Calling all trustees! Five top tips for the Gathering

The Gathering is a great opportunity for us all to catch up with colleagues across the sector, so I hope you’ve got the 23 and 24 February marked down in your diaries. But it’s not just an opportunity to gather the gossip, it’s also a fantastic place to access free, practical hints and tips on how to be a better trustee and improve your charity’s governance. This year there’s some really useful financial management events which, if you’re a charity trustee, you really shouldn’t miss. Because it’s not just the treasurer that looks after the money – it’s all the trustees. Yes, remember, all charity trustees are collectively responsible for effective financial management. So here’s the five top free events I’ve signed up for: Wednesday morning will find me at two events:

1. An Introduction to Charity Investments and 2. How to Write Your Ethical Investment Policy statement

Don’t worry – I’ll be having a strong coffee in between! Now I know many charities run from month to month on a hand to mouth financial basis. But there are some organisations in the fortunate position to start thinking about investing money to generate income. If this is the case for you then you need to make sure you know what you’re doing when making investment decisions, and when you need to take expert advice. Some of the things you need to think about include:

• knowing what you can and can’t invest in – there may be restrictions in your constitution
• how to minimise the risk to your charity’s funds and balance this with the best possible financial returns
• considering whether ethical investing may be right even if financial rewards could be less. Some charities choose to only make financial investments that reflect their values and ethos. This might prevent you from losing supporters or damaging your reputation. If this is the case then you need to be able to explain and justify why this approach is right for your charity.

I’ll admit that finance really isn’t my thing, but there’s been a lot of new developments in charity accounting rules that I need to get to grips with, so I’m spoilt for choice between:

3. Charity Accounting Update on day one and 4. Charity Accounting and finance – hot topics 2017 on day two.

If you’re a charity trustee and you think your SOFA is just a nice comfortable place to sit, and you really haven’t a clue about the SORP (FRS 102) then you need to sign up for these events. Topics covered will include risk management, reserves and pension liabilities, and even if you don’t have a finance background, there will be something there for you. And finally Thursday afternoon’s going to find me sitting with:

5. The Naked Treasurer

Yes really! But before all you naturists out there rush to sign up, it’s actually an event to show how anyone can understand their charity’s finances. With a title like that, I couldn’t resist. See you there!