GCSE-ready- Home
- Lessons
- IGCSE Accounting
- Control accounts
Control accounts
🎬 The doodle video for this lesson is coming soon. Subscribe on YouTube to see it first.
Control accounts summarise all the customer or supplier accounts in one place, which helps find errors and fraud.
Purpose
A trade receivables control account summarises all the accounts in the receivables ledger. A trade payables control account summarises the payables ledger.
The control account balance should equal the total of the individual ledger balances.
They help find errors, discourage fraud, and give a quick total figure for the trial balance.
The control account balance should equal the total of the individual ledger balances.
They help find errors, discourage fraud, and give a quick total figure for the trial balance.
Trade receivables control account
Trade payables control account
Opening receivables £6000, credit sales £40 000, receipts £35 000, discount allowed £800, sales returns £1200. Find the closing balance.
- 6000 + 40 000 = 46 000
- 46 000 − 35 000 − 800 − 1200
Answer: £9000
Control accounts summarise the receivables and payables ledgers to find errors and deter fraud. Receivables: debit opening balance and credit sales; credit receipts, discounts allowed, returns, irrecoverable debts and contras. Payables are the mirror image.
The interactive lesson includes the diagrams for this topic.
Check you have got it
Answer 7 quick questions with instant marking. If you get one wrong, GCSE-ready shows you why and gives you another go. It is free, and you do not need an account.