Academy Trust Handbook: changes from September 2021
The Academies Financial Handbook has been refreshed and renamed. There are no major changes, but you should still be familiar with what’s different in the new handbook. Use our summary to get up to speed.
Contents
The Academies Financial Handbook has been renamed as the Academy Trust Handbook.
This article refers to the Academy Trust Handbook 2021, which comes into effect on 1 September 2021. It summarises the changes highlighted on page 9 and 10 of the handbook.
Be aware of the risk of cybercrime
You must:
- Put in place proportionate controls
- Take appropriate action where a cyber security incident has occurred
- Get permission from the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) to pay any cyber ransom demands
This is set out in sections 6.16 and 6.17 of the handbook.
The ESFA links to further guidance which you might find useful:
- The ESFA's academy trust guide to reducing fraud
- The National Cyber Security Centre, and its article on education sector ransomware attacks
The ESFA may obtain information about your trust from third parties
If requested by the ESFA,