Roles and responsibilities

The treasurer is responsible for issuing all cheques and making payments on behalf of the community council. The treasurer must:

  • manage the bank account
  • account for all funds received and
  • make sure money is only spent in a manner approved by the community council members as recorded in the minutes.

The treasurer must keep the community council's financial records so that they disclose, with reasonable accuracy at any time, the financial position of the community council.

All cheques issued should be signed by at least two persons authorised by the community council members as recorded in the minutes, and notified to the bank in writing.  Signatories must not be related.  As a general rule, treasurers should avoid paying out money except by cheque. This makes accounting for expenditure much easier.

The treasurer must keep proper accounts of all receipts and expenditure, prepare an annual statement of accounts and have it certified as correct by a competent and independent examiner of accounts. They must be formally appointed by the members and named in the minutes.

The statement must be formally approved at the next annual general meeting when the treasurer must report and answer questions raised by members of the community council or the public. The certified and approved accounts should be sent to the local authority, as a condition of the annual administration grant process.

The treasurer should also prepare simple budgets to advise members before they commit any funds.