Fundraising - School Community Councils Procedure

Excerpt from Ontario Regulation 612 – School Councils (Section 22) 

(2) A school council shall not engage in fundraising activities unless: 

the activities are conducted in accordance with any applicable polices established by the board; and

the activities are to raise funds for a purpose approved by the board or authorized by any applicable policies 
established by the board.

To ensure accountability and to assist with decision making, it is essential that financial records be complete and accurate. The following guidelines will ensure that these objectives are met.

2.1 The Principal is responsible for all funds raised through fundraising initiatives.

2.2 To ensure that all funds are properly and accurately accounted for, a standard set of books with formal 
procedures must be established within the School Generated Funds bookkeeping system.

2.3 The School Community Council Treasurer's Report will be shared with the School Community Council, staff, students and parents at every meeting of The School Community Council.

2.4 The Principal is responsible for ensuring that all insurance liability issues arising from contracts for services, goods and/or equipment are adequately addressed. Consequently, all contracts entered into for School Community Council activities shall be authorized and signed by the Principal only.

2.5 The Board audit process will provide reasonable assurance that the funds raised are properly managed.

3.1 The Principal and the School Community Council must jointly approve all School Community Council 
fundraising initiatives. The fundraising projects must be consistent with the school plan, the Board’s 
mission statement and statement of values and the system plan. The Principal and the School Community 
Council must agree on the purpose of the fundraising before any funds are raised. 

3.2 The Principal shall ensure that the plans for the fundraising project shall contain measures that endeavour to protect the safety of students, take into account the impact on public relations in the school community and communicate that participation in the project is voluntary. 

3.3 For fundraising activities School Community Councils shall work in full cooperation with the school staff, 
under the supervision of the Principal.

3.4 Before a fundraising initiative begins, an outline of the fundraising project, including a concise statement of the purpose, method, time frame and estimated revenue shall be shared with the school community. 
(Appendix D)

3.5 Funds raised are to be spent on pre-approved items only. However, the plan may be amended to 
accommodate unforeseen events with the agreement with the Principal and the School Community Council.

3.6 No door-to-door campaigns shall be allowed. The UNICEF campaign at Hallowe'en is permitted, provided written parental permission has been submitted to the school.

4.1 All purchases shall require the Principal's approval. The only purchases requiring the involvement of the Board's Purchasing/Programs Department are the following four categories:

• Learning Materials and Textbooks
• Playground Equipment
• Classroom Computers and Technology
• Additional Furniture and Equipment

In respect of the above categories, the school Principal shall requisition the Purchasing Department.

4.2 There are four recognized ways to purchase goods and services:

• Through the Board's Purchasing Department
• Directly from the Vendor
• Cash Advance
• Petty Cash

Through the Board's Purchasing Department

The Principal shall requisition the Board to purchase on behalf of the School Community Council. A School cheque to cover these purchases shall be made payable to the "Durham District School Board" and forwarded to the Accounting Department. These funds shall be deposited to the individual School Community Council Recoverable/Receivable Account to cover the obligation.

Directly from the Vendor

With the approval of the Principal the School Community Council shall purchase directly from the vendor. A cheque requisition (Appendix B) with the appropriate approvals shall be prepared each time a cheque is requested. The original invoice and related documents, once available, must be attached to the cheque requisition. All purchases must follow the Board’s policies and procedures.

Cash Advance

In those instances where purchases need to be made and the total cost is estimated (e.g. groceries), a cash advance will be necessary (Appendix C). A cheque requisition (Appendix B) with the appropriate approvals shall be prepared. The cheque shall be made payable to the purchaser and he/she shall be responsible for returning the receipts and any remaining cash.

Petty Cash

A petty cash float may be established at the discretion of the Treasurer of the School Community Council. The float shall have a maximum of $400.00 and no one purchase shall exceed $100.00. To set up the float, a cheque should be drawn on the School Community Council’s bank account in the name of the Treasurer. The float must be maintained on an imprest basis (i.e. the total amount of cash plus petty cash vouchers must be equal to the original float). All purchases must follow the Board’s policies and procedures.

4.3 The School Community Council Recoverable/Receivable Account shall be reconciled on a monthly basis by the Board’s Accounting Department and any money owing either to the Board or the School Community Council shall be settled before the Board’s year-end.

5.1 All monies raised for the school through School Community Council fundraising initiatives shall be 
deposited into a school bank account. 

5.2 The School Community Council Treasurer will be responsible for providing to the school office original 
source documents (cheque requisitions with supporting documentation (Appendix B), deposit summaries 
(Appendix A) with appropriate back up to show sources of funds. All transactions shall be recorded in a general ledger which will also be maintained on the Board's bookkeeping system.

5.3 School Community Councils shall never borrow or loan money.

6.1 Two individuals should count all funds collected. All cheques should be stamped “For Deposit only to 
Account#__________”. A deposit form (see Appendix A) shall be completed and signed by both counters 
and verified by the Treasurer/Designate present at the counting. The funds collected shall then be 
forwarded to the office daily for processing. No funds shall be removed from school property or stored at 
school – other than in the school safe.

6.2 All funds collected shall be deposited intact, that is, no expenditures shall be paid from cash collected. 

6.3 If the event is held off school premises or after school hours the funds should be counted at the event and 
arrangements made with the Principal to have the funds deposited immediately or put into the school safe. 
All un-deposited cash shall be kept in the schools safe.

7.1 A receipt shall be issued by the Board for charitable donations of $50.00 or more, under the Income Tax Act.

7.2 The Revenue Canada regulations in part state:

In order for a donor to receive a tax receipt, a donation must be made without valuable 
consideration.
In other words, a charitable donation is one in which the donor or his/her immediate family 
members do not derive a direct benefit.

7.3 All charitable donations shall be forwarded to the Board and shall be deposited to a specific School 
Community Council Recoverable/Receivable Account for the exclusive use of the school.

7.4 It is preferable that donations take the form of cheques, which should be made payable to “Durham District School Board”

8.1 The SCC Treasurer shall prepare a summary at the completion of a fundraising project. (Appendix G) The 
summary shall include the following:

• The purpose of the fundraiser
• The amount of money raised
• The itemized expenditures from the fundraising moneys 
• And the net profit

8.2 The SCC committee, with input from the Principal and the fundraising plan, shall determine how the funds raised shall be distributed to the School’s accounts.

8.3 Direction from the SCC approved minutes will be forwarded to the school secretary. The secretary will 
transfer the funds from the fundraising account to the appropriate school account(s).

8.4 All revenues left in SCC fundraising account and/or school expense accounts at year end shall be carried forward as opening balances in the same accounts to maintain accountability for the funds until they are allotted to the school’s accounts.

8.5 The Board requires that all monies raised be spent in a timely basis. Monies raised in one year should be spent in that year – except where fundraising is for a special project (e.g. larger purchases like electronic equipment or out-of-town trips etc.) requires more than one year to accomplish the goal.

8.6 As a general rule, monies carried forward should be limited to a modest amount – no more than 10% of the monies raised in the year – to cover start-up costs for the ensuing year.

9.1 The Treasurer shall review and submit a “Category Umbrella Overview Report” (Appendix E) for approval for every School Community Council meeting. The secretary will generate this report from the school’s bookkeeping system. The secretary will also provide a “Detailed Category Summary” report, showing the activity in each of the SCC accounts for reference. (Appendix F) 

9.2 The Treasurer shall review and submit a “Category Umbrella Overview Report” for the school year 
(Appendix E). The secretary will generate this report from the school’s bookkeeping system after the year 
end process is completed.

9.3 This Annual Report shall be approved by the Principal and the School Community Council Chairperson, and communicated to the School Community Council, staff, students, parents and the Superintendent 
responsible for School Community Councils.

9.4 The Treasurer of the School Community Council shall be required to forward a copy of the Annual School Community Council Report to the Superintendent of Education, with responsibility for Parent Involvement and Engagement, located at the Board Office, no later than September 30th each year.

For clarification of this procedure, please contact the Comptroller of Finance or the Senior Auditor and for 
information on Insurance Liability contact the Manager of Capital Budget/Insurance. They are all located in the Business Division.