Treasurer and Trustee Roles

Detailed Treasurer and Trustee Roles

More detailed description of some volunteer roles:

Detailed Treasurer Volunteer Role Description.

The Treasurer takes responsibility for the following:

• Ensuring that all financial transactions of the Aassociation are in keeping with the aims and best interests of the Association, and that appropriate procedures are in place to ensure financial safeguarding.
• Creating and maintaining the annual budget ahead of the AGM, review the previous year’s financial performance (or multiple years), and prepare a budget for the year ahead.
• Working with the Steering Committee, help generate and collect funds by monitoring financial performance, provide guidance to the Steering Committee on the price at which membership subscriptions, market fees, other sales of products or services, should be set.
• Ensuring accurate and up-to-date records of all income and expenditure.
• In liaison with the Association bookkeeper (if that position is filled or deemed necessary), oversee procedures to enable an accurate historical record to be kept of transactions, covering income such as membership subscriptions, market income, fundraising income, sponsorship income, and payments, to bank accounts, and third parties. Payments to members and third parties.
• In liaison with the Association bookkeeper (if that position is filled or deemed necessary), oversee the reimbursement of any payments member’s make on behalf of the Association, and payments to suppliers of services and goods.
• Preparing and issuing invoices.
• In liaison with Market Co-ordinator and the Membership Administrator, oversee the issuing of invoices through Stripe/PayPal/QuickBooks for the payment of subscriptions and market fees/refunds.

Role of a RCTA Trustee as per the Constitution.

*This role is to be taken forward, reassessed and voted on at the next SGM after the 2024 AGM.

An RCTA trustee is a voluntary role undertaken by an officer or member of the Steering Committee. The chair, secretary, and treasurer, usually make up the three required by our constitution but, after the 2018 AGM, any Steering Committee member can be a trustee. An RCTA trustee is not a legally defined position with specific responsibilities as in a charity. In our Association, a trustee has no greater authority than any other member of the Steering Committee, nor do they take on any greater liability for decisions or actions taken. What they have volunteered to do is to monitor the governance, or management, of the Association to ensure that it continues to comply with its aims and purposes as stated in its constitution.

To achieve this a RCTA trustee will:

1. Ensure that the Association is carrying out its purposes by:

• understanding RCTA’s constitution and how the Association can benefit its members and other roving traders
• making sure the Association complies with its constitution
• helping the Steering Committee plan and take action to achieve its aims and purposes as expressed in the constitution
• explaining to others how activities are intended to help its members and Roving Canal Traders generally
• making sure that the Association complies with the requirements of legislation and criteria laid down by the Canal & River Trust
• making sure that actions taken by individual Steering Committee members do not conflict with the purposes of the Association, or improperly benefit the personal interests of individual committee members, their partners, business partners, or dependent children
• ensure all decisions are properly authorised by the Steering Committee and, where appropriate, by the membership at a Special General Meeting or Annual General Meeting.

2. Ensure the Steering Committee is acting responsibly, reasonably and honestly by:

• making sure the Association’s assets are only used to support or carry out its purposes, and that inappropriate risks are not taken with its assets or reputation
• making sure that the Association is not over-committed, and that special care is taken when investing or borrowing
• making sure that any restrictions on the spending of funds are complied with
• making sure that appropriate policies, procedures, and safeguards, are in place, and taking reasonable steps to ensure that they are being followed.

3. Ensure the Steering Committee complies with accounting and reporting  requirements as stated in the constitution by:

• making sure that the association complies with the law, is well run and effective
• making sure the activities of the Steering Committee are accountable and communicated to the members.