CONTENTS
1. NAME
2. OBJECTIVES
3. HEADQUARTERS
4. AFFILIATIONS
5. MEMBERSHIP
6. OFFICERS
7. COMMITTEE
8. MANAGEMENT
9. GENERAL MEETINGS
10. NOTICES
11. NOMINATIONS
12. SUBSCRIPTIONS AND FEES
13. ACCOUNTS
14. GUESTS AND VISITORS
15. CONDUCT
16. ALTERATIONS TO THE CONSTITUTION
17. WINDING UP
1. NAME
The Club shall be called WANTAGE BRIDGE CLUB
The objectives of the Club shall be to provide facilities for its members to play Duplicate and other Contract Bridge and to encourage the playing of bridge in the Wantage / Grove area.
The headquarters of the Club, which are currently at the Comrades Club, Newbury Street, Wantage, shall be situated in the Wantage/Grove area.
The Club will be affiliated to the Oxfordshire Bridge Association and to the English Bridge Union.
Membership shall be open to all bridge players. It is customary within the Club for prospective members to play as visitors or guests until such time as they wish to apply for full membership. If during this period an existing member wishes to object to an application for membership they must notify the Secretary in writing. The Committee shall as soon as convenient consider the application for membership, taking into account any objections notified to the Secretary. In declining an application the Committee may give a reason but shall not be obliged to do so. 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 a period as it may decide. A member shall cease to be a member of the Club immediately if expelled from the Club (see section 15) or if their resignation in writing is delivered to the Secretary. A list of the names and contact details of current members should be kept by the Secretary.
The Officers of the Club shall be the Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer and Senior Director. No members of the Club shall simultaneously hold the office of more than one Officer of the Club. 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. 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.
The Committee of the Club shall consist of the Officers of the Club and not more than four other members of the Club, who shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting of the Club, and who shall retire annually at the ensuing Annual General Meeting, but shall be eligible for re-election. 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 an additional member, except that the total number of members of the Committee (including Officers) shall at no time exceed nine. Co-opted members shall be entitled to participate fully in the proceedings of the Committee. A quorum at meetings of the Committee shall be five members of the Committee, including at least two of the Officers. 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 who are not members of the Committee. Proceedings of the Committee and of any sub-committees shall be regulated in such manner as the Committee may from time to time decide. 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.
The affairs of the Club shall be managed by the Committee and the Committee shall have power to determine any issue in connection with the affairs of the Club which is not specifically provided for in this constitution. The Committee may from time to time formulate and publish any rules which it thinks expedient for the efficient and harmonious running of the Club. 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 retrospective in application.
An Annual General Meeting of the Club shall be held in each year no later than eight weeks after the end of the financial year which will run from April 1st to March 31st. 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. The Committee may convene a Special General Meeting of the Club on its own initiative at any time. All General Meetings of the Club shall be held at the headquarters of the Club unless circumstances arise which render this impracticable. The Chairman, if present, shall chair all General Meetings of the Club and in his absence the Vice-Chairman or some other member of the Committee shall chair the meeting. Notice of all General Meetings of the Club shall be posted on the notice board in the Club no later than two weeks prior to the date fixed for the meeting. 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. The Chairman of the meeting may permit discussion of other business at a General Meeting if they think fit. A quorum at General Meetings of the Club shall be not less than 25% of the current membership present in person. 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 same 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. 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.
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 to the address of each member given on the club address list; post will be used for those people who have not provided e-mail addresses. 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 by displaying a notice in a prominent position at the headquarters of the Club. 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 and announcing it during at least one prior club event.
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. Nominations must reach the Secretary no later than one week prior to the date fixed for the Annual General Meeting.
Each member of the Club shall pay an annual subscription, the basic amount which shall be decided at the Annual General Meeting of the Club. Subscriptions in respect of the following financial year shall be paid within four weeks of the Annual General Meeting. Unless the Committee decides otherwise, any member whose subscription remains unpaid at the end of this period shall pay table money at the rate applicable to visitors until his subscription has been paid in full. Each member of the Club and each guest and visitor shall pay table money on each occasion when they play at the Club, the basic amount which shall be decided at the Annual General Meeting of the Club. 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 reason.
The Treasurer shall arrange for accounts to be prepared in respect of the affairs of the Club for each financial year, which shall be audited by a competent person and presented to the Annual General Meeting of the Club for approval.
Any member may invite a guest to play at the Club at any time but if the playing facilities are inadequate to accommodate all those who wish to play, priority shall be given to members. Visitors are welcome to play at the Club at any time but if the playing facilities are inadequate to accommodate all those who wish to play, priority shall be given to members and guests of members. 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.
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 three members of the Club, it must) investigate the complaint. On investigating such a complaint the Committee shall give the member about whose conduct the complaint has been made an opportunity to be heard. If on investigating such a complaint the Committee is of the opinion that the member has behaved in an unacceptable manner or 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. The Committee shall forthwith notify the member of any decision made on the investigation of a complaint about their conduct and may if it thinks fit publicise the decision by displaying a notice at the headquarters of the Club. An appeal can be made to a General Meeting of the Club against any decision to reprimand, suspend or expel a member of the Club following an investigation of a complaint about their conduct. 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. 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. 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. Nothing in this constitution shall preclude the Committee from referring a matter of conduct to the Conduct Committee of the Oxfordshire Bridge Association, or to the Laws & Ethics Committee of the English Bridge Union if it considers it appropriate to do so.
No alterations shall be made to the constitution except at the General Meeting of the Club. In order for an alteration to have effect at least two-thirds of the votes cast must be in favour.
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. 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 below 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. The organisations referred to above are The English Bridge Union, The Oxfordshire Bridge Association, and any Registered or recognised charitable body.
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