AAT POBC study guide
AAT POBC · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
AAT POBC (Principles of Bookkeeping Controls) is a unit within the Association of Accounting Technicians' bookkeeping and accounting qualifications, aimed at learners who already understand basic double-entry bookkeeping and now need to prove they can control it. Typical candidates are bookkeeping students progressing through the AAT bookkeeping route, accounting apprentices, and working finance assistants who post transactions daily and want formal recognition of the checking side of the role. The AAT POBC study guide has 5 sections and about 1,594 words.
01Payment Methods and Controls
Cash settles small immediate purchases but carries theft and loss risk, so it is controlled through a petty cash imprest and receipts. Cheques are written orders to a bank; crossings such as 'A/c payee only' restrict negotiation.
327 words, about 2 min02Reconciling Bank Statements
The cash book is the business's record; the bank statement is the bank's record. They differ because of timing and errors.
330 words, about 2 min03Preparing the Petty Cash Book
A petty cash float (say £200) is held by a petty cashier. Every payment is supported by a petty cash voucher signed by the recipient and properly authorised.
330 words, about 2 min04Control Accounts and the Trial Balance
The sales ledger control account (SLCA) is a summary of the sales ledger; the purchase ledger control account (PLCA) summarises the purchase ledger. They are memorandum controls that help prove the subsidiary ledgers.
311 words, about 2 min05Correction of Errors and Suspense Accounts
Errors include omission (transaction left out entirely), commission (right amount, wrong account of the same class), principle (wrong class, for example repairs debited to motor vehicles), original entry (wrong figure in the prime entry book), reversal (debit and credit swapped), transposition (digits swapped) and compensating errors (two errors cancel). Only errors that make total debits unequal total credits create a suspense account balance - typically one-sided entries or unequal amounts.
296 words, about 1 min