Finance

All SUBU Club and Society Committee members are responsible for the financial sustainability of their Society.

The resources on this page aim to support your Club or Society to keep on top of your finances, support you to generate income and spend your funds.

It is important that all members of your Committee familiarise themselves with SUBU Finance processes and contact the team at suclubs@bournemouth.ac.uk if you need further support.

 

Finance Basics

All SUBU Clubs and Societies have a club bank account. These accounts do not function like any bank account you might have personally, you don’t get a bank card and pin number to take with you.

Instead, think about your account like a folder in the wider SUBU bank account that is accessible by filling in the relevant paperwork and quoting your 4-digit Nominal Code unique to your Society. This nominal code can be handed over from your previous Committee or reshared by the Student Opportunities Team.

Any income generated through your Society webpage (memberships, ticket sales or merchandise) automatically goes into this club account.

SUBU do not charge your Society a fee or charge interest to hold you club money within your account and it is yours to spend on your Club as you like (within reason).

Your account does not have an overdraft so you cannot spend more than what is in your account. This is why it is important for your committee to keep on top of your finances. We have a budget template below to help you get started.

Your Society must not set up an additional bank account externally to SUBU or use the personal account of a committee or any other memeber for income. If such an account exists, contact the Student Opportunities Team immediately for support in resolving this. Use of an account in this way without contacting the clubs team to help resolve the issue can result in the closure of your club.

Budget Template Payment Run Deadlines

Generating Income

There are a number of ways your Club or Society can generate income to put towards your events and activities

Membership Fees

Committee members can choose the price of your membership each year. Each Society has three base membership types – Standard for BU Students, AUB for current AUB Students and Associate for all other members. Your committee can set each membership at a different price, as AUB and Associate members are not covered by SUBU Grant Funding, this is a great way to help reduce the cost of your activities for the Society as a whole.

Ticket Sales

Selling tickets for your trips and events are a great way to cover the costs of your activities. You can add tickets, free or at a charge, to any event you make on the SUBU website.

In some cases you may need a ticketing system with more ticket management functionality. For example, you are hosting a gig at a local venue and need to scan QR codes, or offer promo codes for a nightclub event you're hosting. If you are using a SUBU venue, we can support this. If you are using an external venue, you MUST NOT set up an external account where ticket income will be held. Please contact us, as for clubs that need this we will set you up with a native acount for ticket managment, sales, and scanning. Income from here will go directly to your SUBU account.

Sponsorship

SUBU Clubs and Societies have the opportunity to enter into Sponsorship agreements with local and national organisations.

It is important that you provide a copy of any contract to the Student Opportunities Team for approval at suclubs@bournemouth.ac.uk before signing to ensure the contract is valid and in line with our financial regulations and controls. Once completed, the signed contract must be provided to SUBU to keep on file.

Any sponsorship agreement signed without approval will not be recognised and we will be unable to support you with claiming any assets or funding donations from your unofficial sponsor. Familiarise yourselves with the guidance below before pursuing a sponsor and speak to the team if you need more support.

Proposal Template Agreement Template Sponsorship Guidance
Merchandise

Your Society could choose to sell merchandise with a small increase to the unit price to go towards your activities. If you are interested in selling merchandise, speak to the Student Opportunities team.

Suppliers used by other Societies
Grant Funding

All recognised SUBU clubs and societies are eligible to apply for grant funding to support their events and activities.

Funding must be applied for in advance of any purchases being made and must meet the relevant criteria of the grant being applied for.

Grant allocations are determined by the Awarding Committee, which includes your VP Student Opportunities. This committee meets eight times per year, you must have submitted your application by the advertised deadline for funding to be considered at the next Awarding Committee meeting.

Grant Funding Applications are reviewed at all eight of the Awarding Committees to give you the most opportunity to apply.

Apply for Grant Funding Grant Funding Guidance Minutes from the Awarding Committee
 

This years Grant Funding pot totals £17,000. There is currently £17,000 remaining to allocate.

The next Grant Funding application deadline is in...

Invoice Requests

Invoicing is a great way to ensure your event partners like other Societies and businesses and your Sponsors pay you any funds they owe you on time.

Simply complete the invoice request form and the SUBU Finance team will invoice your recipient on your behalf.

Invoice Request 

Spending your Funds

There are a specific processes your Club or Society will use to spend your funds

All Finance paperwork must be submitted to the SUBU Student Opportunities Team at suclubs@bournemouth.ac.uk. Get in touch if you need further support.

Claims Forms

A Standard Claim Form is used when a Committee member has made a purchase on behalf of the club and needs to be reimbursed. The Claim Form is straight forward in that you must provide information on what was purchased, evidence of the cost such as receipts, confirmed bank details of the person receiving the refund and 2 core committee member signatures. Claim Forms must be submitted within 3 months of the purchase being made. Refer to the guidance below for more information.

Claim Forms have a maximum limit of £250. If you intend to make a purchase with an expense higher than this, contact the team to discuss your options before making any payments.

For Claims related to driving, we use a special Milage Claim Form - this can be used in instances such as when someone is using thier own vehicle and doing society related driving, such as running equipment from campus storage to an event venue, or driving themselves and other members for a trip. Like standard claims forms, they must be submitted within 3 months of the trip being made.

Complete a Claim Form Milage Claim Form
Purchase Order Requests

Purchase Orders (PO’s) are a legal guarantee between your Society and a supplier that you are going to pay them a certain amount of money in return for goods or services. PO’s can be paid directly from the Society account, meaning your Committee Members are not expected to foot the bill for your activities. A PO can be used whenever a supplier can provide an invoice.

PO Requests must be raised in advance of a purchase being made with a minimum of 4 weeks’ notice.

New Supplier Registration Form - If your club needs to send a PO to a supplier we haven't worked with before, then your supplier will need to fill in a new supplier registration form in order for us to make the payment to them.

Complete a PO Request New Supplier Request
SUBU Credit Card/Pleo purchases

If your club needs to make a purchase, and it can't be done via PO or is above your claims form limit of £250, you can request to use one of our SUBU cards to make the payment.

Example: Your club is looking to book flights and accommodation for an upcoming trip and need a bank card to make the payment.

Please click the link below and complete a request to use the cards. Our team will then invite you in for a meeting to pay for the items you need!

Please note: You will need to submit your request a minimum of 3 working days prior to when the card is needed. This is to allow our finance team to ensure the card has adequate funds allocated for your request and for the clubs team to check your society balance.

Credit Card Usage request

Fundraising / Raising and Giving

Fundraising is a great way for your Society to generate income to support your activities or a charity/cause you care about.

Guidance

When carrying out Fundraising activity, your Society must be clear with your donators where the funds are going. Check out the guidance document below for more information.

Fundraising Guidance Fundraising A-Z
Running Fundraising Activity

When you have selected your recipient and you're ready to get planning, complete the form below and the Volunteering and Skills Coordinator will put you in touch with the right people to make your fundraiser a success!

Fundraising Form

Explore this section