Actual Cash Flow
Having done a cash flow forecast, the business will have some idea of what they expect to happen during the coming year. What actually happens might be quite different. The firm will monitor what actually happens as the year goes on. It will be able to compare what it has expected to happen with what actually happens. This will allow it to adjust its position to make sure it can pay its debts.
We can record what actually happens in similar way to our cash flow forecast but this will show a record of the actual cash flow against the forecast cash flow. Limited companies are required to file a document called a cash flow statement, which is similar to this principle.
| Item | Cost | Sales per month (average) |
|---|---|---|
| Rental of the shed | £8 per week | |
| Lab coats | £15 each | |
| Display boxes | £2 each | |
| Money box | £10 | |
| Delivery fees | £2 per day - in September, the delivery cost went up to £4 per day because of a rise in fuel costs). Delivery costs were halved in April and December due to fewer deliveries. | |
| Fruit: | ||
| Apples (each) | 15p | 200 |
| Oranges (each) | 16p | 120 |
| Bananas (each) | 12p | 375 |
| Grapes (per bunch) | 60p | 110 |
| Strawberries (per punnet) | 85p | 95 |
| Pears (each) | 24p | 120 |
Average price of fruit:
- Apples: 25p each
- Oranges: 22p each
- Bananas: 18p each
- Grapes: 55p per bunch
- Strawberries: £1.00 per punnet
- Pears: 26p each.
In March, May and September the average sales of fruit turned out as follows:
| Fruit | Sales |
|---|---|
|
|
Now complete the following table showing the actual cash flow over the year.
| Jan | Feb | March | Apr | May | June | July | Aug | Sept | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Receipts | ||||||||||||
| Payments | ||||||||||||
| Rent | ||||||||||||
| Delivery | ||||||||||||
| Fruit | ||||||||||||
| Total Payments | ||||||||||||
| Net Cash Flow | ||||||||||||
| Opening Balance | 20 | |||||||||||
| Closing Balance |
Please find a printable version of the actual cash flow document here.
Once you have had a go, compare your completed table with this one.