Session 1 - Administration
Session 1 - Administration
Objectives
1. Describe the planning process for a residential experience.
2. Identify the main elements of effective administration of a residential experience.
Topics covered
- planning timetable
- information to and from parents
- nights away permits and notifications
- budgets, accounts and camp banks
- InTouch
Key message
The key to planning a residential experience is to start well in advance. The right information and notification must be given to parents, young people, leaders and commissioners for the event.
Residential experiences should aim to be self-financing, so a budget needs to be established early. Leaders in charge are the experience or event organisers, and they should be able to create a budget and calculate costs and fees, to make satisfactory banking arrangements and produce accounts. A camp bank also helps young people to control their spending.
An income and expenditure sheet will help with planning and can then be used to see how well the experience did against budget. This can help with planning similar events in the future.
For all Scouting events and activities it's important that an InTouch system is in place.
Task (20 minutes)
Remind participants that residential experiences, and camping in particular, are very much part of Scouting, an activity undertaken by most Members at one time or another during their 'Scout life'. Time and effort can be invested in them so it is important to get it right for all concerned.
Split the participants into groups and give them each a roll of paper. Ask them to devise an event timeline for planning a residential experience, from the moment they decide to organise one, to the end of the event. After ten minutes ask the participants to discuss in their groups who they think needs to be communicated with and when. They should then add this to their timeline in a different colour.
A similar activity is run in the Introduction to Residential Experiences module, so you may wish to adapt this task accordingly.
The purpose of the task is to get the participants to start their planning process. At this point, it does not matte what they have or have not included, as it is the start of the planning process. By using a large visual aid, they can add to and delete items on it throughout the training, using different colours to denote different tasks or areas. This means that by the end of the training the participants should have a comprehensive planning tool they can use for the future.
Report back (25 minutes)
Using the task they have just done, get the groups to report back, drawing out the main points and summarise the communication as follows (providing examples where appropriate):
It's recommended that initial notification of an event or experience is at least six months in advance. This is a way of helping families appreciate the value of the event, and keeps the date marked in their calendars in advance.
Families differ hugely in their ability to process and respond to information. The more regularly and widely they communicate what is happening and what they need, the more likely it is that they will get a response. As well as just sending letters to parents, try holding open evenings or using other channels of communication to remind them. Information to give to parents:
Hold a parents meeting to give all the information needed to and also to have opportunity for parents to ask their questions. Some of the areas to cover may be:
- consent form/invitation to events
- nights Away information
- kit list
- balance of money needed, including ways to pay and when to pay, and any hardship fund available
- safety and safeguarding
- InTouch and communication procedures
These usually confirm the arrangements for the event and can also provide a kit list and notification forms so families have full instructions for the event.
These are for families to fill in to enable leaders in charge to collect any medical information they need about those attending in one place. It is also useful to state on here what treatment/precautions might be taken in an emergency and what medication may be available. The form could also include any dietary requirements, which may be due to food intolerances or because of cultural or religious needs.
Explain that every residential experience will require a similar planning process and that a successful event means starting well in advance. The amount of planning time will vary according the scale of the event. If a popular venue needs to be secured they will need to plan at least six months in advance, whereas an overseas trip may take over a year to plan for.
For all Scouting events and activities it's important that an InTouch system is in place. This is to ensure everyone involved is aware of how communication will take place and that there is an effective system in place in the event of an emergency.
Spend ten minutes discussing with participants the systems they currently use, what systems they would like to use and the pros and cons of these.
Residential experiences should aim to be self-financing so it’s important to establish a budget early on.
Ask the participants to brainstorm the main budget areas to consider when drawing up costs of camp.
Introduce participants to F.A.S.T. This covers potential expenditure.
Food - everything from food and drink to refuse sacks and toilet rolls. About 4 - 6 pounds per head per day is a realistic aim whether it’s Beaver or Explorer Scouts. However, it will also vary depending on where they shop.
Activities - this needs to cover everything from planned days out, to craft materials and prizes.
Site - this covers the cost of the venue or any camping fees. This should be set fairly early on.
Transport - this can vary hugely, and may include travel to and from the venue and also any travel during the event.
As part of the budget planning leaders in charge also need to know what people can afford to pay. It will probably be useful to know what else is going on outside of Scouting as this may also have an effect on what families are willing to pay for.
A policy will be needed on what leaders and other adults contribute financially. If they go free, as they are contributing their time and skills, this needs to be budgeted for, but also communicated at the outset so that everyone knows what the policy is.
Hardship funds - there may be funds available locally and nationally to help those who are unable to afford the full fees and you should be aware of whether it is relevant for your event, and how it can be administered and communicated with discretion and sensitivity.
Task (20 minutes)
Ask the participants to draw up a simple budget for a residential experience. They need to think about F.A.S.T. and estimate costs and plan for uncertainty of numbers attending.
This task is a simple budget planning exercise to help participants feel confident in budget planning. Two scenarios and a template are available in Appendix 1, but alternative scenarios could be created.
If your participants are preparing for a real experience you should have all the information they may need to plan a budget, or ask them to come prepared with the information they need to use.
Handling finances correctly is a very important job which often gets overlooked in the excitement of the event.
In their groups ask participants to spend five minutes discussing what they think are the rules and guidelines for handling money, before, during and after the event. What do they consider best practice to be? Ask them to feedback and cover the following:
- payments should never go through a personal account
- bank accounts require more than one signature
- records need to contain both receipts and expenditure
- produce a spread sheet to itemise both receipt and payments
- issue receipts to both participants and leaders
- Try and reimburse legitimate expenses as soon as possible
- decide if expenditure incurred during the event will be reimbursed during or at the end of the event
- decide how a camp bank will be operated (if used)
- if not used decide how ‘pocket money’ will be kept secure
- notify parents of the upper limit for ‘pocket money’
- review the receipts and expenditure at regular interval
- make a plan of what you intend to do with any surplus funds
During the event
- keep track (if possible) on a copy of the receipts/payments spread sheet (this helps to identify cost you might not have anticipated)
- have a sealable folder for any receipts/expenditure acquired during the event
- try and reimburse legitimate cost as soon as possible
- make sure that the procedure for operating the camp bank is followed
- make sure all money is kept in a secure place
After the event
- return any camp bank or pocket money as soon as possible
- reimburse legitimate cost as soon as possible (if decided upon)
- complete the income and expenditure spread sheet
- complete the plan for surplus funds
- submit accounts to treasurer
Other useful things to note
- make a note of what food was popular – this will be useful when compiling future menus
- keep the non-perishable food for future events
- review the unexpected expenditure for future events
To summarise, let participants know that in this session they have demonstrated timeline planning for a residential experience, and looked at budget planning and the financial aspects of administration for a residential experience.
Resources
For this session you require the following resources:
- large roll of paper (for example wallpaper lining paper)
- coloured pens and pencils
- paper
- copies of Appendix 1: Budget Planning (if relevant)