RECORD KEEPING POLICY

Purpose & Objective

Good record keeping is an integral part of the sound management of any organisation. It is not an optional extra to be fitted in if circumstances and time allow. This policy covers both the written and electronic records of Tom Aynsley Foundation Limited (Company).

In terms of compliance:

·     the Company must comply with requirements set down in clause 21.1 of the Company’s Constitution (requiring maintenance of financial and other records;

·     Charities like the Company that are registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) must comply with the record-keeping requirements under Division 55 of the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission Act 2012 (Cth) (ACNC Act); and 

·     the Company is also required to comply with a number of additional requirements under the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth).

1.     Scope

Both financial records and operational records of the Company will be kept and must be sufficient to enable external parties to assess the Company’s:

·    entitlement to charity registration; 

·    charitable purpose and registration category or sub-type; 

·   compliance with the ACNC Act and Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission Regulation 2013   (Cth) (ACNC Regulation); and 

·   compliance with taxation laws, which is assessed by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). 

1.1.  Financial Records- will be kept to correctly record and explain the Company’s financial transactions, position and performance and allow true and fair financial statements to be prepared and audited.

Where applicable to the Company, financial records may include receipts, invoices, banking records, cheques, vouchers, details of any contracts, details of any grant payments, salary records (of employees), accounting records, working papers to produce financial reports, stock records, lists of assets, tax documents including information about payments to contractors, ‘pay as you go’ withholding, superannuation obligations and fringe benefits provided and correspondence regarding financial matters including communications from the ATO. 

1.2.  Operational Records- will be kept to correctly record the operations of the Company.

Operational records are documents, other than financial records, about the operations of the Company. These documents may include meeting minutes, reports, and written details of the Company's activities, programs or services, contractual agreements, strategic plans, policies and procedures, project proposals, member communications, media releases, charity promotional material and project documentation. 

2.    Access to Records

Directors of the Company will have the right to access the Company’s financial and operational records at any reasonable time, as set out in clause 21.1(b) of the Company’s Constitution. 

Directors have determined that members who are not Directors of the Company will be able to access and inspect financial and operational records at any reasonable time. Such requests must be submitted to the Company Secretary who will facilitate access. Reporting to members will also be undertaken in accordance with clause 21.4 of the Company’s Constitution.

Access to the Company’s records will also be provided to the following government entities:

·     the ATO may inspect records to determine the Company’s compliance with taxation laws; 

·     the ACNC may inspect records to determine the Company’s compliance with the ACNC Act and ACNC Regulation; and 

·     the Australian Securities & Investments Commission may inspect financial records as set out in sections 28 and 29 of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001(Cth). 

3.     Managing Records

3.1.  Responsibility– The Board has designated responsibility for managing the grant of access to the Company’s records to a Director or a Member. Requests regarding access to Company information should be forwarded to the Company Secretary.

3.2.  Training– It is the responsibility of the Company Secretary to ensure that each Director is fully trained in management of the Company’s records in accordance with this policy.

3.3.  Sensitive Records– records designated as ‘Sensitive’ will only be permitted to be accessed by Directors and Company Secretary. Requests by Members, who are not Directors, for access to ‘Sensitive’ records, should be submitted to the Company Secretary who must include such access as an agenda item at the next Board meeting for the Board’s consideration and determination.

4.     Hard-Copy and Electronic Records

Records of the Company’s financial and operational activities will be kept electronically. If necessary, original documents will be kept as required to support particular situations, such as legal requirements.

Electronic records will be kept in categorised electronic folders designated into financial and operational classifications aligning with the activities of the Company.

Electronic records will be hosted in a ‘Cloud based’ account and will be backed up on a ‘Raid’ configured Hard-Drive by the Director and/or Company Secretary designated as responsible for Records Management.

All other Directors will be provided with ‘read only’ access to the electronic folders.

All information contained in the records management system of the Company will be capable of being converted to hard copy by those persons authorised to do so.

Any personal information stored electronically must only be collected, stored and accessed in accordance with relevant privacy laws of the jurisdictions in which the Company operates.

5.     Destruction of Records

Financial and operational records will be retained for at least seven (7) years as required by clause 21.1(a)(i)(2) of the Company’s Constitution. After seven years and provided no other record keeping obligations to Government regulators exist, the Company will destroy its records. Prior to destruction this policy will be checked as well as any other legal obligations that may exist. 

Contacts

For questions about this policy, contact the Board Chairman or Company Secretary by email at: tcf@aynsleymail.com or by Phone on: +61 411 580 001.

Updated: August 2020

Please consider making a donation to Tom's Foundation. 100% of all donations received in our account will go to Tom's Foundation which was established to provide coffee producing communities with much needed support in day-to-day areas of life as they move towards longer term sustainability.

Tom's Foundation is registered as a charity with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission ABN 65624241505.