Treasurer: Job Description and Person Specification
As a treasurer, you will be asked to fulfil the main duties of a trustee, but will also be asked to contribute additional support as a treasurer (e.g. financial guidance). This job description outlines firstly, the main responsibilities/ personal qualities of a trustee. This is followed by an overview of the roles and personal qualities associated with the Treasurer role specifically.
Role of a Trustee
Trustees offer advice, governance and oversight of the charity to help with leadership and promotion of brap in order to support the organisation’s charitable objectives and its needs.
Main Duties and Responsibilities
· Legal duties: ensuring brap meets its objectives, declaring conflicts of interest; accountability to funders, authorities and the public; ensuring resources are well managed; meeting health and safety, insurance and contractual obligations; safeguarding; promoting anti-discrimination practice
· Managerial duties: setting policy and objectives; reviewing new areas of work; monitoring and evaluation; good employment practice; supporting other staff; equal opportunities; contributing to brap’s evaluation and business planning activities; and promoting the work of the organization/supporting brap’s fundraising efforts (where appropriate)
· Operational duties: regular attendance at meetings and participation in activities; staying informed of board of trustee matters and relevant organizational policies and performance; preparing effectively for meetings and reviewing and commenting on relevant board reports; getting to know other trustees and building a collegial working relationship that contributes to consensus
Person Specification
As a trustee you will bring a range of different skills and knowledge to the role, depending on your own personal experience and fields of expertise. However, in order to carry out your responsibilities as a trustee at brap, we are seeking individuals with some common qualities:
- Commitment to equality and human rights and to the purpose, objects and values of brap
- Ability to be constructive about other trustees’ opinions in discussions, and in response to staff members’ contributions at meeting
- Ability to act reasonably and responsibly when undertaking such duties and performing tasks
- Tact and diplomacy
- Good communication and interpersonal skills
- Ability to maintain confidentiality on sensitive and confidential information
- Willingness to be supportive of the values (and ethics) of the organisation
- Understanding of the importance and purpose of meetings and commitment to preparing for them adequately and attending them regularly
- Ability to analyse information and, when necessary, challenge constructively
- Ability to make collective decisions and stand by them
- Ability to respect boundaries between executive and governance functions
This is a non-paid voluntary position (though reasonable travel expenses are covered).
Time Commitment
- Board meetings take place bi-monthly between 5.30pm and 7pm so trustees will be required to attend these and undertake relevant preparation before meetings
- brap run an annual strategic development session with the Board (approximately 3 hours)
- In addition, trustees may be asked to attend events as a representative of brap, or to volunteer to work on particular projects on their own or as part of a small working group on other activities related to the role
Organisational Finances and the Role of a Treasurer
Who’s responsible? | All of the committee members share responsibility for the money. The treasurer can be seen as a focus for that responsibility, but the rest of the committee should not ignore the finances. Regular financial reports should be prepared for presentation to the committee and understood by all of the committee. The term ‘trustee’ means someone who is being trusted with charitable money. To fulfil that responsibility you must be able to understand the budget and reports which compare expenditure with the budget and forecast future financial position. It is a collective responsibility.
The treasurer | The treasurer has to make sure that things are done and done on time – which may be different from actually doing them. Bookkeeping and many other tasks can be undertaken by paid staff and freelance workers. Many small organisations will not be able to pay for the work to be done, so the treasurer may have to undertake a variety of the tasks on a voluntary basis.
The budget | All voluntary organisations should have a budget. It is often drawn up by members of staff in consultation with the treasurer. In organisations with no staff, the treasurer will normally draw up a draft budget in consultation with key committee members. The process can involve many policy issues. Allocating funds to one activity may mean there are fewer resources for another activity. An annual budget should be approved by the committee (and minuted) before the start of each year. Its main purpose is to show whether the organisation can afford things, taking reserves into account.
Bills & banking | A treasurer would normally be a cheque signatory along with other committee members & senior staff. Two people sign each cheque. The treasurer would not necessarily sign all cheques or be involved in posting the cheques to suppliers or banking cheques received.
Management accounts | Management committees need to know if:
• The organisation is over spending and running out of money.
• Income and expenditure are roughly as planned.
• Large surpluses are building up, which might weaken future fundraising.
At least each quarter there should be a comparison between actual income and expenditure, and what was budgeted showing the variance (difference) between the two. The treasurer normally presents it to the committee. It is important that all trustees have a good understanding of this report. It is their main financial management tool.
Role of the Treasurer | The treasurer is an officer of the trustee board and not a paid worker. The role of the treasurer is to ensure that all the finances and the supporting financial control systems are kept in order. The treasurer is not the bookkeeper. She or he does not hold or maintain the financial records nor is she or he the sole custodian of the cheque book. The treasurer is not a substitute for financial management or the management of financial staff.
Main duties and responsibilities The following duties and qualities are in addition to the general trustee role profile (see trustee job description):
ü Guiding and advising the board on the approval of budgets, accounts & financial statements.
ü Keeping the board informed about its financial duties – filing returns, tax, accounts.
ü Ensuring that all board members have a clear understanding of the accounts presented at meetings and the implications that they reveal.
ü Understanding the accounting procedures and key internal controls to be able to assure the board that the charity's financial integrity is sound.
ü Ensuring that a realistic budget is produced which meets all the organisations needs / business plans and that there is an appropriate reserves policy.
ü Monitoring the organisations income and expenditure position, and presenting reports to the board at least quarterly, in a format accessible to the board members.
ü Presenting the accounts at the AGM and drawing attention to important points in a coherent and understandable way.
ü Liaising with the organisation about financial matters.
ü Playing a key role in planning a clear fundraising strategy to raise money for future activities and developments.
ü Chairing any finance committee, and reporting back to the full board.
What skills? | The treasurer needs to be able to take an overview of the finances (are they on target or not?), have a feel as to where the organisation is going over the next few years and have ideas for how it will be financed.
Personal skills and qualities
ü Some financial experience.
ü Some experience or knowledge of charity finance, fundraising and pension schemes.
ü The skills to analyse proposals and examine their financial consequences.
ü Preparedness to make unpopular recommendations to the board.
ü Have a strong commitment to the organisation.
ü Have the ability to develop a financial routine and stick to it.
ü Have a willingness to listen and learn.
ü Have the ability to explain figures to other people.
ü Be able to add up and use a simple calculator.
ü Be able to think about the future as well as the present.
ü Willingness to be available to staff to provide advice and guidance on financial matters.
More information
For more information, please email us at or phone us on 0121 237 3600.