A practical, plain-English reference guide for third sector organisations using Xero for the first time, or looking to use it more confidently. Written from real experience working with community organisations, development trusts, and charities.
This is the guide to keep open while you work — not a manual to read once and forget.
What it covers — 14 sections:
- Welcome and how to use the guide
- Getting Started — initial setup, user roles, and organisation settings
- Network and Approvals — Xero-to-Xero connections and approval workflows
- Getting Around Xero — navigation, menus, and where to find things
- Home Dashboard — understanding what you’re looking at
- Tracking Categories — setting up and using fund tracking for restricted and unrestricted income
- Recording Income — sales, grants, and other receipts
- Invoicing — raising, sending, and managing invoices
- Bank Transactions — adding and managing bank feeds
- Bills and Receipts — recording supplier invoices and expenses
- Reconciling — matching transactions to your bank statement
- Reports — the reports that matter and how to read them
- Journals — when and how to use manual journal entries, including grant accruals and fund transfers
- VAT — charitable activities, blocked input tax, and partial exemption explained
Built specifically for the third sector:
- Restricted and unrestricted fund tracking
- Grant income, management fee recharges, and fund transfer journals
- VAT treatment for charitable and non-business activities
- Tips and common mistakes drawn from real client situations