68th Hatfield Scout Group


What are Subs? Subs (Subscriptions) is the term Scouts use for the weekly fee which we require to finance the running of the Scout Group. Subs are currently set £144 per year, payable in £12.00 monthly instalments on the 1st of each calendar month. OSM(Direct Debits) - We use Online Scout Manager(OSM) as the core database system for recording information (names, addresses, badge records etc). The payment element of the OSM system is used to collect parent payments (just like the schools' ParentPay). OSM uses standard Direct Debits and as such is fully protected by the Direct Debit guarantee mechanisms When will my bank account be debited? The OSM Direct Debit protocol requires you to have 4 working days notice before the money is debited from your account. This is to ensure that you have the opportunity to cancel the payment. The whole time-frame is as follows: Day 1 - you will get an OSM email advising you of the next DD payment. e.g. 1st of the month Day 4 - your bank account will be debited Day 6 - our Group bank account will be credited What if the Direct Debit fails? (Bounces) When Direct Debits fail it is usually, but not always, due to insufficient funds in your bank account. If this occurs we get a notification on 'Day 6' as above. We will email you to advise you of this DD failure and will ask you to advise us when we can re-initiate the DD request to your bank. Bank charges could apply to you and to us, so it is important that we do not re-initiate the DD request automatically, but allow you time to resolve your bank issue first. Changing sections? (Beavers to Cubs, or Cubs to Scouts) The Direct Debit in OSM is established for each section. When children transfer to the next section it will require a new Direct Debit agreement to be set-up. The old DD will automatically be cancelled by us as part of the section transfer process. Please see info below about checking your email/spam/junk for the ‘new section’ email. All members As a Scout Group we are now ‘cash-less’. We would appreciate your help in adopting this strategy, as this :
	• reduces the admin burden on our leader team • makes information more available to use • ensures good financial controls • provides excellent audit trails for parents and leaders
More than 1 child in the Scout Group? Each child will require an individual DD to be set-up, this provides maximum flexibility when children move between sections. Direct Debits for camps and events A new DD will be requested for each camp that your child wants to attend. These will be separate to the Subs DD's, as the payment schedule for subs is pre-set at £12 per month, whereas camps will be specific to each camp. Typically we will request an initial deposit of £15, followed by a balance payment just prior to the camp, as with subs we will generate a separate DD for each. The dates for these payments will be determined by the camp leader; as with Subs, you will get an email to notify you in advance of each of these payments. The communication and set-up for our subs and camps payments is processed using our Online Scout Manager (OSM) system. OSM is our online database in which we store personal details, badge records, attendance registers etc. Within OSM is the payment system is referred to as ‘Go Cardless’
	• You will get an email from us (via OSM) to request set-up of your bank details. • This will result in you initiating a payment in to our Scout Group bank account( via GoCardless) • This Direct Debit is subject to all the usual banking rules
It is imperative that we have your up to date email address Soon after starting with the group (or having recently changed section) , or having signed-up to a camp, we will email you with a link to the OSM payment system:
	• Please check your junk/spam mail folders; • If you cannot find our email - please email us (details below) and we will reset and re-email your link
Details about how to set-up the link - see guidance note below Please help us by setting this up as quickly as possible, as this makes life a lot easier for our leaders and treasurer, enabling us to spend less time on admin and more on delivering quality Scouting. Once you have completed the set-up process you will be able to see the schedule of subs/camp payment dates. You will also receive an email in advance of each payment collection date. You need do nothing for now, just wait for and then promptly respond to the OSM email(s). Cancellation All of these Direct Debits can be manually cancelled at any time using the payments page or links on the payment notification emails. Any existing payment schedules are automatically cancelled by the system when your child leaves the group, and also when they move sections. In this case you will receive an email with a link to setup a payment for the new section. If you have any questions or concerns – just talk to any leader – or contact me using our contact us page
More information What is OSM? - Have a look-see via these links: www.onlinescoutmanager.co.uk www.onlinescoutmanager.co.uk/features/payments.html Email is the key – we must have your preferred email address, one that you use regularly Changes to your email address (or any other contact details - mobile numbers etc) - Please let us know asap. Apart from OSM payments, we need to have up to date contact info - just in case... I don’t have an email address – Let Jeebi, Akela or Keego know Just wait – and respond to emails when they arrive (check your junk/spam mail just in case, 'whitelist' us!) Guidance notes – follow this link for step-by-step guidance and screen shots Questions – ask Jeebi, Akela or Keego. Or email Colin refer to our contact us page Camps and other activities - in the near future it is our intention to use the OSM facility for ALL camp/activity payments

© 2014 Hatfield Scout Group