff entertaining guests from outside bodies at lunch time should use the University’s catering facilities where possible. Where this is not the case, claims for reimbursement should state clearly that they relate to hospitality and include the necessary receipts and details required by the University’s expenses policy. (see Finance Department : Travel, subsistence, hospitality and other staff expenses policy and procedures manual - Durham University).

• The limits concerning acceptable expenditure for entertaining guests are set out in the expenses policy.

21.9 Overseas travel

21.9.1 All arrangements for overseas travel must be in accordance with the approved expenses policy. Any approvals required must be obtained in advance of committing the University to those arrangements or confirmation of any travel bookings.

21.9.2 Where spouses, partners or other persons unconnected with the University intend to participate in a trip, this must be clearly identified in advance. In these circumstances, the University will not arrange or pay for the travel but will re-imburse the individual for the business portion of the cost. Further details are given in the expenses policy.

21.10 Allowances for members of the Council

Claims for members of the Council will be authorised by the Registrar in accordance with guidance approved by the Chair of Council. Claims for meeting attendance will be based on standard amounts for each individual, but only reasonable expenses can be reimbursed.

21.11 Severance and other non-recurring payments

Severance payments shall only be made in accordance with HEFCE Guidance. Sums paid in respect of employees earning in excess of £70,000 per annum shall be approved by Remuneration Committee. Sums for other employees will be approved by the Budget Officer and reported to the Remuneration Committee.

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