CONSTITUTION OF THE SWAY BRIDGE CLUB

1. NAME
The Club shall be called Sway Bridge Club.

2. OBJECTS
The Club is an unincorporated association and its object is to provide facilities for its
members to play Duplicate Contract Bridge.

3. HEADQUARTERS The headquarters of the Club shall be situated at Sway Village Hall, Sway,
Hampshire, SO41 6BB.

4. MEMBERSHIP
4.1 Subject to 4.7 below membership shall be open to all persons over eighteen years of age
with a reasonable proficiency in Duplicate Bridge.
4.2 Any person wishing to become a member of the Club shall apply for membership by
completing and forwarding to the Membership Secretary such form as may be prescribed from time
to time by the Committee.
4.3 The Club may confer Honorary Life Membership on any member who has rendered special
service to the Club.
4.4 All members are deemed to have accepted the regulations of this Constitution and the rules
and codes of conduct adopted by the Club.
4.5 The Committee will keep a register of members which will include details of their names,
addresses and contact details.
4.6 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.
4.7 A member shall cease to be a member of the club immediately if expelled from the club
under the provisions of paragraph 14 or if his/her resignation in writing is delivered to the
Membership Secretary.
4.8 A member whose subscription has not been paid shall cease to be a member on the
expiration of the period of six months from the date on which the subscription was due for payment.
4.9 A former member of the Club who wishes to rejoin as a member will need to reapply.

5. OFFICERS
5.1 The Officers of the Club shall be the Chair, Deputy Chair, Secretary, Membership Secretary
and Treasurer.
5.2 No member of the Club shall simultaneously hold more than one Office of the Club.

5.3 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.
5.4 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.

6. COMMITTEE
6.1 The Committee of the Club shall consist of the Officers of the Club, together with four other
members of the Club who shall be elected at the Annual Meeting of the Club and shall retire
annually at the ensuing Annual General Meeting but shall be eligible for re-election.
6.2 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 ten. Co-opted members shall be entitled to participate fully in the
proceedings of the Committee.
6.3 A quorum at meetings of the Committee shall be three members of the Committee including
at least one of the Officers.
6.4 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.
6.5 Proceedings of the Committee and of any sub committees shall be regulated in such manner
as the Committee may from time to time decide.
6.6 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.

7. MANAGEMENT
7.1 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.
7.2 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).
7.3 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.
7.4 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.

8. GENERAL MEETING
8.1 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.
8.2 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.
8.3 A Special General Meeting of the Club may be convened by the Committee on its own
initiative at any time.
8.4 All General Meetings of the Club shall be held at the headquarters of the Club unless
circumstances arise which render this impracticable. General Meetings may be held by video
conferencing if circumstances require it.
8.5 The Chair, if present, shall chair all General Meetings of the Club and in his/her absence the
Deputy Chair or some other member of the Committee, approved by the majority of those present
at the meeting, shall chair the meeting.
8.6 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.
8.7 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 two weeks prior to
the date fixed for the meeting.
8.8 The Chair of the meeting may permit discussion of other business at a General Meeting if
he/she thinks fit.
8.9 A quorum at General Meetings of the Club shall be ten members present in person.
8.10 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.
8.11 Voting at General Meetings of the Club shall be by show of hands, and in the event of parity
of voting the chair of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote. Members may vote by proxy,
if they have informed the Secretary in advance by email or post.

9. NOTICES
9.1 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 email to the last address of each member notified to the Membership
Secretary.

9.2 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 by email to the
last address of each member notified to the Membership Secretary and by displaying a notice on the
Club website.
9.3 Notices of any other matters to be brought to the attention of members shall be made by
email and through the Club website.

10. NOMINATIONS
Nominations for the posts of Officers or Committee members shall be notified to the Secretary in
advance of the date of the AGM and no later than one week prior to the date fixed for the Annual
General Meeting.

11. SUBSCRIPTIONS AND FEES
11.1 Each member of the Club shall pay an annual subscription, the basic amount of which for the
time being shall be decided by the Committee of the Club. Subscriptions shall be payable within 3
months of the date of notification. Any member who has failed to pay after this deadline will be
required to pay table monies at the visitor rate.
11.2 Each member of the Club, and each guest and visitor, shall pay table money on each
occasion when he/she plays at the Club, the basic amounts of which for the time being shall be
decided at the Annual General Meeting of the Club.
11.3 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. ACCOUNTS
12.1 The Committee shall arrange for accounts to be prepared in respect of the financial affairs of
the Club for each year ending on 30 th November.
12.2 The accounts for each year shall be presented to the Annual General Meeting of the Club for
approval.
12.3 At the Annual General Meeting an auditor shall be appointed who will report to the
following year’s Annual General Meeting on whether the accounts show a true and fair view of the
Club’s affairs.

13. GUESTS AND VISITORS
13.1 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.

13.2 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.
13.3 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.
13.4 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.

14. MEMBERS’ BEHAVIOUR
14.1 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
Committee from time to time.
14.2 The Committee shall have the powers and the procedures for the enforcement of the
requirement in clause 14.1 and may expel a member from the Club if it considers that there has
been a serious breach of these requirements.

15. ALTERATIONS TO THE CONSTITUTION
15.1 No alterations shall be made to this constitution except at a General Meeting of the Club.
15.2 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.

16. WINDING UP
16.1 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.
16.2 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
charitable organisations as may be specified in the resolution initiating the winding up, and if no
such organisation is so specified, to such of those charitable organisations as the Committee may
think fit.

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