University of Nottingham Students’ Union
Club and Society Treasurer’s
Handbook
January 2008
This publication is available in large print, Braille,
tape, electronically and on disk upon request.
Please contact the Equal Opportunities Officer by
phone on 0115 84 68771 or by email at
suequalopps@nottingham.ac.uk
Contents
Introduction
Page 3
Being a Treasurer
Page 4
Accounts
Page 6
Fund Raising
Page 7
Using the Treasury
Page 8
Budgeting
Page 11
Planning and Running events
Page 12
Ordering Goods
Page 13
Kit and Clothing
Page 14
Grants
Page 15
Coaching
Page 16
Competing in BUSA
Page 18
Treasury Forms
Page 19
Example Budget
Page 22
Expenditure Guide
Page 23
Contacts & Staff Support
Page 25
Page 2 of 26
Introduction
Congratulations on being elected as the treasurer for your group! I am sure
you will find it a really rewarding and enjoyable experience. This guide will
help to introduce you to the finances of your Students’ Union group so keep it
safe as you may need it for reference.
If you need any help along the way then please use the resources available to
you:

Assistant Treasurers — monitor spending and allocate funding. They
are available for surgery hours. See the website for details.

Treasury — treasury staff will be able to help with using your accounts,
paying money in, withdrawing money and making orders.

Finance and Services Officer — oversees the Students’ Union’s
finances, which includes the finances of the Athletic Union. If you have
any questions then you get in touch two ways.
o
Email- sufso@nottingham.ac.uk
o
Appointment – Call Sue Jones on 01158468773 to book
The treasury website is useful as it has links to a lot of the publications you
might need. Many queries can be answered quickly online!...
www.su.nottingham.ac.uk/treasury
Good luck and I hope that you and your committee enjoy a successful year!
Becky King
Finance and Services Officer 2007-2008
Students’ Union
sufso@nottingham.ac.uk
0115 84 68773
Page 3 of 26
Being a Treasurer
Responsibilities
As a treasurer you are responsible for:

the overall finances of your group;

the budgets for your group;

completing grant forms;

making sure that events follow their budgets;

the allocation of tickets and float money;

collecting membership money from members;

collecting and banking of match fees; and

gaining extra funding though sponsorship and fundraising.
Regulations
All money must be banked with the Students’ Union Treasury.

Treasurers may not be in their final year of study. Treasurers are
responsible for their actions after they have finished being the treasurer
of their group.

You may not hold any external bank accounts. All money must go
through the treasury. Please contact the Finance and Services Officer if
you are using an external bank account.

Clubs and societies may apply for grant money. Clubs can apply
yearly for a grant from the Union, Societies can apply once a semester

Grant money can only be spent on certain things. You can only use
your grant on a proportion of costs. The ‘Expenditure Guide’ outlines
where you can spend grant money, so make sure you are familiar with
it

Your accounts may go into debt. Accounts that are overdrawn will
not be covered by the Students’ Union. It is up to your committee to get
the account out of debt, even if a previous committee caused the debt.
Page 4 of 26

Overdrawn accounts will be frozen. Regularly check your statement
summary .It is your job to make sure that accounts do not go into debt.

Money in grant accounts is not carried forward. Any funds left in
AU club grant accounts at the end of July will not be carried forward to
the next year. Any funds left in Societies grant accounts at the end of
each semester will not be carried forward to the next semester.
Tax

Clubs and societies pay VAT on their expenditure. When ordering
goods make sure that your suppliers include 17.5% VAT. Also include
VAT in any budgets.

Clubs and societies do not pay VAT on their income.
VAT can be complicated so don’t worry if you don’t understand it. If you have
any questions about VAT then see the Finance and Services officer
Law
The Students’ Union is a charity. The Union can only fund activities that are for
the benefit of University of Nottingham students, funding other activities is
illegal. You cannot use money for the following activities:

Affiliations or donations to organisations that do not directly benefit
Nottingham University students, such as political parties or political
pressure groups.

Expenses for attendance to any political rally or demo for issues that
aren’t related to Nottingham University students.

You can only raise money for charity, not give union funds to charity.
Page 5 of 26
Accounts
Each group has at least two accounts: a grant one and a private one.
Grant accounts are allocated an amount of grant at the beginning of each year
(for a club) or at the beginning of each semester (for societies) based on what
you have applied for. Grant money can only be spent in accordance with the
Expenditure Guide. Silver Star Societies can apply for supplementary grants at
any time.
Private accounts contain the group's money that has been gained from
membership or sponsorship. Money in a private account is carried forward
from one year to the next. Private accounts may go into debt; this debt is also
carried forward. Accounts that go into debt will be frozen.
The Treasury can also set up extra accounts for running things like formals
and joint events. Extra accounts are useful for keeping all your transactions
for a particular purpose separate. We would strongly recommend setting up an
extra account for tours. Ask the treasury for more information.
Page 6 of 26
Fund-Raising
There are many excellent ways to raise funds for your student group. You may
need to get your accounts out of debt or you may want to raise funds for a
piece of equipment. These are some of the ways you can find yourselves in
the money!

Membership Fees — Try to look attractive to new members at
Freshers’ Fayre. Think about how much you think people are willing to
pay to join your group, you are just as likely to be under-charging as
over-charging.

Socials and Events — These can make a lot of money but on the flipside can lose your club a lot too! Remember to show a budget to the
Finance and Services Officer before the event can take place. See
‘Budgeting’.

Kit/Clothing Sales — Adding a small mark-up to the cost of selling
clothing is a good, stable source of income. Make sure that you get
money from your members before ordering goods, and don’t forget to
put the SU logo on everything!

Club Night Tickets — Clubs act as ticket-selling agents and receive a
proportion of the ticket money. Speak to the AU Officer for more
information.

Sponsorship — there are lots of opportunities available. Make sure you
attend the “Attracting Sponsorship” training session or see the
“Attracting Sponsorship” guide, available in Student Activities. Or you
can see the Society or AU officers.

KPMG (Clubs) — KPMG sponsor the Athletic Union as a whole. You
may receive a discount by including their logo on your kit or equipment.
Ask the Assistant Treasurers to find out how. It is compulsory for first
teams to include the logo.

Direct Contributions — don’t be afraid to ask your membership for
contribution towards an activity or purchase.
Page 7 of 26
Using the Treasury
The Treasury acts as your bank. You can use it to pay money in, take money
out and get statements, as well as raising invoices or making orders.
The treasury is based in the Portland Building on University Park and on
Sutton Bonington Campus during term time.
University Park
Sutton Bonington
Students’ Union Treasury
Students’ Union Treasury
Ground Floor
Amenities Building
Portland Building
Sutton Bonington Campus
University Park
Open: Term Time
Open: Term Time Only
11.30am – 3.00pm Mon–Fri
1:00pm - 2:30pm Mon-Fri
Open: Outside Term Time
12noon – 2.00pm Mon–Fri
Drop Box:
All Year: 9.00am–4.45pm Mon–Fri
Wesbite:
E-mail:
www.su.nottingham.ac.uk/treasury
sufinance@nottingham.ac.uk
Collecting Money from your Members
Cheques need to be made payable to “U of N SU Club/Society Name”.
Collecting cheques from your members is better than collecting cash —you can
write details on the back and they can be cancelled if they go missing or are
stolen. Pay cheques and cash into to the Treasury ‘Drop Box’.
Page 8 of 26
Withdrawing Money
In order to take money from your accounts you will need:

all receipts for the transaction; or

the invoice to be paid; and

Signatures from both the treasurer and president, or if the payment is
for either then another committee member.
The type of payment depends on the amount:

Under £30 — petty cash

Over £30 — cheque
Post petty cash and cheque request forms through the Treasury ‘Drop Box’.
See ‘Ordering Goods’ for more information.
Accounts and Treasury Forms
There are a number of forms used in the Treasury. See ‘Treasury Forms’
section for examples.
Post all completed forms through the Treasury’s ‘Drop Box’.
Each Treasury account has a numerical code and two codes to identify the
type of the account, the CC and the Dept. The CC for the AU is always ‘AU’,
the CC for Societies is always ‘SO’ and the Dept is either ‘P’, ‘G’ or ‘E’:

Private accounts: AU P
/
SO P

Grant accounts: AU G
/
SO G

Extra accounts: AU E
/
SO E
You will need to write down the code and name for the account that you’d like
to credit or charge. Ask the Treasury for a list of your accounts.
Page 9 of 26
Treasury Forms
Petty Cash Expenses
Paying-in Slip
Page 10 of 26
Cheque Request Form
Page 11 of 26
Order Form
Page 12 of 26
Reading Your Statements
Remember that a negative figure for the balance means that you are in credit;
a positive one means that you are overdrawn.
Here is an example statement which will be useful in understanding how to
read your statement
Page 13 of 26
Budgeting
Budgeting is important for organising an event or running a group. A budget is
simply an estimate of any income (from tickets, etc) and expenditure (from
venue hire, drinks, etc) for running an event or group. It should state the
overall profit (or loss) of the event or the year’s activities:
all income - all expenditure = profit/loss

Budget before the event.
Make sure that you involve your whole committee in budgeting. It is too
easy to leave budgeting too late.

Budgets must be approved by the Finance and Services Officer.
See the Treasury web site for forms and return dates.

Account for all costs.
Costs, no matter how small, all add up.

Leave a 10% contingency in your expenses.
To make sure that you do not go over budget, add 10% onto your total
expenditure.

Remember VAT.
Make sure estimates from suppliers include VAT at 17.5%. Many
suppliers will not include this in their estimates.

Use previous budgets.
The previous committee should leave you with old budgets.
Page 14 of 26
Example Budget
Income
Dinner Tickets
Ents Tickets
Sponsorship
Total
Number Total
Price
1500.00
100
15.00
125.00
25
5.00
500.00
2125.00
Ex VAT
Expenditure
Publicity
Dinners
Welcome drinks
PA and Lighting
Band
Sub total
Contingency 10%
Total
700.00
100.00
150.00
500.00
1450.00
Inc VAT
25.00
822.50
117.50
176.25
587.50
1728.75
172.88
1901.63
Income / Expenditure
Break Even
Comments
Capacity 120
Capacity 50
Deloitte
Comments
Use print shop
£7 a head + VAT
£1 a head + VAT
Use TEC - good service
Slow to invoice
223.37
(Total cost - fixed income) / price of variable income
£1901.63 - £500 = £1401.63
£1401.63 / £15 = 94
Break even point is at 94 Dinner Tickets sold.
All further Dinner and Ents Tickets sold = profit.
Page 15 of 26
Planning and Running Events
Holding events can be a great way to generate income for your group. A lot of
money can be lost though if your event is poorly planned.

Calculate expenditure before deciding on a ticket price.
If you think that your ticket price is going to be too high, remove
unnecessary expenditure.

Suitability of ticket price.
How much are you members willing to pay?

Try to get the best deal from contractors.
Ring round different suppliers to find the best offer.

Don’t budget to operate at capacity.
Estimating to sell all tickets only leaves you to under-perform. Is your
estimate of ticket sales reasonable?

Check the suitability of the event’s date.
Does it clash with any other events? Will your members have enough
money to buy a ticket at that time?

Remember to include costs for before the event starts and after
it has finished.
You will need to pay for hire and porters costs, for the hours before and
after the event.

Check if hire and porters costs are higher at weekends and
holiday.
University porters and room hire costs are dramatically more expensive
at weekends.
For help on planning your event, book an appointment with the Events
Manager Gemma Chance in Student Activities.
Page 16 of 26
Ordering Goods
When ordering goods you need to use an Order Form. An order form is a legal
contract for the Union to pay for the order once the items have been delivered
and are acceptable. If you use an order form, you will not have to reimburse
individual members.
For an example see the ‘Treasury Forms’ section.
1. Obtain an estimated cost from your supplier.
This must include VAT.
2. Fill in an order form — available from the Treasury.
Include or attach the supplier’s estimate on the form. Provide as much
detail as possible. Remember to include the fax number of the supplier.
Write the name of your group in the address section of the form.
3. Obtain signatures from your treasurer and president.
Place these signatures in the ‘Originator’ box. Your account will not be
charged at this point.
4. Get authorisation from the Finance and Services Officer.
5. Fax the Order Form.
You may fax from reception.
6. Authorise payment.
The Treasury will e-mail you once your supplier sends an invoice. You
will have 5 days to respond with any grievances; otherwise the invoice
will be paid automatically.
7. Insure your equipment.
Your equipment is only insured if you include it on your ‘Equipment
Inventory’. If you purchase or acquire a new piece of equipment please
inform Melanie Renwick in the Administration Office. See the ‘Contacts’
section.
Page 17 of 26
Kit and Clothing
Many groups order clothing for their teams, committees and members. A
useful source of income is charging a mark-up on selling items of clothing to
your members. Place your order through ADM, who are our recommended
suppliers.
1. Fill in an ADM order form. Available from Student Activities,
Portland Building.
Complete details of embroidery and screen print.
2. Phone ADM if you have any queries.
Their number is 01942 498 120.
3. Complete an Order Form.
See ‘Ordering Goods’ section.
4. Collect delivery.
Deliveries are noted on the board next to the Information point in
Student Activities.
Delivery times:

Key Collection Range — 3-4 weeks

Manufactured Range — 4-8 weeks

Prostar Range — 4 weeks
Make sure that you always know where your kit is and that it is being looked
after. Kit should last at least two years. It is your responsibility as a Treasurer
to make sure that you look after your club’s kit and equipment.
Remember to include the SU logo on everything you order!
Page 18 of 26
Grants
Grants for societies are allocated once per semester. You apply for grants in
June (for the following September) and in November (for the following
January). The Societies Officer and Assistant Treasurers will e-mail with details
about applying.
Grants for AU clubs allocated once per year. You apply for grants in June (for
the following September). The AU Officer and Assistant Treasurers will e-mail
with details about applying.
Think carefully when filling in your grant application form – this will affect the
amount of grant allocated to you by the Assistant Treasurers.
Remember to include your committee when you apply. They will give you
insight into the group’s priorities for the next year.
Supplementary Grant
Each year a proportion of AU central funds are held back for use as
‘supplementary grants’. Supplementary grant is intended to help fund groups
whose success and growth has been exceptional. This fund is also used for
newly affiliated groups, who set up throughout the year.
If you would like to apply for supplementary grant, please contract the
Assistant Treasures.
For societies, this applies to silver and gold awarded societies only.
Page 19 of 26
Coaching
This information mainly applies to AU Clubs, but there are some societies that
employ coaches or teachers who will also need to read this information.
You may need to use an individual to coach your team. When you employ
someone you have a duty to be fair and lawful. You are responsible for
ensuring that:

they are paid on time;

they are treated fairly;

you give them guidance on how they should be coaching your teams;

you give them a new starter pack (available from HR); and

you handle all relevant paperwork.
While employing a coach you will be speaking to the Students’ Union’s HR
department and the AU or Societies Officer. See the ‘Contacts’ section.
Coaches can be:

Self Employed
o
Submit invoices to you for payment.
o
Responsible for their own tax and National Insurance
contributions.
o

You have less control over them.
Employed by the Club
o
Coach is paid by the Students’ Union Payroll.
o
Payroll deduct tax and National Insurance.
o
You have more control over them.
If your coach submits invoices for payment then you must fill out the
‘Employment Assessment Form’, available from HR. This will need to be filled
out for every coach to find out of they are self-employed.
Page 20 of 26
Forms for New Coaches
The following forms must be completed before your coach can be entered on
to payroll:

Casual and Demonstrators Signing on
To obtain bank details to enable Payroll to make payments to your
Coach.

P46
Enables payroll to pay the correct amount of tax.

Coach/Instructor Registration Details
This is a record of your coach’s qualifications and insurance details

Contract
A legal agreement between the Coach and the Club, confirming rate of
pay and acceptance of Code of Practice.

Application for Coaching Fund
To be completed by the president of any Clubs that are to be paid
through the BUSA fund.

Casual Employee Details
For personal records.

Coaches Code of Practice
As referred to in the Contract. Says that the Coach agrees to abide by
the guidelines.
Payment
Make sure that you pay your coaches on time. Fill in a ‘Claim for Coaching’
form; these are available from the Treasury. You will need to hand in before
Page 21 of 26
the payroll deadline. Speak to the HR department for information about
deadlines.
‘Signing On’ Documents
The Asylum and Immigration Act (1996) requires clubs to make basic
document checks for all coaches to establish that the coach can work for you
legally.
The coach will need to provide HR with the relevant original documents. See
Personnel for the required documents list.
Termination of Employment
If you would like to terminate a coach’s employment you must inform the AU
Officer so they can work with HR. This ensures that termination is done within
the terms of their contract.
Common Problems

Claim forms are not signed or documents are missing. Unsigned
forms are returned, this delays payment.

Claims forms are sent in after the deadline date. This means
payment cannot be put through until the following month.
Clubs competing in BUSA
BUSA expenses costs are largely paid by the AU out of a special BUSA
account. These include competition fees and Elite Coaching. Varying amounts
Page 22 of 26
are paid by the club, the AU’s BUSA fund and individuals. See the AU
Administrator for more information.
Page 23 of 26
Expenditure Guide
This is likely to change a bit soon into the year, as it is being reviewed early
on in the term. This is in the effort to add a few things and keep it up to date.
A new copy will be mailed out to you when this happens.
Approved: Finance Committee, November 2006
This is a guide on how your group’s grant money can be allocated for different
uses. Grant figures given are a maximum allocation. Your group has three
types of money:



grant money — is allocated by the Students’ Union to assist the
group in furthering their core aims and objectives;
private money — raised by the group; and
personal money — money belonging to an individual.
Transport
 70% Grant, 30% Private
 17p per mile for car journeys.
 When claiming, write down all the details about your travel.
 Book through Pioneer Travel in the Portland Building, where possible.
 Coaches are booked through Students’ Union Reception.
 Nottingham is usually considered as the base. For instance, if travelling
from home in Yorkshire to an event in Southampton, the Students’
Union will only cover the cost from Nottingham.
 Any travel to Nottingham outside of term time which can reasonably be
foreseen, should be considered non-refundable. If it becomes
necessary to return to Nottingham to rectify an unforeseen problem,
this can be claimed at the normal split; procedures should then be
introduced to ensure it is not necessary again.
Equipment, Equipment Hire and Kit
 70% Grant, 30% Private
 For any items that are essential for taking part in the group’s activities.
 Equipment and kit must remain the property of the group.
 Kit cannot be personalised
Tuition and Coaching
 70% Grant, 30% Private
 Fill out a Coaching form; this makes sure that coaches are properly
employed by the Students’ Union.
Conference Fees
 50% Grant, 50% Private
 Applies to a reasonable number of delegates.
Page 24 of 26
Affiliation
 First — 100% Grant
 Each Subsequent — 50% Grant, 50% Private
 This is for affiliation to any body directly relevant to your society’s
activities and purpose.
Committee Polo Shirt
 50% Private, 50% Personal
 Half the cost must be paid directly by members of your committee.
Personal Kit and Clothing
 100% Personal
 Members must pay for all of the cost of additional clothing
Meals, Food, Drink and Socials
 0% Grant, 100% Private
 Private money may only be used if the event is open to all members of
the group.
 £5 private contribution per person may be taken for a committee
handover meal.
 50% Grant, 50% Private — available for one off events where the aim is
to promote the food and/or culture to students who may not be familiar
with it.
Accommodation
 50% Grant, 50% Private
 Only the cheapest option available.
 Overnight accommodation must be agreed by an Assistant Treasurer or
the relevant Exec Officer.
Publicity, Printing, Freshers’ and Refreshers’ Fayre
 Up to £20 Grant
 Use the Print Shop whenever possible.
Administration Costs
 Lesser of 50% Grant and £20
Entrance Fees to Events and Conferences
 0% Grant, 100% Personal
 Individuals are expected to pay for these themselves.
Competition Entry

50% Grant, 50% Private
Phone Bills
 0% Grant, 100% Personal
 Mobile phone bills should not be reclaimed. If they are, then only the
cost of the individual calls may be included and not the line rental or
any other costs.
Page 25 of 26
Contacts (2007-2008)
Treasury:
sufinance@nottingham.ac.uk www.su.nottingham.ac.uk/treasury
Assistant Treasurers
Students’ Union Exec Officers
Societies Finance Officers
Societies Officer
Nadine Standish
Matt Leventhall
Jules Nicholson
susocieties@nottingham.ac.uk
susoctreas@nottingham.ac.uk
Athletic Union Officer
AU Finance Officers
Phil Richards
Peter Craig
suathlecticunion@nottingham.ac.uk
Claire Shepherd
suautreas@nottingham.ac.uk
Finance & Services Officer
Becky King
sufso@nottingham.ac.uk
Support Staff
Student Activities
Angela Lee
angela.lee@nottingham.ac.uk
Insurance
Melanie Renwick
Admin Office, Portland Building
Melanie.renwick@nottingham.ac.uk
Payroll and Personnel
Jackie Dale
Administration Office, Portland Building
jackie.dale@nottingham.ac.uk
Events Manager
Gemma Change
Student Activities, Portland Building
gemma.chance@nottingham.ac.uk
Page 26 of 26