Or Finances - for those who don't like numbers!
Spreadsheets can be complicated and off putting. Trying to explain who spends what, and why it’s important that we know who spends what and when they spend it can be tricky to get across.
‘We don’t need a budget‘ is something we’re often told when MBS takes on a new client. ‘I don’t understand the accounts, but we have money in the bank’ is another common statement.
However, accounts and budgets aren’t to prevent or encourage you to spend, but instead is a framework to help both control and guide your spending. Letting you see when you might need to save more, spend more or move money from one ‘pot’ to another. Numbers provide valuable insights and inform future decisions.
Make it Visible!
The flipchart ‘end of year accounts‘ for Bakewell Meeting in 2014 lists out the totals spent for each of the categories that were felt to be important for everyone to see and understand.
The two pages cover both the upkeep of first the worshipping community, and second the building and grounds.
Make it Simpler
My AM, simplified their budget presentation.
- They focused on areas of income & expenditure people at AM would be most interested in.
- They added annotations to the numbers.
This new format was received with some questions about what was left out.
However, most people felt it was more easily understood. Full budgets and accounts were easily available of course for those who actually want all the numbers.
Encourage Questions
Questions I’ve found helpful when talking to people about budgets and accounts.
- What would you like to spend your money on?
- How can we encourage that spending?
- How can we ensure that we don’t waste money?
Do you have ways of helping people understand the budgets and accounts for your charity? What questions have you found helpful?
Wendrie Heywood
MBS Founder
