MAY 2002
1. NAME
The Club shall be called The New Amersham Bridge Club.
2. OBJECTS
The object of the Club shall be to provide facilities for its members for playing Contract Bridge.
3. HEADQUARTERS
The headquarters of the Club shall be situated at The Polish Ex-Servicemen’s Club, Raans Road, Amersham, HP6 9LX. Or at such venue or venues as the Committee shall from time to time arrange within the Amersham area.
4. AFFILIATIONS
The Club will be affiliated to the Berks and Bucks Contract Bridge Association and to the English Bridge Union.
5. MEMBERSHIP
5.1. Membership shall be open to all bridge players.
5.2. Any person wishing to become a member of the Club shall apply for membership by completing and forwarding to the Secretary such form as may be prescribed from time to time by the Committee.
5.3. All applications for membership of the Club must be proposed and seconded by existing members of the Club unless the Committee decides otherwise.
5.4. All membership application forms received by the Secretary shall be displayed in a prominent place at the headquarters of the Club for a minimum period of two weeks.
5.5. Any member wishing to object to an application for membership should notify the Secretary in writing.
5.6. After the expiry of the period of two weeks mentioned above, the Committee shall as soon as convenient consider the application for membership, taking into account any objections notified to the Secretary, and shall promptly notify the applicant of the acceptance or otherwise of the application.
5.7. In declining an application the Committee may give a reason but shall not be obliged to do so.
5.8. In considering applications for membership the Committee shall have regard to the playing facilities available, and may from time to time decide that the Club shall be closed to new applications for membership for such period as it may decide.
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A former member of the Club who wishes to rejoin as a member may do so without the necessity for a further formal application for membership, unless the Committee decides otherwise.
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Until an applicant has fully paid their annual subscription as determined by the Committee they will not be deemed to be a member for the purposes of voting.
6. OFFICERS
6.1. The Officers of the Club shall be the Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer.
6.2. No member of the Club shall simultaneously hold the office of more than one Officer of the Club.
6.3. Each of the Officers of the Club shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting of the Club, and shall retire annually at the ensuing Annual General Meeting, but shall be eligible for re-election.
6.4. In the event of a vacancy arising during the year in the office of any Officer of the Club, the Committee shall have the power to co-opt another member to fill such vacancy until the ensuing Annual General Meeting.
7. COMMITTEE
7.1. The Committee of the Club shall consist of the Officers of the Club, together with two other members of the Club, who shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting of the Club, and shall retire annually at the ensuing Annual General Meeting, but shall be eligible for re-election.
7.2. The Committee may from time to time co-opt further members of the Club to serve on the Committee until the ensuing Annual General Meeting, whether to fill a vacancy arising, or as additional members, except that the total number of members of the Committee (including Officers) shall at no time exceed seven.
7.3. A quorum at meetings of the Committee shall be three members of the Committee, including at least one of the Officers.
7.4. The Committee may from time to time appoint sub-committees to undertake on its behalf such aspects of the administration of the Club as it shall think fit, and members of such sub-committees may include members of the Club who are not members of the Committee.
7.5. Proceedings of the Committee and of any sub-committees shall be regulated in such manner as the Committee may from time to time decide.
7.6. The Committee shall make a report to each Annual General Meeting of the Club concerning the affairs of the Club since the previous Annual General Meeting.
8. MANAGEMENT
8.1. The affairs of the Club shall be managed by the Committee, who shall have power to meet at any time without recourse to the members, and the Committee shall have power to determine any issue arising in connection with the affairs of the Club which is not specifically provided for in this Constitution.
8.2. The Committee may from time to time formulate and publish such rules as it thinks expedient for the efficient and harmonious running of the Club (but in the case of any conflict between such rules and this Constitution, the Constitution shall prevail).
8.3 Any issue of policy determined by the Committee or any rules published by the Committee may be varied by a resolution of members at a General Meeting of the Club, provided that such resolution is not in conflict with this Constitution and is not retrospective in application.
8.4 In the event of such variation being made, the policy or rules (as the case may be) shall not be further varied by the Committee in a manner inconsistent with the resolution.
9. GENERAL MEETINGS
9.1. An Annual General Meeting of the Club shall be held in each year on a date to be fixed by the Committee, but no later than four months after the end of the financial year. The Committee shall announce the date of the Annual General Meeting at least two months in advance by displaying it on the Club’s Notice Board.
9.2. A Special General Meeting of the Club shall be convened by the Committee if a request for such a meeting signed by at least ten members of the Club who are not members of the Committee is delivered to the Secretary, stating the reason for the meeting, and such meeting shall take place within one month of the receipt of such request.
9.3. A Special General Meeting of the Club may be convened by the Committee on its own initiative at any time.
9.4. All General Meetings of the Club shall be held at the headquarters of the Club on a normal Club Meeting Night unless circumstances arise which render this impracticable.
9.5. The Chairman, if present, shall chair all General Meetings of the Club, and in his absence some other member of the Committee shall chair the meeting.
9.6. Notice of all General Meetings of the Club shall be given to members of the Club no later than twenty-one days prior to the date fixed for the meeting.
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The Committee and/or any member may propose a motion to be discussed at a General Meeting provided that written notice of the proposed motion is delivered to the Secretary no later than twenty-eight days prior to the date fixed for the meeting. The Committee at its discretion may accept a minor variation to this notice period. However in no circumstances shall the notice period be less than twenty four days.
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Any proposed motion properly received must be included in the notice of the General Meeting to enable members to vote on it.
9.9. The chairman of the meeting may permit discussion of other business at a General Meeting if he thinks fit, but no vote can be taken on any motion arising from such discussions.
9.10. A quorum at General Meetings of the Club shall be ten members present in person.
9.11. If fifteen minutes after the time fixed for a General Meeting of the Club no quorum shall be present, the meeting shall be adjourned to a new date (of which the like notice shall be given to members as was required to be given for the meeting which has been adjourned), and in the case of a General Meeting which has been adjourned due to the lack of a quorum (but not of a meeting adjourned for any other reason) such number of members as are actually present at the adjourned meeting shall constitute a quorum.
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Voting in respect of General Meetings of the Club shall be either by postal ballot and/or by a show of hands and in the event of parity of voting the chairman of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote.
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Postal votes must be delivered to the Secretary no later than seven days prior to the date fixed for the meeting. The Committee at its discretion may accept a minor variation to this notice period. No member may cast a postal vote and subsequently vote by a show of hands.
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Postal voting forms as drawn up by the Committee shall be available from the Secretary twenty one days prior to the General Meeting
10. NOTICES
10.1. Notices of any Special General Meeting of the Club, and of an annual General Meeting at which in the opinion of the Committee any business of a non-routine nature has been proposed, shall be given to members by post to the last address of each member notified to the Secretary.
10.2. Notices of any Annual General Meeting at which in the opinion of the Committee no business of a non-routine nature has been proposed, may be given to members by displaying a notice in a prominent position at the headquarters of the Club.
10.3. Notices of any other matters to be brought to the attention of members shall be made by displaying a notice in a prominent position at the headquarters of the Club.
11. NOMINATIONS
11.1. Nominations for the posts of Officers or Committee members shall be in writing, and shall be signed by a proposer and a seconder, both of whom shall be members of the Club, and also by the person nominated.
11.2. Nominations must reach the Secretary no later than twenty three days prior to the date fixed for the Annual General Meeting and be included in the notice of the Meeting.
12. SUBSCRIPTIONS and FEES
12.1. Each member of the Club shall pay an annual subscription, the basic amount of which for the time being shall be decided at the Annual General Meeting of the Club.
12.2. Each member of the Club, and each guest and visitor shall pay table money on each occasion when he plays at the Club, the basic amounts of which for the time being shall be decided at the Annual General Meeting of the Club.
12.3. Each successful applicant for membership of the Club may be required to pay a joining fee, the amount (if any) of which for the time being shall be decided at the Annual General Meeting of the Club.
12.4. The Committee may determine variations on the basic amounts of subscriptions and table money for members, guests and visitors in different circumstances, and may waive subscriptions or table money in the event of hardship or for any other good cause.
12.5 The Annual General Meeting may authorise the Committee to increase the basic amounts of subscriptions and table money prior to the ensuing Annual General Meeting.
12.6 The Committee may determine from time to time the amount of fees to be charged for use of the premises or equipment of the Club, or for any other purpose for which it is of the opinion that fees ought to be charged.
13. ACCOUNTS
13.1. The Committee shall arrange for accounts to be prepared in respect of the financial affairs of the Club for each year ending on 31st of March.
13.2. The accounts for each year shall be presented to the annual General Meeting of the Club for approval.
14. GUESTS and VISITORS
14.1. Any member may invite a guest to play at the club at any time, but in the event of the playing facilities being inadequate to accommodate all those who wish to play, priority shall be given to members.
14.2. Visitors may be permitted to play at the Club at any time, but in the event of the playing facilities being inadequate to accommodate all those who wish to play, priority shall be given to members and the guests of members.
14.3. The Committee may from time to time place a limit on the number of occasions on which a non-member (whether a guest or a visitor) may play at the club without being required to apply for membership.
14.4. If such a limit is for the time being in force, a non-member who has applied for membership shall (subject to available playing facilities) be permitted to play at the Club until his application for membership has been considered by the Committee, even if the limit imposed by the Committee is thereby exceeded.
15. CONDUCT
15.1. In the event of a complaint being made to the Committee about the conduct of a member of the Club the Committee may (and if a written complaint is received signed by at least five members of the Club, it shall) investigate the complaint.
15.2. On investigating such a complaint the Committee shall give the member about whose conduct the complaint has been made an opportunity to be heard.
15.3. If on investigating such a complaint the Committee is of the opinion that the member has behaved in such a manner as to cause injury to the interests of the Club, then the Committee may reprimand the member, suspend the member from the privileges of membership for such period as it may think fit, or expel the member from the Club.
15.4. The Committee shall forthwith notify the member of any decision made on the investigation of a complaint about his conduct, and may if it thinks fit publicise the decision by displaying a notice at the headquarters of the Club.
15.5. An appeal shall lie to a General Meeting of the Club against any decision to reprimand, suspend or expel a member of the Club following the investigation of a complaint about his conduct.
15.6. Notice of such an appeal must be in writing, and delivered to the Secretary within two weeks of the notification to the member of the decision of the Committee.
15.7. In the event of an appeal being made against it, the decision of the Committee shall not be put into effect until the appeal has been determined.
15.8 On the appeal being heard by a General Meeting of the Club, the General Meeting shall have power to overrule the conclusion of the Committee, or to uphold it, in which event the sanction imposed by the Committee may be confirmed or varied (to any sanction which the Committee was empowered to impose, or to none).
15.9 Nothing in this Constitution shall preclude the Committee from referring a matter of conduct to the Conduct Committee of the Berks and Bucks Contract Bridge Association, or to the Laws & Ethics Committee of the English Bridge Union if it considers it appropriate to do so.
16. ALTERATIONS TO THE CONSTITUTION
16.1. No alterations shall be made to this constitution except at a General Meeting of the Club.
16.2. In order for a resolution to alter this constitution to have effect at least two-thirds of the votes cast on the resolution must be in favour.
17. WINDING-UP
17.1. In order for a resolution that the Club shall be wound up to have effect at least two-thirds of the votes cast on the resolution must be in favour, and in addition the number of votes cast in favour of the resolution must exceed one-half of the number of members of the Club entitled to attend and vote at the General Meeting at which the resolution is put.
17.2. If a resolution that the Club shall be wound up is effectively passed, the Committee shall be responsible for winding up the affairs of the Club, and unless the winding up has been initiated with a view to amalgamating the Club with some other club (in which case any surplus assets and funds may be transferred to such other club), any surplus assets and funds shall be transferred to such of the organisations mentioned in clause 17.3 as may be specified in the resolution initiating the winding up, and if no such organisation is so specified, to such of those organisations as the Committee may think fit.
17.3 The organisations referred to in clause 17.2 are The English Bridge Union, The Berks and Bucks Contract Bridge Association; and any Registered or recognised charitable body.
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