CENTRAL AMENITIES FUND

CENTRAL AMENITIES FUND

1. The Central Amenities Fund (CAF) is a single non-public fund which acts both as the Ship's Fund (formerly known as the Welfare Fund) and as the umbrella fund for all the various social and sporting clubs and other subsidiary funds onboard. The Ship's Fund is primarily intended to meet the cost of welfare, amenities and recreation of the Ship\s Company and for benevolent purposes associated with the establishment. The Ship's Fund may provide items for CERBERUS personnel that cannot be provided from Commonwealth monies. Notwithstanding, funding by the Commonwealth is to be the first avenue investigated before any approach is made to fund items out of the Ship's Fund, ie, the Ship's Fund does not exist merely to be a simplified manner of procurement. The sole source of income of the Ship's Fund is profit transferred from CReST. The Welfare Committee is to have full discretion regarding expenditure from the Ship's Fund, subject only to the right of veto on the part of the CO of any proposed expenditure which appears to subvert discipline or is otherwise improper.

 

2. The CAF operates under the CReST umbrella, with CReST as the parent accounting body, ie, as an NAVSYSCOM approved "Super SCAF" iaw NAVSUPMAN 11. The CAF is to be used for the accounting, payments and banking associated with the Ship's Fund and other non-public funds (or \u2018Service Funds') approved by the CO. HOFs, HODs and OICs are to ensure that no Service Fund is started without the prior approval of the CO.

 

Management and Supervision of Service Funds

3. CAF Treasurer. The Treasurer of the CAF will be a uniformed Officer appointed by the CO as an ancillary duty. He is usually also appointed as the Ship's Fund Treasurer, and is to be a Supply Branch Officer whenever possible. CReST staff are responsible to the CO, through the CAF Treasurer, for the day to day running of the accounts of the CAF.

 

4. Presidents and Committees. Presidents and Committees of organisations operating Service Funds are to manage their own affairs and are responsible to their members for the proper administration of their organisation's funds. Moneys received are always to be banked with, and accounts paid through, the CAF.

 

5. Treasurers. Committees of Service Funds are to appoint a Treasurer and report the name to the CAF Treasurer through CReST staff as soon as practicable. On posting from the establishment, a Treasurer of a Service Fund is to ensure that a new committee member is appointed Treasurer and a handover of their duties to their successor occurs. If a Treasurer is to be posted from CERBERUS without relief, the CAF Treasurer is to be notified at the earliest opportunity. No further financial transactions may take place in that particular fund until a new Treasurer has been appointed by the Committee concerned.

 

6. Supervising Officers. Supervising Officers of Service Funds are Officers or Warrant Officers appointed by the CO. They are to be Supply Branch Officers whenever possible. Supervising Officers' duties are outlined in NAVSUPMAN 11 and include:

 

1. carrying out monthly and uncertain verifications of cash and bank balances;
2. ensuring assets (cash, cash floats, bank, stock, fixed assets etc) never exceed reasonable requirements;
3. ensuring that correct accounting and auditing procedures are being adhered to;
4. ensuring creditors are paid in accordance with individual creditors terms;
5. ensuring debtors accounts (other funds, mess members, etc) are settled promptly; and
6. ensuring stock levels do not exceed reasonable requirements.

 

All Supervising Officers are to be fully conversant with these responsibilities and are to ensure that they are carried out. The requirement for an uncertain count is particularly important and Supervising Officers are to notify the CAF Treasurer in writing when this has occurred. An uncertain count is to be carried once in each six month period. Should any Supervising Officer have any difficulties or queries, the CAF Treasurer is to be informed and consulted. Supervising Officers on posting from the establishment should hand the duty to their relief. If a Supervising Officer posts out without a relief being identified, the CAF Treasurer is to be notified at the earliest opportunity.

7. The CAF Treasurer is to ensure that a current list of Supervising Officers and Treasurers of Service Funds is maintained and is published each quarter by memorandum approved by the XO.

Requests for Financial Assistance for Service Funds from the Welfare Committee

8. Requests for financial assistance for the next Financial Year for recognised Service Funds are to be made in writing and by email to the CAF Treasurer by 15 May each year and will be considered by the Welfare Committee at its next meeting. Requests for additional funding may be made at other times during the year but will be approved by the Welfare Committee only if it is satisfied that the need for additional funds could not reasonably have been foreseen when the annual requests were submitted. All requests for funding must be itemised, costed and fully justified. Details of other funding available to the Services Fund must also be supplied. No request is to be submitted until all avenues of official funding from Commonwealth sources have been investigated. Frivolous or poorly documented requests will not be approved.

 

Annual Reporting

9. On 30 June each year, the Treasurers of Service Funds are to report the following information in writing to the CAF Treasurer:
   
   1. money balances held by the fund or club at cash and bank;
   2. outstanding debtors and creditors;
   3. stock held at cost price (trading organisations only); and
   4. a list of fixed assets accrued by the fund or club and confirmation that they have been mustered as correct.

The above information is required for presentation to the annual external auditors.

10. On completion of the annual Audit, the GM CReST will present the Combined annual Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss Statements of CReST and the CAF to the Welfare Committee, and supply all explanations of the year's performance. Once all explanations have been accepted, the Welfare Committee is to sign a statement to that effect for presentation with thefinal Audit Report to the CO for approval.