Financial Policy

Beccles  Choral Society

Beccles Choral Society is committed to ensuring that robust financial policies and procedures are in place to safeguard the assets of Beccles Choral Society. The aim of the policy is to:-

  • Ensure the committee have proper financial controls of the organisation
  • Provide a clear framework for committee members to work with when dealing with money
  • Ensure the organisation meets the legal obligations in relation to accounting and financial reporting to the Charity Commission.

Accounting basis and record keeping

  • The accounts will be kept on a receipts and payments basis
  • Accounting record
  •  A record of invoices received and issued
  • Receipts of payments made
  • Cheque book stub receipts

      The financial year end date is July 31st

      A  financial records will be kept for 6 years from the financial year end date they relate to.  This can include digital storage.

Annual Account

Accounts must be drawn up at the end of each financial year within a month of the financial year end.These will include:-

  • Final reconciliation of income and expenditure with bank statements and COIF account statement
  • Records of Lloyds Cardnet transactions
  • A summary of the financial position at year end
  • An income and expenditure statement
  • Accounts will be subject to independent examination by an external person with financial knowledge
  • They will be presented for approval to members at the AGM
  • They will be sent to the Charity Commission within 10 months of the year end

Bank Account

Account name :   Beccles Choral Society

Sort Code                30-95-24

Account                     01587774

There will always be a minimum of three signatories on the account. The current signatories are:-

Ralph Holmes Chair

Ruth Gibley          Secretary

Marian Fox            Treasurer

Diz Swift                 Librarian

The treasurer will review the actual income and expenditure compared with the budget and reforecast the budget as necessary.

The COIF insurance account must maintain a minimum balance of  £10,000 at all times.  Interest can be withdrawn if required but must be firstly agreed by the committee.

Any expenses incurred by the committee must be submitted within 10 days of making the payment and must include;-

  • Reason for making the payment on behalf of the charity
  • Evidence of the item received
  • Evidence of a receipt for the payment

All payments made from the bank account must be recorded and accounted for in the charity account within 1 month.

Gift Aid

Beccles Choral Society claims Gift Aid on membership subscriptions paid by members.

All Gift Aid claims must be supported by an appropriate Gift Aid declaration

An annual assessment on the eligibility of membership subscriptions for Gift Aid is carried out in September of each year.

Gift Aid is claimed yearly in August by the treasurer.

Controls

The treasurer and librarian hold individual named debit cards for the society accounts.  Any use of these needs to be discussed in advance and approved by at least one other committee member, usually the treasurer. All receipts should be retained.

Review

This policy will be reviewed on an annual basis unless the committee deem it necessary to review the policy sooner.