Information and guidance on how to complete the your society's budget form. Remember: if you don't complete this form by the deadline, your society can't exist next year!

On this page:

• Download the society budget form
• How to complete the form

Also see: budget form frequently asked questions

Download the society budget form

•  2007-2008 Society Budget Form Updated: 23/05/2007, 71Kb
  Note: this document is in Microsoft Excel format - you will need a compatible spreadsheet application to open it. If you don't have access to one, please come and see us in the Sabbatical Office for more help.

Guidance notes on completing the budget form

• Note: you can also find this information and the Frequently Asked Questions in the budget form spreadsheet, which you can download above.

This document will assist you in the completion of your A account budget form. It is essential that you use this document throughout as errors will cause delay. Please pay attention to the frequently asked questions and answers on the third tab of the excel spread sheet.

Events need to be listed in this budget but do not include figures, just details of when and what the events are that you wish to organise. All events need an individual budget – please see the FAQs.

General Information

1. Place the name of your society at the top of the form. This must be the name that you want in all Union documentation, website etc. If you are happy for us to use an abbreviation then use it in this document, but remember many students may not know what it stands for.
3. Fill in the contact details for your committee 2007/2008. It is highly advised that your Committee for 2007/2008 are involved in the completion of this budget: this should be done as part of your handover. It is essential that the contact details provided are going to be used by the committee over the summer, as a lot of important information will be passed on before the start of the next academic year.

Membership and Income

1. Estimate the number of members you will gain next year. Please find out the history of your membership numbers from your Student Activities Officer or the finance office, and make a realistic estimation. It is standard to assume that membership numbers will grow if your committee put the hard work in over the summer to prepare for Freshers Fayre, but any unrealistic estimations will be altered and the budgeting process slowed.
2. Decide on a membership fee that you will charge at Freshers Fayre and throughout the year. The minimum membership fee is £3, and £5 for those that are regularly using Union minibuses / have high transport costs. It is advised that you look at the fee again once you have finished the budget as it may need to increase if you are asking the Union for an unrealistic amount. Please refer to the FAQs for information on the Union contribution.
3. Other Income should only be included if you are over 90% sure it will definitely happen, e.g. sponsorship. Other Income should be listed in the left hand column, with a figure in the middle column and details in the right hand column. For information on other income please refer to the FAQs. For example:

   Other income:	£:	Details:
   Transport	45	1 minibus in March costing £90, 15 members X £3 = £45
   Equipment	100	Essential equipment costing £300, 20 members X £5 contribution =£100

4. Total Income is the sum of all the membership fees and other income; this gives your total society contribution which is taken into account when deciding the total Union contribution.

Expenditure

1. Place all the categories of your expenditure over the year in the left hand column, with the total figures in the middle column and details of every expense in the right hand column. Please include as much detail as possible about each expenditure; lack of information will only cause delay. Vital details include: what? How many? Where from? What for? Please refer to the FAQs on details of how to split your expenditure into categories.
2. Total Society Expenditure is the sum of everything you wish to spend over the year. This figure may be larger than expected and you may need to re-think your membership fee, other income figures. Bear in mind a student will not mind paying a membership fee if it is obvious they are getting value for money – i.e. becoming a member of a very active society.

Balance

1. Balance: The figure in this box is the overall balance of your A account budget. If the box is black that means you are in profit, if it is in red then you are in debt – that’s where the Union come in! The balance could also be called Union contribution, as this is the figure you are asking the Union to contribute to your society. If your budget is showing a profit, it means your income outweighs your expenditure and you are not asking the Union to contribute to your society. If your budget is red and showing a debt, this is the amount you are asking for. Please bear in mind the following:
• The Union will not contribute more than the society is contributing except in extreme circumstances. I.E if your society contribution is £100 and the Balance / Union Contribution is £300 you need to re-think your membership fees and your ‘other contribution’ figures.
• The Union attempts to ‘match fund’ each society within reason, as there is a limited amount that we have to contribute towards society activity. This means if the society are contributing £200, the Union will TRY to match this, but it is on a case by case basis.
• The Union will only contribute towards activities that we deem to be in your societies interest – i.e. we will not fund you and a group of mates to go to have a house party.
• Anthing that is not deemed to be in your societies interest will be removed from this budget – therefore the more detail you give the better.
2. Once all the above is completed please send the budget in ELECTRONIC format to the Student Activities & Development officer by the deadline date - you can find this on the top right of this page. A printed version also needs to be handed in, and it would be advised that you keep a copy yourself.

What's next?

You may be required to explain areas of your budget further before you leave for the summer so please check your emails once you have submitted the form. It is in your best interest to ensure the Union are happy with the content of your budget application. Over the Summer the Union will allocate budgets and will be in contact with your Committee for the coming academic year.

This is why it is essential that contact details are correct and up-to-date. You will meet with the Union to go through your budget and the Union contribution at the start of the next academic year and will then have a good idea of how your society will be funded for the next year.

The Union wants its societies to be as active as possible, and as many students as possible to benefit from being members.

I am sure this is exactly the same as your Committee so I hope we can work together and make your society as active as possible!

Diana Langford, May 2007