Re-engage tea party groups have been running for over half a century and provide opportunities for socially isolated or lonely older people to get together with local volunteers within their community.
Although there’s absolutely no obligation or expectation to do so, some tea party groups raise money to go on trips, take part in special activities, or to buy treats for their older guests. It’s important that tea party groups with group funds have a plan in place to spend the funds, so the money is used for the purpose for which it was intended.
Tea party group funds are held centrally by Re-engage and can’t be spent on vouchers or drawn out as cash, but they can be spent on things that help older people who are lonely, isolated or in need of companionship.
Before you spend any of your own money it’s important to check your tea party group funds balance by emailing finance@reengage.org.uk or by calling 020 7240 0630 to make sure you have the funds available to claim back.
Once you’ve checked your group fund balance you can make purchases and submit your claim by filling in the group funds claim form on the Re-engage website Remember to include an itemised receipt and to only submit your claim once.
We never want you to go without, so if you’d like to use your tea party group funds to place a deposit for a special event, you can do this by asking the venue to send an invoice in the name of Re-engage LTD to finance@reengage.org.uk
Once you’ve made your claim, we’ll do our checks and then pay the money into your bank account. We make payments in the middle and at the end of each month, so you’ll never wait more than two weeks for reimbursement.
Please remember you can always ask another volunteer in your tea party group to make a purchase and to submit a claim, but before we can approve it, we’ll need to give you a quick call.
For tea party group coordinators who don’t have group funds, please remember there’s no obligation for you to raise money for your tea party group. But if you do choose to, before you get started, please read the tea party group funds FAQs which explain:
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How you can fundraise for your tea party group;
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Why you mustn’t apply to local trusts, foundations, or community foundations;
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How tea party group funds are managed by Re-engage;
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What types of items you can buy with tea party group funds;
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The time frame for spending tea party group funds;
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Why you mustn’t open a bank account to manage tea party group funds.
If a tea party group closes and has a group funds balance, we’ll distribute the money to other tea party groups in the area. If there aren’t other tea party groups in the area, we’ll add any group funds into the 'tea party discretionary funds'.
Tea party discretionary funds can be requested to cover tea party expenses in an emergency, for example if a host is unwell and the tea party needs to meet in a café, or to cover the cost of a taxi because a driver is unavailable. Discretionary funds are limited and will only be paid if you don’t already have tea party group funds, meaning you'd be unable to hold your tea party.
To ask a question, or to request access to tea party discretionary funds, please email finance@reengage.org.uk or call 020 7240 0630.
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