ASTO is the umbrella body for UK Sail Training. Our more than 30 member organisations provide Sail Training adventures for 10,000 young people and 2000 disabled people each year.

ASTO has 3 staff members, and a Board currently consisting of 10 people. ASTO’s support for member organisations includes:

• Regular grant giving to enable operators to provide Sail Training for young people
• Grants for staff and volunteer training
• Online training courses for staff and volunteers
• Annual meetings to share good practice in the sector
• Advice and advocacy for Sail Training as a youth development activity
• Promoting Sail Training opportunities
• Advising the public on Sail Training opportunities
• Liaising with government agencies and national governance bodies
• In addition, ASTO organises sailing regattas for our member organisations that raise awareness of Sail Training and are an opportunity for vessels and young people to compete in friendly rivalry.

The bulk of ASTO’s income is from our investments. We also own the literary rights to some 30 works of fiction, we would like to increase our income from these. A sub-committee of Trustees is responsible for the investment policy and overseeing the professional investment managers; it is expected that the Treasurer will join this committee.

Key responsibilities:
• oversee all financial aspects of the charity, on behalf of the Board of Trustees, to ensure its short and long-term viability
• assist the Chair, other honorary officers and the General Manager in ensuring that the Board of Trustees fulfils its duties and responsibilities for the proper financial governance of the charity.
• Ensure proper records are kept and that effective financial procedures are in place.
• Monitor and report on the financial health of the organisation.
• Oversee the production of necessary financial reports/returns, accounts and audits.

In addition, the role of Treasurer will involve the following duties:

Weekly approval of outgoing payments via online banking
Monthly reconciliation of the bank statements with the accounting software (transactions are input by the admin staff)

Time commitment

The Treasurer will need to spend about 1 hour a week on routine business. In addition, there will be 3 board meetings and 2 Investment committee meetings per annum.

Person description
The successful candidate will be expected to demonstrate evidence of the following skills, capabilities and experience:
• excellent financial management and literacy skills, including bookkeeping and accounting;
• excellent attention to detail and communication skills;
• the ability to build a supportive and motivational relationship with the General Manager;

The following additional criteria are desirable but not essential:
A passion for Sail Training and opportunities for young people and disabled people

Application
To express your interest, please contact ASTO on [email protected] outlining your experience, amount of time you can commit and any further relevant information. You can find further information about ASTO on www.uksailtraining.org . Closing date for applications is the 31st December 2020.

Full details are on https://www.uksailtraining.co.uk/sea-staff/jobs