Assets
An asset is an item that the University owns and uses while providing administration, education and research services. The University’s assets consist mainly of buildings and equipment but there is also approximately £100 million worth of building assets under construction at any one time and numerous heritage assets.
All assets are recorded by the Finance Division, but the accuracy of this data is heavily reliant on the monthly Departmental Equipment Listing Form 
(311kb) from departments for any additions, retirements, revaluation, or adjustments. It is also important that departments track equipment items over £5,000 for security and insurance purposes. Please refer to the Managing Assets: Equipment process for further details.
Treatment of assets
Fixed assets consist of equipment, software and vehicles over £25,000, which is the University’s materiality level for equipment assets (for more details, see the glossary). These assets are accounted for in the University's balance sheet, are capitalised and will be depreciated on a monthly basis over the life of the asset. This is all managed by the Finance Division.
Capital building projects over £100,000 are treated the same way as fixed assets.
In addition there are numerous heritage assets, mainly held in the Ashmolean Museum and the Bodleian Library, which are also accounted for in the balance sheet.
Non-fixed assets consist of equipment, software and vehicles under £25,000 but over £5,000. It is the University’s policy to recognise only assets that cost over £5,000 within the Oracle Financials Fixed Asset module (including any non-reclaimable VAT) due to the large number of assets that the University owns. These assets are expensed so the full cost of the item is accounted for in the University’s income and expenditure account during the year of purchase and not included in the balance sheet. This is also managed by the Finance Division.
| Asset | Value | Treatment |
|---|---|---|
| Equipment, software and vehicles | £5K-25K | Non-fixed asset |
| Equipment, software and vehicles | Over £25K | Fixed asset |
| Capital building projects | Over £100K | Fixed asset |
Contact details
For further information please contact:
Fixed Asset Accountant (University access only)
01865 (6) 16128
(31kb)