Club Rules & Constitution – GWRSA EXETER WEST

GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY STAFF ASSOCIATION – EXETER WEST BRANCH

(also known as the GWRSA Exeter West)

Rule Book and Constitution

NAME

GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY STAFF ASSOCIATION – EXETER WEST BRANCH also known as the GWRSA Exeter West

INTERPRETATION

In the following rules:

The Committee – means the Management Committee of the GWRSA Exeter West club appointed under the rules following.
Committee Officers – shall be a Chairperson, Secretary and Treasurer.
Member – means member of the GWRSA Exeter West club as defined in paragraph 4 of this document.
General Meetings – refer to Annual General Meetings (see 12.3).
Extraordinary General Meetings – (see 12.4).
Words of any gender used in this document shall be held and construed to include any other gender, and words in the singular number shall be held to include the plural, unless the context otherwise requires.

OBJECTS
1. The objects of the Club shall be to:
  1. Provide social, recreational, sporting and cultural activities for Members;
  2. Develop items of common interest for Members;
  3. Do all such things as shall be conducive to the attainment of the above objects.

MEMBERSHIP
1. Membership shall be open to any person.
2. New or prospective members:
  1. Any person who wishes to become a Member must submit an application (using the appropriate form provided) to the Club, acceptance of which shall be at the discretion of the committee and, if so accepted, such person shall become a member of the Club.
  2. Persons may join the club providing that they are proposed and seconded by a member of at least 6 months standing.
  3. Applications for new memberships may be put to the Committee at any time, but will not be reviewed by the Committee until the next monthly committee meeting.
  4. The Committee shall have the right to approve or reject any application for membership.
  5. New members joining the club on and up 30th June will be subject to the full annual subscription fee. New members joining the club after 30th June will be subject to half of the annual subscription fee.
3. Existing members:
  1. Membership renewals will be open to existing members from January 1st to January 31st. During this time, members from the previous year will have the opportunity to collect their new membership card, relinquish their expired membership card, and pay the annual subscription.
  2. Existing members that do not renew their memberships or pay the annual subscription on or before January 31st will be automatically excluded from the club, without any exceptions. After January 31st, any previous members who have allowed their membership to lapse in this way, but wish to remain members, must reapply to the Committee as ‘new’ members (see rule 4.2.)
4. Honorary Life membership will be awarded at the discretion of the Committee. The Committee will also revoke a Life Membership if they consider it to be in the best interests of the Club.
5. Each Member, as a condition of membership, shall be bound by this constitution.
6. Membership and contributions:
  1. Memberships are valid from 1st January to 31st December.
  2. The annual subscription fee shall be determined by members present at the Annual General Meeting.
  3. Any motion to amend the annual subscription fee for the year or years following should be tabled and agreed (by way of vote) by members present at the Annual General Meeting.
  4. The annual subscription fee shall be paid annually (in January) or on joining of the Club.
7. All sports personnel must be a paid up member of the club.
8. The Committee will refuse admission to anyone whose standard of dress or behaviour is not acceptable.
9. No persons under the age of 18 may purchase alcohol.
10. No persons under the age of 18 may play gaming machines, or use lottery ticket dispensers.
11. Dogs must be strictly controlled at all times, must not be allowed on any of the furniture, and must be removed without question if requested by a committee member or a member of staff.
12. Members may book private functions in the Main Hall or Skittle Alley. Please first enquire at the bar for availability, then forward a written request (addressed to the committee) for approval. You will then be contacted by a member of the committee with the committee’s decision.
13. The committee reserve the right to amend these byelaws at any given time.
14. On joining, each member will be told where a copy of the Club’s Constitution and Rules can be viewed.
15. All members must comply with all rules.
16. Any member who has an objection must put a formal letter to the committee stating the objection.

USE OF PREMISES
1. It shall be permissible for the committee to organise in the premises, events to which the general public may be admitted, provided always such arrangements do not unduly interfere with the normal use of the premises by members or any current license laws.
2. The committee shall have the power to suspend the right of entry for certain club functions on giving seven days notice.
3. The committee shall be able to organise, on no more than 2 occasions per year, ‘ticket only’ events where entry to the club will be restricted to ticket holders ONLY.
  1. ‘Ticket only’ events will be clearly advertised to members in advance.
  2. ‘Ticket only’ events will be organised so that, where possible, disruption to the Club’s normal activities is kept to a minimum.
  3. Tickets will be available to purchase by members, and the general public.

GUESTS AND VISITORS
1. Visitors shall pay to the club on demand the contribution demanded by the club.
2. The Club may require the guest of a member or the guest of a visitor to pay a contribution and sign his or her name in the book provided.
3. Members may bring guests to the club if the guests are signed in. No more than 2 guests per Member or Visitor can be signed in simultaneously.
4. A member is responsible for the behaviour of their guest at all times.
5. The same visitor or members guest may not sign or be signed in to the club on more than TWO occasions in ONE calendar month. Any staff or committee members present on duty at any given time have the right to refuse entry to the club to any visitor or members guest who they believe has met these constraints without applying to the committee for membership.
6. Guests that have been signed in to the Club by a member or visitor must vacate the premises at the same time as the Member or Visitor that is responsible for them.
7. Members of visiting sports teams shall be permitted, as visitors, to use the premises and to purchase intoxicating liquor for consumption on the premises for themselves and their guests.
8. Any visitor affiliated to the National Association of Recreational Clubs (NARC) will be permitted entry and use of facilities.

RESIGNATION
1. A Member shall cease to be a Member by giving written notice of his resignation to the committee. No part of the subscription fee will be refunded.
2. A Member whose subscription (if any) is in arrears shall be deemed to have resigned. All efforts will be made by the secretary to contact the member to determine the intent of the member.

SUSPENSION AND EXPULSION
1. The club will have a duty officer that will have the power to refuse a member service at the bar. The duty officer will then write a report to the committee about the incident and any action that needs to be taken can be discussed at the next committee meeting. The duty officer could be a committee officer, a committee member, or a keyholder member of staff. A Member can be temporarily suspended but seven days written notice must be given to him to attend a meeting of the Club Committee, to be held as soon as possible and in any event within 28 days and written details of the complaint made against him. The Member shall be given an opportunity to appear before the Club Committee to answer the alleged complaints and not be further suspended unless a majority of the Club Committee then present a vote in favour of his suspension.

The enquiry shall take the following form:

He should be summoned in writing to attend before the committee at least seven clear days notice being given – the date and time of the meeting being stated in the letter of summons.
The charge on which the member is summoned should be fully stated in the letter.
He should be told that he would be given an opportunity to be heard in his own defence and allowed to call witnesses if he so desires.

As the case may be, and in the event of equality of votes the chairman shall have a casting or additional vote.
If a majority of the committee present when the matter is enquired into are of the opinion that the member is guilty of such conduct as aforesaid and that the member has failed to justify or explain his conduct satisfactorily the committee may warn him as to his future conduct, suspend him for such period as they think fit.
The Committee will notify the Member of its decision not later than two weeks from the date of the hearing and the decision of the Committee will be final and binding. Any appeal in accordance with this paragraph shall not operate to suspend any disciplinary action taken against the Member (including expulsion or suspension) but in the event that the appeal is successful the disciplinary action will be withdrawn. s.
During the period of suspension a member may be prohibited from using the facilities or attending all club events organised by the Club or any privately organised events held within the club.

GRIEVANCE
1. If a Member has a grievance relating to any action taken or proposed by the Club Committee he may, for the purpose of seeking redress, apply in writing provided he has sought clarification from the Club Committee before doing so. The decision of the Committee will be final and binding.

MANAGEMENT
1. The club shall be managed by a committee of members consisting of Chairman, Treasurer, Secretary and not less than six and not more than twelve other members who shall be elected, or declared elected at the Annual General Meeting of the club
2. Any voting member seeking election to the Committee will submit his name, with that of a seconder, to the Secretary, no later than two weeks before the A.G.M.
3. Only fully paid up members, for the year prior to the A.G.M., and with at least 12 months membership will be eligible to stand for election to the committee. In the case of insufficient members on the committee, then any club member may be co-opted onto the committee until the next AGM. When a member resigns from the committee and having given the correct notification either in writing or in a verbal manner acceptable to senior officers of the club’s management committee, the afore-mentioned member cannot resume their position on the committee, whether elected or otherwise for a period of not less than 2 years from the date of resignation.
4. In the event of insufficient advance nominations for Committee being received, or none at all for the post of Chairperson, nominations will be taken at the A.G.M. and elections proceed accordingly.
5. The Chairman, Treasurer and Secretary must be a serving member with at least one year’s membership. All officers and committee members shall serve for a minimum of 2 years.
6. One third of the officers shall retire from office each year, but shall be eligible for re-election. The committee may fill any casual vacancy occurring in the committee.
7. The committee may regulate their meetings for the dispatch of business as they see fit, but the intervals between the committee meetings shall not be more than one calendar month.
8. The duties of the Chairman will be:
  1. to chair the Committee for Annual and Extraordinary General Meetings;
  2. to prepare Agendas for Committee and General meetings in conjunction with the Secretary;
  3. to promote the interests of the Club through association with other agencies.
9. The Secretary’s duties will be:-
  1. to keep a full list of members’ names, and contact details.
  2. to minute Committee and General meetings;
  3. to deal with outgoing and incoming Club correspondence
  4. to notify Committee members of proposed meetings;
  5. to give sufficient notice of every meeting, specifying the business to be considered shall be notified to each member of the committee by the secretary.
  6. to be responsible for the club’s license and liaising with the brewery
  7. to be responsible for the hiring and dismissal of all staff at The Club, either full or part-time employment contract, and he shall further report to the Chairman and Treasurer on any appointment or dismissal of any staff member on a full or part time basis, if required to seek clarification with the said Chairman and Treasurer for such an appointment or dismissal being made.
10. The Treasurer’s duties will be:-
  1. to ensure that full financial records are kept of the Club’s outgoing and incoming funds;
  2. to ensure, in conjunction with the Committee, that the Club’s financial outgoings meet with legal requirements;
  3. to ensure that the Club’s books are available for audit on the correct date;
  4. to advise the Committee on matters of finance, level of funds, fund raising activities and investments;
  5. to present an oral report to the Committee at each meeting and a written report to the Committee on request or in any case, annually, to be circulated at or before the A.G.M.
11. The quorum necessary for the transaction of the business to be considered shall be decided by the committee at their first meeting following the Annual General Meeting.
12. Questions arising at any meeting of the committee shall be decided by a majority of votes and in the case of equality of votes the Chairman shall have a casting vote.
13. The committee shall be empowered to provide facilities for social and recreational purposes and to form sections within the club as may be best calculated to promote the aims and objectives of the club.
14. Each section forming part of the club may be governed by its own officers and committee within such limits as will ensure compliance with the requirements of the club.
15. All club teams can choose their team names but the team name must be approved by the committee
16. The Committee shall be responsible for the management of the Club and shall have powers to enter into contracts for the purposes of the Club on behalf of all the Members of the Club.
17. Any decision made by the Committee shall be binding on all Members.
18. The committee shall insure and keep insured the contents of all premises occupied by them against fire, theft, burglary and claims by third parties up to the full replacement value of such contents including public liability insurance. The committee shall insure and keep insured the premises to their full replacement value in respect of loss or damage by fire, flood, tempest, aircraft and explosion.
19. Honorariums paid to Officers of The Club shall be paid twice yearly, in June and December of the financial year. Amounts paid to each officer to be shown in the annual accounts.

SUB COMMITTEES
1. The Committee may from time to time appoint from its number such subcommittees as it may consider necessary and may delegate to them much of the powers and duties of the Committee that they may determine – however, all sub-committees recommendations must be put to the full committee for approval.

GENERAL MEETINGS
1. The Annual General Meeting of the club shall be held each year during the month of May.
2. Any other meeting shall be called an Extraordinary General Meeting.
3. An Annual General Meeting of the club shall be held at least once in every year, and fifteen months must not elapse without a General Meeting.
4. An Extraordinary General Meeting may be convened by the committee whenever they think fit and must be convened by a committee within twenty one days of the receipt of a notice in writing, stating the objects of the meeting, signed by thirty members or not less than one-fifth of the total number of members whichever is the lesser figure. The signatories must attend the AGM.
5. Notice of general meetings
  1. Not less than 21 days notice shall be given of Annual General Meetings specifying the place, the day and hour of the meeting and the general nature of the business.
  2. Resolutions must carry the name of a proposer and seconder and must be submitted to the Secretary no later than seven days prior to the A.G.M.
6. Proceedings at Annual General Meeting
  1. No business shall be transacted at any General Meeting unless a quorum is present at the time when the meeting proceeds to do business; the quorum necessary for the transaction of the business shall be decided by the members at each Annual General Meeting.
  2. If within half an hour from the time appointed for a General Meeting a quorum be not present, the meeting, if convened by or upon requisition of members, shall be dissolved, in any other case, it shall stand adjourned to such time as the Chairman shall appoint.
  3. The Chairman may, with the consent of any General Meeting at which a quorum is present, adjourn the meeting, but no business shall be transacted at any adjourned meeting other than the business left unfinished at which the adjournment took place.
  4. The Chairman shall open discussion on tabled resolutions by calling upon the proposed.
  5. If any member has indicated before the meeting that he wishes to oppose the resolution, that member may be called upon to make the initial opposing speech.
  6. After the opening speeches, the resolution is open for general debate.
  7. At any General Meeting, a motion put to the vote shall be decided on a show of hands unless a ballot of the members present (before or on the declaration of the result of the show of hands) is demanded. In the case of equality of votes the motion will be lost.
  8. No employed members of staff, part time or permanent, shall be entitled to vote or nominate as Club members.
  9. At the conclusion of general debate of a resolution, the proposer or his nominee shall have the right to sum up, without introducing new matter to the debate.
7. Standing Orders
  1. The Chairman shall have the power to rule on any matter set out in these standing orders, or on other points of order of procedure. This ruling may not be questioned, except as provided for in these standing orders
  2. The Chairman may not propose or second a resolution, or nomination.
  3. Business shall follow the order of the agenda and no business which is not on the agenda shall be considered, except for procedural motions
  4. No amendments to a resolution may be introduced during the meeting
  5. Only persons eligible to vote shall be entitled to speak, unless specifically invited to do so by the Chairman.
  6. Speakers shall always address themselves to the chair.
  7. Any member desiring to speak shall indicate this to the Chairman, who shall normally call upon the person he/she first observed.
  8. A member shall remain quiet if instructed to do so by the Chairman. If the person disregards this ruling, the Chairman may instruct him/her to leave the meeting.
  9. Speeches are only permitted if they are relevant to the current business, or to a point of order or information.
  10. In the event of a dispute arising as to the relevance of any speech the Chairman’s decision is final, as set out in these standing orders.
8. Records of proceedings
  1. Records of the business transacted by the committee at General Meetings shall be kept in books provided for the purpose.
  2. The records shall give a true account of the proceedings at each meeting and shall be submitted at the next respective meeting for approval and, if approved be signed by the Chairman of the meeting approving the minutes.

AUDITORS AND STOCKTAKERS
1. At each Annual General Meeting, Auditors shall be appointed to hold office until the next Annual General Meeting.
2. The Auditors shall be professional accountants.
3. At the end of the year, The Auditors shall report to the committee the completion of their audit and bring to notice any matters, which, in their opinion, require attention.
4. If the club has registered premises, it shall appoint a stock taker or recognised company of stock takers. Stock Takers reports for the year shall be made available to The Auditors in order that any recommendations or comments by the stock taker may be included in the Auditor’s report.

ACCOUNTS, AUDIT AND FINANCES
1. The club’s financial year shall commence on 1st January and end on 31st December each year.
2. The committee shall make satisfactory arrangements for the keeping of proper books of account and shall publish, and submit at each Annual General Meeting, an Income and Expenditure Account for the year ended on the previous 31st March, together with a statement of Assets and Liabilities at that date.
3. The Chairman, Treasurer and Secretary shall sign the Income and Expenditure Account and the Statement of Assets and Liabilities on behalf of the club and the Auditors certificate shall be attached thereto.
4. A copy of the Income and Expenditure Account and Statement of Assets and Liabilities shall be made available for inspection by the members for a period of not less than seven days prior to the Annual General Meeting.
5. All monies received shall in the first instance be deposited in an authorised Club account at a bank.
6. Cheques drawn on behalf of the club shall be signed by any two of three persons appointed by the committee to act on that behalf. Under no circumstances shall any of these signatories sign cheques whereby they themselves benefit from this action. They shall request permission from a quorum of the committee when such a circumstance occurs.
7. Payment in cash: No money shall be paid out without a receipt that, in the treasurer’s opinion, is in an acceptable format. This can be a handwritten note detailing who paid, when, how much and what for; a till receipt; or a formal letter detailing the amount paid on headed notepaper.
8. Any bank transfers made online should be signed off with an authority stamp by any two of the three persons appointed by the committee to act on that behalf.

BORROWING
1. The Committee may, at its discretion, borrow money on behalf of the Club for the purposes of the Club from time to time, for the general upkeep of the Club or with the sanction of an Extraordinary General Meeting or Annual Meeting for any other expenditure, additions or improvements.
2. When so borrowing the Committee shall have the power to raise a sum of money not exceeding £5000.00 without going to members.
3. The Committee shall have no power to pledge the personal liability of any Member for the repayment of any sums so borrowed.

DONATIONS
1. Donation of funds or goods must be, at the discretion of the committee, used for the benefit of the club and not for the benefit of any individual.

DISSOLUTION
1. A resolution to dissolve the Club shall only be proposed at an Extraordinary General Meeting and shall be carried by a majority of at least two-thirds of the Members. The dissolution shall take effect from the date of the resolution and the Members of the Committee shall be responsible for the winding-up of the assets and liabilities of the Club.
2. Before a vote for or against dissolution is taken, the meeting shall determine how the assets of the Club shall be disposed of in event of the motion to dissolve being carried.
3. The dissolution clause unless otherwise amended shall be as follows:
  1. That in the event of the Club finishing with assets and any accumulated funds, that this money will be divided between all members remaining who have fully paid their annual subscription.

ALTERATIONS TO RULES
1. No alteration or addition to these rules shall be put forward by the committee unless passed by a majority of not less than two-thirds of the members present and entitled to vote at any General Meeting.