Accounting officer: role and responsibilities

Understand the accounting officer's responsibilities and what happens if they're absent.

Updated
on 15 July 2025
See updates
School types: AcademySchool phases: AllRef: 42351
Contents
  1. Trustees must appoint an accounting officer
  2. Main responsibilities
  3. See examples of training 

Trustees must appoint an accounting officer

  • They should be the senior executive leader:
    • In single academy trusts this should be the principal
    • In multi-academy trusts (MATs) it should be the chief executive or equivalent 
  • They must be a fit and suitable person for the role
  • The roles of senior executive leader and accounting officer must not rotate
  • The roles of accounting officer and chief financial officer should not be occupied by the same person
  • They should be employed by your trust
  • Your trust must get prior approval from the DfE if, in exceptional circumstances, it wants to appoint an accounting officer who isn't a trust employee 

This is outlined in paragraphs 1.28 and 1.29 of the Academy Trust Handbook (ATH) 2025.

Main responsibilities

In summary: 

  • This role is about financial accountability and keeping proper financial records
  • It's a leadership role

Responsibilities

Be personally responsible to Parliament, and to the DfE's accounting officer, for the financial resources under the trust’s control  Be able to assure Parliament, and the public, of high standards of management of public funds, particularly: Value for