Kindly note that to serve as Treasurer, you must fulfil the requirements of being a trustee, receive a nomination for the position, and secure a majority of votes during our Annual General Meeting for election.

Our Civilian Welfare Committee is formed of trustees who help with the running of the squadron. Trustees can be parents, guardians or friends. Its role is to assist the squadron’s Commanding Officer, raise funds and ensure the squadron maintains direction.

Our trustees meet every three months under the direction of a Chairperson, Secretary and Treasurer.

Terms of Reference (Annex J to ACP 11 dated 16 Jun 17)

Primary role objectives/responsibilities

You are directly responsible to the committee to administrate the non-public (welfare) funds of the squadron providing the necessary safeguards to ensure that the Squadron meets its obligations both to the ATC and the Charity Commission. 

Main duties

• Maintaining receipts and payment records and ensuring that all entries in the account books are in ink and cross-referenced to receipts.  If using electronic spreadsheets you are to ensure that an electronic backup is held at a separate location.
• Issuing cash handling responsibility instructions to staff at squadron headquarters who are authorised to receive cash on behalf of the Fund.
• Assisting the committee in formulating a Financial Plan for the squadron and reporting progress against the Plan at subsequent meeting of the committee.
• Ensuring that any cash/cheques are banked as soon as possible and the cash holding limit (as agreed by the committee) is not exceeded.
• Ensuring that any cash boxes or safes are appropriately secured and duplicate keys are lodged with a nominated member of the committee or the bank.
• Ensuring that the cash book is balanced at the end of each month.  Cash and bank balances are to be reconciled.  A reconciliation statement is to be entered into the Cash Book and signed by yourself.  The bank reconciliation should be checked by the Squadron Chairman (or another nominated member of the Committee) who should countersign the reconciliation statement.  All documents must be made available to the countersigning officer and for any spot checks by the Committee.
• Investigating any discrepancies in accounting and, if unresolved reporting the matter to the squadron chairperson.
• Ensuring that invoices for goods and services are paid without delay.
• At the end of each financial year (31 March) preparing the Summary of Receipts and Payments Accounts Form 60 for submission to the chairperson and committee prior to submission to Wing HQ.
• Following an independent examination of the accounts and endorsement by the squadron civilian committee the Form 60 is to be sent to Wing HQ by the due date required by HQ RAFAC.

2497 (Cosford) Squadron Addendum Annex J to ACP 11 dated 16 Jun 17

Ongoing

• Check their RAFAC approved inbox frequently and respond to correspondence, ideally at least once per week.
• Review and action any expense claims or external payment requests promptly, ideally within 5 days of the request. 
• Ensure any actions or decisions by the committee are tracked and carried out.
• Support any person interested in joining the committee to formally apply using the RAFAC approved system and to ensure that the local tracker is up-to-date. 
• Ensure the approved cashless system is kept up-to-date and that the OC has access. 

Each meeting

• Assist the Secretary with listing items for the agenda.
• Send a digital copy of their report to the Secretary via their RAFAC approved inbox promptly after a meeting, ideally within 2 weeks.

Benefits of being a volunteer

Being a volunteer is rewarding and has a lot of different benefits.

• learn skills in a range of areas
• develop leadership qualities
• personal development

Whatever you decide to focus on, all volunteers gain a huge sense of achievement from helping young people realise their potential.

To be a volunteer you need to

• Be aged 18 years or more
• have lived in the UK for a minimum of 3 years
• commit to attending a 2 hour meeting every three months
• understand young people and their needs
• be patient, responsible and kind

We know our volunteers may have families, jobs and hobbies, so we can be flexible and work around other areas of your lives. All we expect in return is clear communication, good organisation and commitment to your squadron.

You do not need

• a military background or experience
• experience of working with young people
• relevant skills like flying or gliding

Typical joining process

• Submit an expression of interest
• Invite to complete an online application
• Have a DBS check
• Receive a nomination for the position, and secure a majority of votes during our Annual General Meeting for election

The time from initial enquiry through to starting as a volunteer can vary depending on the availability of current volunteers, but on average it takes around three months. This is due to the enquiries that need to be made, including a DBS, as part of our safeguarding checks.