ASSIGNMENT 1

Assignment 1

Assignment 1

Statutory Accounts

Traditionally M&S businesses operate on a twelve-month cycle which may be the same as the calendar year January to December or perhaps the same as the Tax year, 6 April of one year to the 5 of April of the next year. Alternatively, some businesses operate from the date the business first began to trade, for example 1 July of one year to the 30 June the next year.During the twelve-month period the business receives many documents of a financial nature which have to be entered in the books of account using either a manual or a computer system(Johnson Scholes 2002 pp.23-33).

At the end of each month the books are usually balanced up and a trial balance prepared from which the final accounts (to be discussed later) may be prepared. Also, at the end of each month, outstanding accounts are usually settled, wages and salaries are paid and money received during the month from the M&S's debtors are all recorded.

M&S use computer system accounts, at the end of each month, a great deal of useful information can be extracted such as outstanding debtors and creditors and the length of time the debt has been owing, plus financial information which is useful to management in their appraisal of the business and to assist in forward planning and decision making.

Possible Forms Of Finance

Marks & Spenser a global business is not only a daunting operational task , it also involves a mountain of financial information that must be collected, consolidated, and understood to drive financial reporting, planning, and decision making.

Accounting contributes to a vast array of company decisions. In general, accounting is concerned with economic decisions and the financial information required making such decisions. Specifically, accounting is concerned with identifying which information will help(Ralph 1996 pp.67-76) the various decision makers, how it should be measured and communicated to them. This involves accountants in designing and implementing systems within which financial information can be processed, and in establishing the rules and procedures to be used in processing the information. One important reason, then, for studying accounting is to acquire the knowledge and skill to search through available economic and financial information for clues that will serve as guides to future action .John Arnold (1994).

Financial information is submitted for processing. Consolidation processing is then performed at both the legal entity and business unit (profit-centre group) level. This information is used to ...