LLC: Effective Practice Guide

Budget is set by your Principal based on their vision and school needs:

• Library budget code (107-51000-XXX) (ask your school secretary / business manager for your school's code)
• Trust fund - This is where scholastic book fair money and other fundraising, PAC funds, and any lost/damaged book charges goes.

As those responsible for a budget, it is important you understand how budgets are handled properly and good accounting practices.

Abbreviations we will be using:

GL - General Ledger

PO - Purchase Order

SDS - The system on which our accounting and purchase orders sit.

Understanding Budgets

This is the header of an SDS report on a budget GL. You can ask your school secretary to generate this for you. Generally it is a good idea to have a set schedule to receive your GL update.

Each year is broken down into:

• Budget - the total amount allocated to the GL
• Balance - the amount remaining
• Encumbered – the amount spent but not yet paid
• Expended – the amount spent and paid for.

Understanding POs

When you have POs created they reflect on the encumbered line once they have been processed and printed. When the items are received they are paid for and the amount paid moves from encumbered into expended.

Standing POs and the school credit card do not do this. They are applied directly to expended.

The original purpose of the Standing PO for Books & Co was to facilitate easy purchases during walk-in visits. The rise of online ordering relying on the Standing PO has made tracking budgets harder as an online order for $900 won’t appear until the books start coming in, potentially causing you to spend the money twice.

What are the Solutions?

1. When ordering online, request a quote and have a proper purchase order put in. This will encumber correctly and mean your balance is correct.
2. Continue to use the standing PO but keep your own accounts. A sample sheet is available here: Sample Library Budget Template

Primary Vendors (English language):

• Books and Company - local to PG. Owen provides TLs with a lot of love and support, we recommend them for local purchases.
• United Library Services - local to BC.
• Saunders - Canadian
• tinlids - Canadian, designated seller for the Forest of Reading program
• Strong Nations - local to BC, Indigenous
• Goodminds - Canadian, Indigenous

Primary Vendors (French language):

• Archambault et sie - French-Canadian (this is the institutional site with 20% discount)
• Renaud-Bray - French-Canadian

Secondary Vendors:

• Preview boxes - Smart Apple, etc.
  • These are almost always the same titles as were available at the DLC book fair. We recommend you purchase there over book boxes
  • Cost to you if you do not purchase all titles.
• Scholastic Book Fairs
  • Best to use your credit from running the fair as much as possible.

Avoid:

• Thrift store purchases

• Keep Purchase orders from all purchased resources
• Stamping books
• Labels
• Taping edges

If you have resources to be cataloged please only stamp bottom right corner of the front page before sending it in. Other processing should be done after the book is cataloged.