Group Finance Policy

Policies to help ensure proper stewardship of a Scout group’s financial resources

By Scouter Liam Morland, January 27, 2004

Scouting is an intrinsically inexpensive activity. Scouters must be able to spend their efforts making great Scout programs, not fundraising and worrying about money. This set of finance policies is intended to ensure that a Scout group’s financial resources are used responsibly. Customize them to the needs of your group.

• The financial year shall be from September 1st to August 31st.
• The Group Treasurer is responsible for ensuring that detailed records are kept of all Group and Section financial activities.
• Group funds shall be kept in a single chequing account at a recognized financial institution under the name "Scouts Canada, 1st Timbuktu Scout Group". The Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer shall be the signing officers and any two must sign for a transaction to take place.
• Sections may hold petty cash totalling no more than $200. Money in excess of this must be stored in the Group's chequing account, under the name of that section. Sections may have access to this money at any time so long as their petty cash would not total more than $200.
• Any expenditure which cannot be covered by a Section's funds or which is greater than $200 must be approved in advance by the Group Committee and receipts for the expenditure must be presented to the Treasurer.
• Promptly at the end of each month, each Section shall present to the Treasurer a report of its financial activities for that month and receipts for all expenditures. The Treasurer shall review each report and keep them on file, making them available for review by any Group Committee member.
• At the end of each financial year, the Treasurer shall compile a consolidated financial statement for the Group for inclusion in the Group's annual report.
• The Group's annual finance report shall be reviewed by two persons appointed by the sponsor. These people shall not hold any formal position with the Group or with Scouts Canada.
• All monies leaving the Group's chequing account must do so by means of a cheque. For all cheques, the person to whom the money was paid and what the money was for must be recorded.
• Monies from any source received by the Group or any section, with the exception of dues and event fees, must be deposited in the Group's chequing account before being disbursed.
• The Group and its Sections may not borrow or invest funds.
• The Group Committee shall decide what dues is charged by its sections and what registration fee will be charged to the members.
• All fundraising activities must be approved by the Group Committee.