Ever considered taking on the role of Twyford Drama's treasurer, but don't know if you have what it takes? We got some advice from David Tanqueray who held the position for thirty years.
What characteristics do you think a treasurer needs to have?
Honesty, of course, is probably the foremost one because you’re dealing with other people’s money. You also need to be meticulous. The numbers have to be right. Keep a clear head and be happy to work with numbers and spreadsheets.
You also need to know people in the group – that’s quite useful. To be in touch with people and know who’s who. A total outsider would find it hard because so much of it is personal interaction. Getting handed receipts is the most common one. You need to know who to hand the money back to. And people need to know who you are.
And what advice would you give to future treasurers?
Be careful to do it right. Keep the accounts up to date. Write everything in the accounts book. If everything’s in the book, then you can work from that, because everything comes from the data in there. And it’s a handwritten book. I didn’t do that on a spreadsheet, because I’m a great believer in paper. All the technology can go and you’ve still got the records. You can work everything out from them.
A huge thanks goes out to David Tanqueray for all his hard work as the group’s treasurer and exceptional involvement in other aspects for the group, as well as for agreeing to share some of his thoughts and memories with us.
Find out what’s involved in being the treasurer here or learn more about David’s time in the role.