Financial Management - Best Practice & Insight for Small Charities

Financial Management

Would you like your organisation to become more effective, financially efficient, and stable? Would you like to have stronger financial management systems in place? To stop being reactive and be anticipate and resolve problems early – have the information funders and potential funders want at your fingertips – have the information to manage your finances well and boost the effectiveness of what you do? Would you like financial concepts and techniques explained simply, vividly and effectively rather than the stuffy, boring old way that makes your eyes glaze over!Then attend our financial management courses run by the Directory of Social Change Trainer, Lee Gosling.

Lee has over 30 years experience in the voluntary sector having been a senior manager / CEO for a number of large voluntary organisations and having set-up a number of others, taking them from start-up to long term survival and growth. He has a Masters Degree in Business (MBA) with Management Accountancy and the Chartered Institute of Management Level 7 Diploma in Strategic Management. Lee has worked as a consultant in the voluntary sector for nearly ten years, and has also worked with many corporate, blue-chip organisations. He also maintains regular contact with grassroots work, running local fundraising events within his community and regularly working face-to-face with young people in deprived areas of the north of England delivering life skills, first aid and outdoor activities along with lots of insight and laughter. (So, he still remembers how to keep things engaging and interesting!)

Session 1

Together he will take you through a demystification of financial terminology and principles, sorting your accruals out from your liquidity, your gearing from your concentration. You will understand the key aspects of finance that are charity specific and how important they are legally and for your organisation’s survival.

We will go through financial problem scenarios and how to address them.

You will learn about financial tools from the very simplest up to sophisticated accounting software that works for charities.

We will discover why there are different types of financial records and how the basic information can be made more useful to both managers and Trustees.

Session 2

We will look at simple techniques to actually take control of day-to-day finances, set and manage budgets effectively and use financial dashboards and management accounts to improve communication and unity of purpose between staff, managers and trustees.

We will look at strategic planning and how the financial planning cycle integrates with your fundraising and reporting, recruitment, operations and activity planning, and can help you achieve sustainability and bigger, better, longer-term benefit to the people who rely on your work.