We need you!

Do you have some free time and a desire to help other pet owners in a practical way? Have you got some office skills? Could you attend a few meetings a year in London?
The Tailwaggers Club Trust needs some additional trustees and particularly someone/ some people to take on some of the secretarial and accounting roles as our wonderful Secretary/Treasurer is hoping to retire after 20 years of loyal service. Side Nye is a remarkable and inspirational 78 year old and it's now only due to failing sight that he's asking to spread the work.
Tailwaggers is a lovely charity. It's ancient but it's even more vital today than it was back in the 1920s when it started. There's no big swanky offices or fat cat salaries. It's lean and best of all very personal.
Every case is listened to on its own merits and often that in itself is a huge help to pet owners in distressing situations.
I doubt we'll ever find another Sid - but there are must be other wonderful altruistic people out there who will help their fellow humans get through a crisis and stick with their pets?
Sid's daughter Carol mans the phone side of things, but Sid is our first email contact. He receives the pleas for help and then contacts the vet where necessary for more information or passes the appeal sideways to the trustees if it's a practical problem that we all need to brainstorm.
If you are interested in getting involved in this friendly little charity and making an incredible difference to pets and their people please do get in touch for more details.
Here's a breakdown of what Sid does - we could split these jobs between several people as he does seem to do a great deal!
      

ACCOUNTING

• Maintain record of all payments and receipts analysed by category
• Maintain a Statement of Activity and Balance Sheet.
• (Currently this is achieved by a spreadsheet where a single entry for each transaction
• updates all the required fields)
• Prepare budget for current year.
• Reconcile  book balances with bank statements every month.
• Transfer money between accounts as required.
• Bank cheques received and acknowledge donations.
• Write Annual Report
• Prepare accounts for audit at year end 31st March, ensuring supporting documentation is complete

MEETINGS

• Fix dates for meetings based on Trustees availability.
• Prepare and circulate agenda in advance of the meeting
• Prepare such financial reports as required by Trustees for presentation/discussion at meetings.
• Take minutes.

CHARITY COMMISSION

• Complete Annual Return (Can now be done on-line)
• Send them a certified copy of any resolution agreed by trustees changing any administrative aspect of our Governing Document.

GENERAL

Check Email daily and deal with messages as necessary.

We'd also love to attract someone who is a whizz at web design as the Tailwaggers website badly needs updating. Plus anyone who is interested in fund raising - we can't have too many people helping raise funds as since the Blue Cross stopped helping people with grants at the end of January, Tailwaggers is often the ONLY charity giving assistance to pet people in crisis.

If you'd like to know more, please get in touch. I've been working with Tailwaggers for quite a few years now (though not as long as Sid!) and it is amazing how much of a difference this charity makes and how many lives it touches. Read the story of Charlie for just a glimpse of what we do. Please do join us, it's a great team of animal lovers - we just need some new signings!

Anyone who knows anyone this might suit, please do get in touch. My email is beverley@dogstodaymagazine.co.uk