Restricted Fund Tracking
Every designated gift kept exactly where it was meant to go
When a donor gives to a specific purpose, they are trusting you to honour that intention. Vesperas makes sure those funds stay separate, correctly recorded, and always accounted for.
What this service gives you
Faithful stewardship made practical and visible
Funds that stay separate
Each designated gift recorded against the fund it belongs to — so there is never any doubt about which money is which.
Donor intentions upheld
A clear audit trail for every restricted gift, so you can show any donor — or any regulator — exactly how their contribution was used.
Confidence at oversight meetings
When your board, congregation, or a charity regulator asks about a specific fund, you have a complete, clear answer ready.
The challenge many communities face
Managing several funds at once is genuinely complicated
A community that accepts restricted gifts — for a building project, a pastoral fund, a youth programme, an overseas partnership — is taking on a real accounting responsibility. Each fund needs to be treated as separate. Money given for one purpose cannot simply be moved to cover another need, however pressing.
In practice, the lines can blur over time. A fund started for one project sits dormant after the project ends. Another fund receives gifts from several donors with slightly different wishes attached. The person who set up the original categories has moved on, and the current treasurer is working from a spreadsheet that was never quite finished.
None of this reflects badly on the community. It reflects the reality that restricted fund accounting has specific requirements, and managing it well alongside everything else a volunteer treasurer carries is a great deal to ask. Vesperas takes that particular task off your hands — carefully and completely.
How we approach it
Each fund tracked on its own terms, reported clearly
We begin by mapping the funds your community holds — what each one is for, what restrictions apply, and what the current balance is. If some of this is unclear from your existing records, we work through it patiently with your treasurer until the picture is complete.
From there, each new gift to a restricted fund is entered against that fund specifically. Expenditure drawn from a fund is recorded in the same way. At any point, you can see exactly what is held for each purpose and whether any fund has been over- or under-drawn.
We also keep a note of the conditions attached to each fund — so that if a question arises about whether a particular expense is permissible, you have something clear to refer to.
Fund mapping & setup
We establish a clear record of every fund — its purpose, its conditions, and its opening balance.
Ongoing receipts & payments
Every transaction posted to the correct fund, with the donor's intention noted where it matters.
Fund balance reports
A clear summary each period — what each fund holds, what has moved, and what remains available.
Conditions documentation
Notes kept alongside each fund so the restrictions are never forgotten or misapplied.
What working together looks like
A steady hand on the most sensitive part of your finances
Restricted funds require more care than general income — and they deserve more care. When we take on this work, we approach each fund with the same seriousness the donor brought to their gift.
You send us the information each period — bank entries, gift notifications, receipts for expenditure drawn from a fund. We process it and return a fund-by-fund summary that your treasurer and leadership can read without needing an accounting background.
If a transaction looks as though it might affect a fund in a way that needs discussion — an unusual expense, a donor query, a fund reaching its end — we will raise it with you before entering it. We would rather ask the right question than proceed on an assumption.
What a fund report includes
- Fund name and stated purpose
- Opening balance for the period
- Gifts received and their sources
- Expenditure drawn from the fund, itemised
- Closing balance available
- Any notes or conditions relevant to next period
Investment
A fixed monthly fee for complete fund accountability
Restricted Fund Tracking
$240 / month
One fixed monthly fee covers the full scope of fund tracking. What is included:
- Initial fund mapping and setup for all existing funds
- Recording of all receipts and expenditure by fund
- Monthly fund-by-fund balance report
- Documentation of fund conditions and restrictions
- Up to eight distinct restricted or designated funds
- Email support for fund-related questions from your treasurer
If your community manages more than eight funds, or if some funds have particularly complex conditions attached, we will discuss this during our first conversation and agree a fee that reflects the work involved. There are no surprises after we start.
How we work
A structured approach to a structured problem
Fund-level accounting
We treat each fund as a discrete ledger — income and expenditure tracked separately, never pooled with the general account unless explicitly agreed.
Condition-aware recording
The restrictions on each fund are noted and referred to every time a transaction is posted, so errors do not accumulate quietly.
Readable summaries
Reports are designed for your leadership table, not for an accountant's review. Plain column headings, honest totals, and a note of anything that needs attention.
What settled fund tracking gives your organization
Regulatory confidence
If your community is a registered charity, accurate restricted fund records are not optional. We keep you well within what is required.
Donor trust maintained
When a donor asks how their gift was used, you have a clear, honest answer — not a search through old spreadsheets.
Year-end simplicity
Fund balances at year-end are ready to drop into your annual accounts without reconstruction.
Leadership clarity
Decisions about new spending can be made with a clear picture of what is genuinely available in each fund.
Our commitment to you
We take restricted funds as seriously as your donors do
If a fund report we produce contains an error — a transaction posted to the wrong fund, a balance that does not reconcile — we correct it immediately and trace how the error arose so it does not happen again. We do not consider restricted fund work complete until it is accurate.
If after your first month the arrangement is not working as expected, we will have an honest conversation about it. Our preference is to resolve any difficulty together, but if you choose to move on, your records will be handed over in good order at no additional charge.
Errors corrected at no charge
Any mistake on our side is put right promptly, free of any additional fee.
Month-to-month arrangement
No lock-in. The service continues because it is working, not because you have no choice.
Orderly handover
If you ever move on, we produce a clean set of records your next bookkeeper can follow without difficulty.
Getting started
A straightforward beginning
Tell us about your funds
A brief note about how many restricted funds you manage, what they are broadly for, and where your current records are. That is all we need to start a conversation.
We review what you have
We look at your existing records together, establish what each fund holds, and agree the scope. If things are incomplete, we start from what exists and build from there.
Your funds are in good hands
Each period, you send us the transactions. We return a clear fund summary. Your leadership has the information it needs; your donors' intentions are honoured.
Ready when you are
Your donors gave with intention — let those intentions be properly kept
Send us a short message and we will reply within one working day. A brief conversation is all it takes to understand whether we are the right fit for your organization's fund management needs.
Get in touch with VesperasExplore other services
Many communities find that fund tracking works well alongside our other services.
Donation & Giving Bookkeeping
Careful recording of donations and regular giving, tracked so leaders and members can see how funds are used.
Annual Accounts & Member Reporting
Year-end accounts and clear reporting for members and any regulator, prepared in plain language for an open meeting.