Constitution, Byelaws & Rules…

Thanks to our friends at manchesterdiscgolf.com for the inspiration and example rules, that we’ve modified a little for our use. They are truely awesome, check them and go play in Manchester….

The Constitution of South Shields Disc Golf Club, or SSDG.

1.0 NAME

The Club shall be called South Shields Disc Golf (hereinafter referred to as the Club)

2.0 OBJECTIVES

2.1 The objectives of the Club shall be to promote health, wellness, happiness, and community development through the learning and enjoyment of disc sports, particularly Disc Golf, in Greater Manchester, the United Kingdom and the World. This shall be done by means of games, training sessions, tournaments, social events and other activities such as the Club shall determine will promote these objectives. The Club will seek to play an active supporting role in the creation, development and maintenance of Disc Golf courses in and around Greater Manchester.

2.2 The Club is committed to encouraging the highest ethical standards. All individuals involved in the Club should conduct themselves with integrity, transparency, accountability and in a fair and equitable manner.

3 MEMBERSHIP

3.1 The membership shall consist of individuals interested in supporting the aims of the Club.

3.2 Members shall pay membership fees as fixed at each Annual General Meeting. The Club in General Meeting may also require Members to contribute to the funds of the Club by way of a special levy, but in no case shall this levy be made due for any member before that member’s next renewal of annual membership. Non-payment of fees may be cause for removal from membership by the executive committee.

3.3 All members joining the Club shall be deemed to accept the terms of this Constitution and any bye-laws from time to time adopted by the Club, in particular without prejudice to the foregoing generality, the requirement to conduct themselves in accordance with the Club’s ethical framework and the bye-laws as to discipline set out therein.

3.4 Members shall be admitted by the Executive Committee or the club in general meeting. Any person seeking to join the Club shall inform a member of the Executive Committee of his or her desire to join, and shall be admitted according to the rules set forth by the Executive Committee. Membership is open to all and no application for membership will be refused on other than reasonable grounds. There will be no discrimination on grounds of race, occupation, sex, or religious, political or other opinion.

4 MANAGEMENT

4.1 The Club is a non-profit making organisation. All profits and surpluses will be used to maintain, improve or develop the Club’s facilities or equipment, or to carry out the objects of Club.

4.2 The affairs of the Club shall be conducted by an Executive Committee which shall consist of the Officers of the Club plus up to 6, but no fewer than 1 ordinary member(s), all of whom shall be elected annually at the Annual General Meeting, taking office on the conclusion of the meeting.

4.3 The Officers of the Club shall be the Chair, Treasurer and Secretary. If the post of any officer or ordinary committee member should fall vacant after such an election, the Executive Committee shall have the power to fill the vacancy until the succeeding Annual General Meeting. In the event of a temporary absence or inability to act in the role of an Officer, the Executive Committee shall have the power to appoint an acting Officer to that role pro tempore until the absence or inability is rectified.

4.4 All Executive Committee members must be members of the Club.

4.5 The said Executive Committee members shall also be the trustees ex officiis of the Club who shall hold any property belonging to the Club in their name and shall further be entitled to sue and be sued on behalf of the Club as trustees ex officiis. They shall all be entitled to personal indemnity out of the funds of the Club where they are acting bona fide in their capacity as Officers of the Club.

4.6 The Executive Committee shall have full power to deal with all matters relating to the Club not reserved to a General Meeting in terms of this constitution, including power to make public and enforce such bye-laws as the Committee feel necessary to govern the activities of the Club [including bye-laws relating to discipline].

4.7 The Executive Committee shall not enter the club into any arrangement or agreement requiring payment of any amount greater than the club’s assets minus liabilities without the explicit authorisation of a general meeting. The Executive Committee shall otherwise have full power to allocate or spend club assets and resources, and to enter into binding agreements in the name of the club so far as allowed by this constitution.

4.8 The duties of the Chairman shall be:

• To convene and chair general meetings and extraordinary general meetings.
• To convene and chair meetings of the Executive Committee and such other committees as shall be created to further the purposed of the Club, or to assign such duties to another.
• To act in a representative capacity on behalf of the Club when such capacity is vested in a single person.
• To lead the club in planning for the future, including establishing new programmes, events, and activities as appropriate.
• To act as executive on behalf of the Club in all matters not in the direct purview of the other Executive Officers, including assigning tasks to volunteer club members.
• To report to the Club at each General Meeting on the state of the Club and the activities of the Club since the last general meeting, and on the general outlook.

4.9 The duties of the Treasurer shall be:

• To maintain the accounts of the Club accurately and in good order.
• To report to the Club on the financial state of the Club at General Meetings and to present the Annual Accounts on such occasions.
• To act as authorisor of first instance of committee-approved payments for all club expenditures.

4.10 The duties of the Secretary shall be:

• To act as official record keeper and recorder for the Club.
• To maintain the membership roll.
• To lead on arranging social events relating to the Club.
• To maintain the communication tools of the Club, including, but not limited to, the Club’s social media presence and the Club’s website.
• To contact Club members on behalf of the Club to announce meetings, events, or other communication as needed.
• To report to the Club at General Meetings regarding the duties of the Secretary.

5 GENERAL MEETINGS

5.1 Annual General Meeting
The Club shall hold an Annual General Meeting within three months following the end of the financial year to:

• Approve the minutes of the previous year’s AGM.
• Receive reports from the Chairman and Secretary.
• Receive a report from the Treasurer and approve the Annual Accounts.
• Receive a report from those responsible for certifying the Club’s accounts for the following year.
• Elect the Executive Committee.
• Appoint someone to be responsible for certifying the Club’s accounts.
• Fix the membership subscription fee for the ensuing year, and consider any proposals for a special levy on members.
• Consider any proposals authorising the executive committee to act to make commitments greater than club assets minus liabilities (e.g. take out a loan)
• Consider changes to the Constitution.
• Review and consider any Bye-laws.
• Deal with other relevant business.

5.2 Extraordinary General Meeting
An Extraordinary General Meeting shall be called by an application in writing
to the Secretary supported by at least 10% of the members of the Club. The
Executive Committee shall also have the power to call an Extraordinary General Meeting by decision of a simple majority of its members.

5.3 Notices
At least 14 days’ notice and the Agenda shall be given to all voting members
of any General Meeting. No business shall be conducted unless fair notice
thereof is contained in the Agenda.

5.4 Voting
With the exception of changes to the Constitution, decisions put to a vote shall be resolved by simple majority at General Meetings.

The Executive Chair of the Club shall hold a deliberative as well as a casting vote at general and committee meetings, in each case at the time the meeting commences its business.

Only fair voting processes may be used. The chair may conduct votes by voice vote, show of hands, or by a simple request for objections, or may require a secret ballot or other more rigorous method at his or her discretion. No votes by proxy are allowed.

5.5 Quora
The quorum at General Meetings shall be 20% of the members and the quorum for Committee Meetings shall be 40% of the members. By decision of the Executive Committee, meeting participation may include remote and/or asynchronous participation via message board or other media, with votes, business, and information delivery structured to facilitate remote participation. The chair shall in all cases clearly communicate how meeting participation shall be carried out, and all decisions, no matter how taken, shall be recorded in official minutes by the secretary or another attending member.

5.6 Changes to the Constitution
Any change to the Constitution shall require a two thirds majority of those present, eligible to vote and voting at a General Meeting.

A proposal to change the Constitution must be submitted in writing to the Secretary who shall circulate the proposal to all members and allow seven days for submission of any amendments before calling a meeting in accordance with rule 5.3 above.

All proposals for changes to the Constitution shall be signed by two members eligible to vote at a General Meeting.

6 FINANCE AND ACCOUNTS

6.1 The financial year shall run from to 1st Jan to December 31st each year.

6.2 The Treasurer shall be responsible for the preparation of Annual Accounts of the Club.

6.3 The Accounts shall be certified by an appropriate independent person elected annually at the Annual General Meeting.

6.4 All payments drawn against the Club’s funds shall be authorised by at least one of the Chair, Secretary, or Treasurer.

7 DISSOLUTION

7.1 No profit or surplus will be distributed other than to another non-profit making body on a winding-up or dissolution of the Club.

7.2 If, upon the winding up or dissolution of the Club there remains after the satisfaction of all its debts and liabilities any property whatsoever, the same shall be transferred to some other organisation or organisations having objects similar to the objects of the Club, such organisation or organisations to be determined by the Executive Committee if possible, or by the officer responsible for carrying out the dissolution.

The Bye-laws of South Shields Disc Golf

Introduction

These Bye-laws are the record of decisions made by the Executive Committee in relation to rules of the Club. All prospective members shall have an opportunity to review and understand these bye-laws before committing to membership, and all members are deemed to accept these bye-laws at all times as a condition of membership. These bye-laws may be changed by the Executive Committee by a majority vote recorded in the minutes of a quorate meeting. These bye-laws are completely superseded in every case by the Constitution of the club.

Membership

Individuals wishing to be a member of the club may apply to any Executive Committee member. Applicants must:

Pay an annual membership fee of £1

Agree to be bound by the constitution and bye-laws of the club as a condition of membership.

Agree to support the Club and use club resources with the permission of and for the benefit of the Club.

Agree that the club may hold his or her name and contact details and may contact him or her on matters related to the Club or disc golf generally.

At the soonest convenience, the Executive Committee will vote to admit the prospective member or deny admission in accordance with the constitution. The committee will carry out this vote on Facebook or by other means as required if an appropriate meeting is not easily arranged. The Secretary of the Club will maintain an up-to-date and official membership roll.

The Executive Committee will remove members from the membership roll at its discretion and may do so if:

The Member has not paid the annual membership fee or any special levy after a reasonable period

The Member becomes uncontactable despite reasonable attempts to contact him or her

The Member is found to be not in compliance with the requirements of membership laid out by the Constitution or bye-laws

Rules of Play

Members of South Shields Disc Golf playing in South Shields Disc Golf events agree to be bound generally by the rules of play accepted by the British Disc Golf Association, with the following exceptions:

Informal and non-competitive play may be carried out without rigid adherence to the rules by agreement among those playing.

South Shields Disc Golf tournaments or special events may include special rules, adopted by the tournament director or event organiser. Members are bound to follow these special rules in this case.

Course-specific rules adopted by the committee supersede BDGA accepted rules in cases where there is any conflict.

In all cases, Members are bound to be fair, honest and good spirited in their play.

Discipline

In the unlikely event that any matter of discipline of club members arises, the Executive Committee will consider any disciplinary measures in a meeting, online or in person, which is open to club members. Members with a direct interest in the matter, including anyone accused, will be invited to speak on the matter to the committee. In the event that any member of the Executive Committee is a party to a conflict or accused of an offence, that member shall recuse him or herself from the vote. Matters of discipline will be decided by a simple majority vote of the Executive Committee.

Finance

The executive committee adopts these procedures in order to ensure club finances are used carefully and in the best interests of the Club, and to facilitate tracking and reporting of club expenditure.

Payments out of Club funds of amounts greater than £50 may only be made if authorised by the Executive Committee in a minuted vote in a quorate meeting. The Executive Committee may pre-authorise expected expenditure by allocating a budget amount to a member, to be spent according to whatever guidelines the committee establishes.

Payments of less than £50 may be made out of club funds by the Chair, Secretary, or Treasurer without the authorisation of the committee in the event that is not convenient to seek the authorisation of the committee before making the expenditure. Care should be taken to limit this type of expenditure to cases where authorisation may reasonably be assumed. The Officer making the expenditure is required to report the expenditure to the committee at the soonest convenience