CONSTITUTION OF THE LEWES BRIDGE CLUB

1.         NAME

The Club shall be called Lewes Bridge Club.

2.         OBJECTS

The object of the Club shall be to provide facilities for its members for playing Duplicate Contract

Bridge.

3.         PREMISES

The Club plays its sessions in the Lecture room of Lewes Town Hall. It rents the room from Lewes Town Council.

4.         AFFILIATIONS

The Club will be affiliated to the Sussex County Contract Bridge Association and to the English Bridge Union.

5.         MEMBERSHIP

5.1       Subject to 5.9, membership shall be open to anyone.

5.2       Any person wishing to become a member of the Club shall apply for membership by completing and forwarding to the Treasurer such form as may be prescribed from time to time by the Committee.

5.3.      All bridge players and those wishing to learn to play who are over the age of eighteen years will be entitled to apply for full membership of the Club.

5.4.    Players under the age of eighteen years will be entitled to apply for Youth membership. Youth members are not entitled to vote at general meetings of the Club and cannot be Officers of the Club.

5.5.    The Club may confer Honorary Life Membership on any member who has rendered special service to the Club.

5.6.      All members are deemed to have accepted the regulations of this constitution and the rules and codes of conduct adopted by the Club.

5.7.      The Committee will keep a register of members with their emergency contact details.

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.

5.9.      A member shall cease to be a member of the club immediately if expelled from the club under the provisions of clause 15, or if his/her resignation in writing is delivered to the Secretary. [or if such member is expelled (or not accepted) as a Player Member by the Board of the English Bridge Union pursuant to its Bye Laws].

5.10     A member whose subscription has not been paid shall cease to be a member on the expiration of the period of two months from the date on which the subscription was due for payment.

5.11   Members of the Club are (subject to the EBU Board’s right of refusal or expulsion pursuant to its Bye Laws) automatically enrolled as members of the English Bridge Union and shall abide by its Bye Laws.

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 more than one Office 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 choose one of their number 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 five 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 co­opt 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 ten.  Co-opted members shall be entitled to participate fully in the proceedings of the Committee.

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 sub­committees 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 sub­committees 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, 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 no later than four months after the end of the financial year.

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 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 premises of the Club 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, approved by a majority of those present at the Meeting shall chair the meeting.

9.6.      Notice of all General Meetings of the Club shall be given to all members of the Club no later than two weeks prior to the date fixed for the meeting.

9.7.      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 one week prior to the date fixed for the meeting.

9.8       The chairman of the meeting may permit discussion of other business at a General Meeting if the chairman thinks fit.

9.9.      A quorum at General Meetings of the Club shall be ten members present in person.

9.10.    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.

9.11.    Voting at General Meetings of the Club shall be by show of hands, and in the event of parity of voting the chairman of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote.

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 is likely to be discussed, shall be given to members by e mail, by placing on the website, by announcement at club sessions and by post if necessary.

10.2.    Notices of any Annual General Meeting at which in the opinion of the Committee no business of a non routine nature is likely to be discussed, may be given to members either by post or by e mail to the last address of each member notified to the Secretary, and by displaying a notice in a prominent position at the headquarters of the Club [14].

10.3.    Notices of any other matters to be brought to the attention of members shall be made by displaying a notice on the club website and 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 one week prior to the date fixed for the

Annual General 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. Subscriptions shall be due for payment within 2 months of the date of the AGM when subscriptions for the year following the AGM become due. Unless the Committee decides otherwise, any member whose subscription remains unpaid after the due date shall pay table money at the rate applicable to visitors until his subscription has been paid in full.

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.    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.

12.4     The Annual General Meeting may authorise the Committee to change the basic amounts of subscriptions and table money prior to the ensuing Annual General Meeting.

12.5     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 31^st December.

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.       MEMBERS’ BEHAVIOUR

15.1 Each member of the Club shall be required, whether at or away from the bridge table, to conform to the standards of fair play, courtesy and personal deportment prescribed by the Bye Laws and regulations for the time being of the EBU, including the fundamental principle set out in the EBU’s “Best Behaviour at Bridge”.

15.2 The Club shall have the powers and the procedures for the enforcement of the requirement in clause 15.1. They are set out in the Schedule of the Constitution, and shall stand as part of the Constitution and be subject to the same provisions of the Constitution for its amendment.

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 two­thirds of the votes cast on the resolution must be in favour.

17.       WINDING­UP

17.1.    In order for a resolution that the Club shall be wound up to have effect at least two­thirds 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:

English Bridge Education and Development, registered charity 1153543.

The Sussex County Contract Bridge Association.

Schedule of Disciplinary Procedures

1. Requirements of the Schedule

This Schedule is referred to under clause 15 of the Constitution of the Lewes Bridge Club (hereafter referred to as the Club) and its purpose is to encourage all members to achieve and maintain standards of the EBU’s Best Behavior at Bridge prescribes the powers and procedures for enforcement.

2. Disciplinary Panel

A Disciplinary Panel (hereafter referred to as the Panel) shall consist of three club members appointed annually by the Club Committee. The Panel shall hear charges of offences, determine whether those charges are proved and, if proved, determine the sanction to be imposed.

If, in a specific case, a panel member is not independent of the case in question, the other two members shall select an independent club member as a replacement for that case.

3. Receipt of allegation

Any person making a complaint against one or more members of the Club under the terms of clause 15 of the Constitution, must do so in writing, within one month of the alleged offence, to the Secretary or the Chair of the Club, who shall pass it to the Panel for consideration.

4. Informal procedure

The Panel may, at its absolute discretion, decide to handle the matter with a verbal caution to the defendant. If the caution is accepted, that will end the matter. In accordance with item 5. below, brief written record of the facts will be kept by the Panel in case the offence is repeated.

5. Formal Procedure

If the offending behaviour is repeated, or the verbal caution not accepted, or the Panel considers the offence to be serious, the Panel shall proceed to conduct a hearing of the case. Examples of serious offences are cheating, theft, fraud, physical violence, bullying, intentional material damage.

1. 1. Notice of meeting

The Defendant shall be notified of this decision, in writing, within two days. The notification will give two weeks’ notice of the hearing and will include:

• The date, time and location of the meeting
• The details of the allegation
• The defendant’s right to submit written comments to to the Panel at least two days before the meeting date
• The right of the defendant to be accompanied at the meeting by someone who may speak on his/her behalf

The panel shall also be entitled to make such further investigations and enquiries as it in its absolute discretion considers appropriate, including seeking advice both from within the Club and from the EBU Laws and Ethics Committee, and to obtain external legal advice.

1. 2. Complaint not justified

If the panel decides that the complaint is not justified, the defendant shall be notified in writing within two days and the matter ended.

1. 3. Complaint justified

If after the hearing the complaint is upheld, the Panel may, at its absolute discretion:

1. Give a written reprimand to the offending member(s),or
2. Suspend the offending member(s) from all or some of the competitions sponsored or licensed by the Club for such period as it shall determine, or
3. Expel the offending member(s) from the Club.

If the complaint is against a member of the Committee, in addition to any other sanctions applied, the Committee shall have the power to suspend such member from the Club’s Committee and any of its sub committees for such a period that it shall determine.

Any sanctions imposed by the Committee must be communicated to the offending member(s) in writing within two days of the hearing and include the defendant’s right to appeal and how to appeal.

Any Sanction imposed by the Committee shall take effect as soon as time for appeal has elapsed except that if the Defendant has filed Notice of Appeal within the time allowed the Sanction shall not take effect until such Appeal has been determined.

1. 4. Appeal

Every Defendant found guilty of an offence by the Club Committee has the right to appeal to the County Disciplinary Committee. Appeals must be in writing and lodged with the Secretary of the Association within twenty one days of the written communication of the Club Committee’s decision to the Defendant.

1. 5. Referral to the EBU Laws & Ethics Committee

At any time the County Disciplinary Committee may refer a complaint to the EBU Laws & Ethics Committee for its consideration. In doing so the County Disciplinary Committee shall have fully discharged its responsibilities under this Schedule.

15/06/2024