The purchase card policy is changing from 11 February 2019. This update supports the University’s non-pay savings initiative, which is aiming to achieve a £4m saving in 2018/19 and is in-line with the recent changes made to the staff expenses and staff travel policies.
The updated policy will apply to all purchase card transactions that are made from 11 February 2019.
All areas of the purchase card policy will be enforced
Purchase card holders and their line managers must read the policy and the faqs to ensure compliance with the updated policy.
Where the purchase card policy is silent on a certain type of expenditure, please check with the purchase card administrator before making the purchase.
Misuse or failure to comply with the terms outlined in the policy will result in the purchase card being withdrawn and may lead to disciplinary action.
Summary of key points
The list below does not cover everything from the purchase card policy. Please check the full policy before using a purchase card / approving transactions.
Compliance
Purchase cards must not be shared
Each purchase card is issued to an individually named card holder. It is not a departmental/area/team purchase card to be used by a variety of people.
Contracted suppliers
Purchases must be made from the University’s contracted suppliers where agreements exist.
Sharing personal data
In the event that a purchase will involve sharing any personal data (including images) – regardless of whether the data pertains to a staff member or a student – the Strategic Procurement team must be contacted prior to the purchase being made. This is to ensure supplier compliance with regards to data security and GDPR.
Recurring subscriptions
IT subscriptions
Prior to any purchase of subscriptions relating to IT (for example MailChimp, Rotacloud, Textmagic, Zoom) you must first contact the DTS service desk ithelp@shu.ac.uk or ext 3333, to discuss your requirement and determine whether a suitable product already exists within the University.
Cancelling subscriptions
If a purchase card is cancelled which had been used to order a recurring subscription, the cardholder must notify the purchase card administrator. The cardholder is responsible for cancelling said subscription
Split Transactions
Split transactions are strictly prohibited. A split transaction is classified as a series of purchases made deliberately with the aim of by-passing the Purchase Card’s single transaction limit. If a purchase is required that exceeds the purchase card’s transaction limit please contact the purchase card administrator as soon as possible.