There are many types of branches/groups depending on the girls/women/children who attend. A branch may hold leader meetings to organise the programme for the coming term. Branch meetings may be held weekly, monthly or at appropriate times for all members.

There should be a Leader-in-Charge who guides the branch meetings with the help of other members/leaders/helpers.

Branch Record keeping

Leaders of GFS branches need to keep records. There are 3 types of records: financial records (how much money your branch has and how much it spends); legal or operational records (information about members of your branch who attended meetings/events, and what was done during meetings/events); and other records that help run meetings. A good record keeping system will help you track performance and assist you when reporting. It will become a good historical record to refer to in the future.

Financial records

Your branch’s financial records allow you to track your cash flow, prepare your annual financial report to the parish council and understand your overall financial position. They can include documents such as:

• receipts and invoices for goods and services
• petty cash book
• bank statements.
• a register of your branch assets
• depreciation schedules
• documents showing how the branch is financed e.g. any branch loans

Financial records are generally kept by the Treasurer or Leader-in-Charge of the branch. All monies received and paid out should be accounted for. A record of such finances must be kept. The financial documents are necessary to ensure that the branch’s funds are sufficiently accounted for and to avoid any possible argument about them. A bank account should be opened for the branch to operate with at least 2 signatures OR the church may request the branch to operate out of the church’s petty cash. Financial statements should be prepared yearly for the Parish council.

Legal records

Legal records are documents that relate to the operation of your branch. These documents can include:

• Branch registration documents which contain contact details, such as addresses, phone numbers, emergency contacts, child health record and parent contact details, dates of welcoming, enrollment, admission. This may also contain dates such as when a member leaves the branch, birthdays, etc. It may also include Permission forms. GFS Sydney each year create a Registration/Permission form for use by branches.
• Attendance book/lists are a record of weekly meeting attendance and weekly subscription if applicable. GFS Sydney create a GFS Branch Sign On/Out sheet and also a Kidsplus Sign On/Out sheet and a Playgroup sign On/Out sheet.
• Rules, policies and procedures Some branches make their own rules, policies and procedure which outline how leaders and members will manage the day-to-day operation of the branch. Some branches use their church’s policies and procedures. These documents may include:

work place health and safety plans
dress standards
reportable conduct policy
privacy policy
operation manuals

It’s a good idea to provide all leaders in a branch with a copy of any rules, policies and procedures when they join the branch.

Note: Privacy and security of personal information

Australian privacy laws apply to the collection, use and storage of personal information. Personal information is information that could identify who someone is. Some examples are name, address, telephone number, date of birth, and bank account details.

It is essential that all personal data is kept securely.

Other branch records

It can also be a good idea to keep other records for reference in the future such as:

• Branch Team management meeting decisions/minutes
• Programme book or Run sheets. This is the plan for the activities of branch meetings and will include an evaluation of the success, failure or suitability of the activity to be completed after the meeting. Attached is an example of a Run sheet.
• Incident book – for reports of any accident / incident
• Annual Reports which should be sent to your parish Council and to GFS Sydney

How long should you keep records for

You need to keep your records and documents for different amounts of times depending on the government department or organisation that needs the information. Generally financial documents need to be kept for 7 years.

How should you keep your records

There are a range of methods and tools you can use to keep records for your branch. You can keep your records either electronically or in paper (hard) copies. There are benefits to both.

Paper copies

Paper or hard copies of records are often the original copies of your documents.

The advantage of keeping the original records is that they’re sometimes required if the record is used as evidence in legal matters. Paper copies of records can also be used to support any electronic records if there is dispute over the electronic copy.

If you are keeping paper copies of your records however, it’s important to store them properly, as they can:

• often be misfiled
• take up a lot of storage space
• decay over time or be destroyed by water or excessive sunlight.

Electronic copies

Electronic copies of records are now generally accepted by government departments.

To keep your records electronically, you must make sure they are a true and clear copy of the original. The records must also be on a computer or device that:

• you have access to (including all passwords)
• is backed up in case of computer failure
• allows you to control the information that is processed, entered and sent.

Advantages of keeping electronic records include:

• records can be easy to search and easy to create filing systems for
• it is easy to create additional copies of records
• there is software available to help you with keeping electronic financial records
• electronic records requires less physical storage space than paper records
• certain apps will allow you to create records on the go and organise them from your mobile device.

Disadvantages to keeping electronic records include:

• if the data is kept on a hard drive or USB device, it can be lost or susceptible to data corruption
• needing additional security to make sure that the information on the records is protected from computer viruses or people gaining unauthorised access
• hard copies might still be needed for legal and other uses.

If you decide to keep electronic records, it’s quite easy to transform hard copies of invoices and statements into electronic versions using the camera on your smart phone or with scanning equipment. Make sure you choose a system of record keeping you can understand and operate easily.

Technologies make it easier to access, transmit and misuse personal information. You will need to pay particular attention to securing online and electronic records.

Once you have read through the GFS Branch Organisation section, please do a simple test.

GFS Branch Organisation Test

Next is the Programming for a Branch meeting section