In this guide 6 sections
At handover, the outgoing treasurer passes on ledgers closed to a date, the member register, bank mandate papers, pending dues, unpaid bills and system access. Give the successor a named login. Both officers sign a dated list. That list ends later arguments.
Pick a cut-off date and close the books to it
Pick a month end. Close the cash book and bank book to that date, then reconcile every account against its printed statement, even the savings account nobody has opened since the annual meeting.
The outgoing treasurer signs the closing balances and the incoming one signs that they received them, and this single page settles most later arguments. Keep that page safe.
If the books are behind, say so. Hand over the backlog with a written list of vouchers, petty cash slips and donation receipts still waiting to be posted, so the new officer escapes blame for gaps.
- Closing cash count with two witnesses
- Bank reconciliation for every account
- Closing balances for each fund
- List of entries still to be posted
Records the successor must receive
List every record and where it lives. Include the paper files in the steel cupboard, the spreadsheets on the old laptop, the scanned minute books and anything kept in a personal email account. Nothing may stay hidden.
The member register matters most. It shows each person’s category, joining date, paid-up date and contact details, so every question about dues, renewals or lapsed members starts on that page.
Receipt books come next. Cancelled receipts, voucher files, audit reports, the last annual accounts and the registrar’s filings come after that, each with a note on where the original sits.
- Member register with dues status
- Receipt books and cancelled receipts
- Voucher files and supporting bills
- Audit reports and filed returns
- Grant letters and donor conditions
Bank mandates and signing authority
Banks ignore a committee’s agreement, so the mandate changes only through the bank’s own forms, which need a resolution, specimen signatures and identity papers for each signatory. Start the paperwork early.
Until the new signatory is registered the old one stays on the account, so agree in writing that no blank cheque will be signed in advance. Collect every unused cheque book. Note each number series.
List every other account too. Cover fixed deposits, the payment gateway tied to online banking, the card machine at the front desk and any wallet linked to the office phone number. Each has its own owner and login.
Pending dues, bills and commitments
The successor inherits unfinished business. List members with arrears, showing the amount and months owed, then list bills approved but unpaid, and advances given to vendors or volunteers.
Add commitments missing from the cash book: a hall booked for next month, a grant report due in six weeks, a contractor owed payment once the roof repair ends.
Flag anything that is disputed. A half-remembered argument with a member over a missing receipt is far easier to settle on handover day than a year later, when nobody can find the paper.
- Arrears by member and month
- Approved but unpaid bills
- Advances and deposits held
- Reports and returns due, with dates
Access without sharing logins
A shared password is the enemy of a clean handover, because nobody can say who made which entry and the outgoing officer keeps access they should no longer have. Give each officer a named login.
On handover day, create the new login, switch the old one off and read the last week of the audit trail for odd entries. Change the bank’s corporate login.
Keep an access list with names, roles and the dates each was added or removed, and review it every year at the annual meeting.
Handover sign-off sheet
One form in four blocks. Block one lists books and balances with the cut-off date and both signatures, while block two lists records and where each is kept. Block three lists accounts, mandates and signatories, with the status of each bank form beside it and the date the bank stamped its acknowledgement. Block four lists dues, bills, commitments and system access, each carrying a received tick, a date and an initial from both officers.
Open a blank worksheet to printQuestions owners ask
How long should a handover take?
Plan for two to four weeks if the books are current, because bank mandate changes usually set the pace and the forms take time to process. File the forms on day one.
Should the outgoing treasurer stay available afterwards?
Yes, for a short period. Agree a window of a few weeks for questions, on the clear understanding that no entries will be made in their name once the new login is live.
What if records are missing?
Write down what is missing and when it was last seen, then report it to the committee and record it in the minutes. That way nobody can later blame the gap on the new officer, who never held the file, when the auditor asks for the missing voucher.
Why not just share the existing login?
A shared login hides who made each entry and leaves the old officer with access, whereas named logins with roles keep the audit trail clean. Removing one takes a single step.