Financial Roles & Responsibilities

The Trustees of the Ministry Area Council (MAC) have overall responsibility and control for all finances within its constituent churches.

In order to control the finances, they need to receive regular financial information. The trustees can delegate powers in respect of finances to a Finance sub-committee and Church Committees, which should include setting spending limits. Such limits should be documented in your Ministry Area Working Agreement.

Membership of the Finance Sub-Committee

The membership of the Sub-Committee should be appointed by the MAC. Ideally it will include all Church Treasurers, and other volunteers with financial/church finance skills.

Finance Sub-Committee Terms of Reference

The Terms of Reference for the Committee should be approved by the MAC. It is recommended that financial policies and practices are developed by the Finance Sub-committee for recommendation to the MAC. The MAC, as the Trustee body should carefully consider these recommendations and approve (or modify) as appropriate.

A sample Terms of Reference is included in the Appendices.

Roles

Each Ministry Area will have:

• a Ministry Area Council who are the body of Trustees
• a Ministry Area Treasurer, who is a Trustee
• a Finance sub-committee with delegated powers, agreed by the MAC

Each Ministry Area may also have:

• Church Committees for either individual churches or groups of churches, with delegated powers, agreed by the MAC
• Church Treasurers for either individual churches or groups of churches, each of whom should be invited to be members of the Finance sub-committee

Financial Considerations for the MAC

(Potentially delegated to the Finance Sub-Committee)

• Ensuring the Ministry Area finances underpin the Ministry Area Strategy
• Review and approval of individual church budgets (if appropriate)
• Set the MA budget/Propose an annual budget to the MAC for approval
• Manage financial aspects of the MA activities to ensure short and long-term financial viability and advise the MAC accordingly
• Ensure adequate financial controls and authorisation procedures are in place to safeguard the assets of the Ministry Area
• Ensure individual church financial records are accurate and up-to date
• Support the MA Treasurer in producing and monitoring regular financial reports on income and expenditure, actuals vs budgets, and projected cashflow to make timely recommendations to the MAC
• Developing and implementing plans for generous giving campaigns
• Monitoring and encouraging Direct Giving
• Agreeing the principals of apportioning Ministry Share across the MA
• Monitoring Ministry Share payments for the MA
• Providing representation to the Diocesan Ministry Share Working Group
• Monitoring and support to ensure all Gift Aid is being claimed
• Monitoring and support to ensure that all Gift Aid and GASDS (Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme) is being claimed
• Ensuring Gift Direct is enabled for all Churches and monitoring its availability and engagement
• Review of investments across the MA
• Setting spending limits for committees (where appropriate)
• Monitoring the financial health of all churches in the MA, ensuring that fund raising and cost cutting opportunities are maximised
• Evaluating potential income opportunities (including the use of new initiatives and technologies available)
• Management and monitoring of any Petty Cash provisions
• Setting financial policies, e.g. Reserves policy, legacy policy, expenditure policy and monitoring accordingly

Financial Data Entry / Bookkeeping

The MAC / finance sub-committee may choose to appoint a Ministry Area Bookkeeper to assist in maintaining the financial records of the Ministry Area. This could be either a paid or voluntary role. Dependant on availability, and in discussion with the MA Administration Supervisor, this role could be carried out by the MA Administrator.

The role will assist the Ministry Area Treasurer by having one person responsible for data-entry into My Fund Accounting ensuring a consistency in the codes used. This role would have an overview of the finances as they are recorded and could aid in spotting trends of increasing expenditure or falling income.

Having bookkeeping or data entry assistance will mean that Church Treasurers will not need to be familiar with the My Fund Accounting Software.

The scope of this role is dependent on how the MAC chooses to operate. In some MA's finances may be combined into a joint set of bank accounts/single bank account, which will reduce the overall workload and banking costs. Other MA's may choose to continue to run several accounts. In all circumstances it should be stressed the ultimate responsibility lies with the MAC/Trustee board and the church treasurer is therefore responsible to that body (through the MA Treasurer).

Ministry Area Gift Aid

The Ministry Area may choose to appoint a Ministry Area Gift Aid Secretary, or this may be undertaken by the MA Treasurer, or a nominated member of the Finance Sub-Committee. The specific duties in relation to Gift Aid for the MA are:

Initially:

• Register the MA with HMRC (once Charities Commission Registration is complete)
• Set up a Government Gateway for the Ministry Area

Ongoing:

Collaboration with any/all Church Gift Aid Secretaries to:

• Agree an anticipated schedule of claims for each individual church
• Agree a password for data transmission
• Receive completed schedules from Church Gift Aid Secretaries and collate into one claim
• Submit collated claim via the Government Gateway
• Report to the Finance sub-committee on claims presented, unpresented and awarded
• Offer support and encouragement to Church Gift Aid Secretaries to ensure claims are maximised