1. The name of the Club shall be Malvern Bridge Club.

2. The aims shall be to promote the playing of contract bridge and provide an opportunity for players in the Malvern area to meet and play the game.

3. The Club shall meet at least once a week but the Committee may cancel or postpone any individual meeting. 

4. Membership of the Club is open to all but the Committee reserves the right to refuse or terminate membership at its discretion.

5. The Club shall be affiliated to the English Bridge Union through the Worcestershire Contract Bridge Association.

6. The Club will have a website on which it will publicise matters about the Club, its events and results of its club competitions.

7. The Club affairs will be managed by a Committee (each member being elected or re-elected annually at the AGM) consisting of a Chairman, a Treasurer, a Secretary, (the Officers), and minimum of 3 other members.  No member of the Club shall simultaneously hold more than one office.  No ordinary member of the Committee shall serve for more than five consecutive years in that capacity, the Chairman for no more than three years and the other officers for no more than seven years.  No member shall serve on the Committee for more than ten years consecutively. The Committee may co-opt additional members at its discretion, but the maximum number of members of the Committee shall be restricted to 10.  

 

8. The Chairman of a meeting shall not vote except in the case of a tie, when he/she shall have the casting vote.  The quorum for the Committee shall be four members including two of the Officers. 

 

9. The affairs of the Club shall be managed by the Committee, and the Committee shall have the power to determine any issues arising in connection with the affairs of the Club except those specifically provided for in this Constitution.

 

10. Any decision made in a General Meeting shall be binding upon the Committee.

 

11. The aim of the Club is to be financially self-supporting and to this end the Committee shall propose a scale of charges for joining fees (if any), annual subscriptions and table money.   

 

12. The Chairman shall take the chair at Committee and General Meetings and be the Club spokesman.  In the absence of the Chairman, the Committee or General Meeting shall select one of their members to chair the meeting.

 

13. The Treasurer shall arrange the collection of subscriptions and table money and other sums due to the club;  pay such sums as are required in respect of: hire of premises and other routine expenditure, payments authorised by minutes of Committee meetings, payments authorised by the members at General Meetings and incidental payments such as postage and stationery; keep adequate records of assets, liabilities, income and expenditure of the Club; and prepare an annual statement for submission to the AGM, after due professional scrutiny.

 

14. The Secretary shall organise the keeping of a register of Members, prepare and issue agendas for and keep minutes of Committee and General Meetings.  He/she shall also be  responsible for liaising with the EBU and the County Association.

 

15. The commitee shall organise the Directors rota and be responsible for maintaining the level of directing in the Club.

 

16. Other Committee members shall assist the Chairman, Treasurer, and Secretary  in the smooth running of the Club.

 

17. In the event of a vacancy arising during the year for any Officer of the Club, the Committee shall choose one of their number to fill the vacancy until the ensuing Annual General Meeting. 

 

18. The Committee may from time to time appoint sub-committees, whose members may include Club members not on the Committee, to undertake such aspects of administration of the Club as it shall think fit. 

 

19. Proceedings of the Committee and of any sub-committees shall be regulated in such manner as the Committee may from time to time determine.  However, a member should withdraw whenever he/she has a conflict of interest.

 

20. The Committee shall make a report to each AGM concerning the affairs of the Club since the previous AGM.

 

21. There will be an Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Club which all members have the right to attend. The date of this AGM shall be within three months of the end of the Financial Year, shall be published in the Club Calendar and website and shall be publicised at Club meetings at least five weeks in advance.  Motions for the AGM must be submitted in writing to the Chairman or Secretary of the Committee at least three weeks before the AGM and shall be listed on the AGM agenda which shall be made available to members at club meetings at least two weeks before the AGM.

 

22. Nominations for the posts of Officers or Committee members shall be in writing,(email or text acceptable) shall be signed by a proposer, a seconder and the nominee (all of whom must be members of the Club), and must be received by the Chairman or Secretary a week before the date of the AGM.  If no nomination has been received for an Office or a vacancy would arise on the Committee, a later nomination can be accepted including at the AGM.

 

23. The quorum for an AGM or Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) shall be a 25% of the members. They will be held on a normal Club evening.   If 15 minutes after the time fixed for a General Meeting no quorum is present, the meeting shall be adjourned to a new date.  The notice for this meeting shall be at least three weeks, and publicised to members at each Club meeting prior to the revised General Meeting.

 

24. No additions or alterations to the Constitution shall be made except at an AGM or an EGM and then the proposed alterations can only be accepted with a majority of members present.

 

25. All motions shall be carried by a simple majority vote.  

 

26. Amendments to motions can be made at the AGM but no new motions can be submitted.

 

27. The Treasurer shall present the Club financial report for approval by the members.  All Officers and Committee members shall be elected at the AGM, their term of office to commence at the end of the AGM.  The AGM shall include ‘Any Other Business’ which will allow members to raise points of interest but may not lead to the proposal of any motions.

 

28. An EGM may be called by the Committee or by a submission in writing to the Committee by five or more members.  Members will be notified at least two weeks in advance of the EGM submission or agenda through publication on the Club website, at all Club meetings and on the Club notice board.  The business of the EGM will be confined to the subject matter of the submission or agenda.

 

29. The following matters shall be decided only by a majority at a General Meeting of the Club:

• Normal location(s) for Club bridge
• Membership fees and table money 

 

30. The Committee shall maintain Bye Laws which will be available to all members and posted on the Club web-site.  They will cover the following matters:

• Internal competition rules
• External competition selection
• Protest procedure
• Membership and table money
• Starting and playing times and conditions
• Conduct and disciplinary procedure.

31. The Club will have public liability insurance at levels recommended by the EBU.

 

32. All current members and new members will be provided with a copy of the constitution on request and must be published on the club website..

 

33. A resolution that the Club shall be wound-up requires a majority at a General Meeting of the Club and the support of at least 50% of all members entitled to vote.  The resolution must define the recipient of any surplus funds.

 

34. The Committee shall arrange for any winding-up of the Club.

 

35. Any surplus funds may only be transferred to the following organisations:

 

 

• Worcestershire Contract Bridge Association (or any successor body)
• a Registered Charity.

 

36. However, if the winding-up has been initiated with a view to amalgamating with another bridge club with similar aims as the Malvern Bridge Club the funds may be transferred to that club.

 

May 2021