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1. NAME AND DEFINITION
The organisation is part
of the Ramblers’ Association (a registered charity number
1093577 and a company limited by guarantee registered in England
& Wales number 4458492), being a Local Group as defined in Clause
6.1 of the Association’s Articles of Association. The name
of the organisation shall be “The Ramblers’ Association,
Mendip. Group”, and it shall be within the Association’s
Somerset Area. The above bodies are hereafter referred to as “the
Association”, “the Group”, and “the Area”.
2. OBJECTS
The objects of the Group
are to further within its territory (see succeeding clause) the
objects of the Association in such ways as the Area governing body
may from time to time decide and subject to the overriding control
of the Board of Trustees.
3. TERRITORY
The Group shall function
in the Mendip District Council area or such other territory as may
be agreed with the governing body of the Area from time to time.
4. MEMBERSHIP
Membership of the Group shall
consist of all such individual members of the Area as are allocated
to the group by the Board of Trustees in accordance with the RA’s
Memorandum and Articles of Association and standing orders.
Previous wording: Membership
shall be open only to members of the Association who signify their
desire to be enrolled.
Previous section 5 deleted, it stated:
SUBSCRIPTIONS
– The Group may with the consent of the Governing Body of
Somerset Area levy an additional subscription upon those of its
members who participate in its rambling or social activities.
5. RELATIONS WITH THE AREA AND THE ASSOCIATION
The Group shall act in agreement
with the Area Council and the Board of Trustees of the Association,
as laid down in Clause 6 of the RA’s Articles of Association.
Clause 6 of the RA’s Articles of
Association given at end of this Draft Constitution.
6. MANAGEMENT
I. Subject to the directions
of any Group Annual or Special General Meeting as to the exercise
of its powers, the management and control of the Group shall be
vested in a Committee which shall consist of the Honorary Officers
and as many members of the Group as the Annual Meeting shall from
time to time decide, subject to a minimum overall membership of
three (was 4). All members shall retire annually, but shall be eligible
for re-election.
II. The Committee shall
decide when and where it shall meet.
III. Four members shall form a quorum.
IV. The Committee shall have power to co-opt up to two additional
members.
V. The Committee shall have
power to fill casual vacancies.
VI.
The Committee shall receive regular reports from any sub-committee
established under Clause 8.
VII. The
Committee shall report regularly to the Area Council.
VIII. A special meeting of the Committee shall be called by the
Secretary as soon as may be on the request of the Chairman or of
not less than four members of the Committee.
7. OFFICERS
I. The Honorary Officers
of the Group shall be a Chairman, a Treasurer, a Secretary and such
other officers as the Group in General Meeting may determine, to
be elected at the Annual Meeting.
II. They shall retire at
the Annual Meeting following their election, but shall be eligible
for re-election.
III. The Committee
shall have power to fill vacancies.
8. SUB-COMMITTEES
The Committee shall have
power to appoint sub-committees and to determine their powers and
terms of reference.
9. RESIGNATION OR RETIREMENT
Any member of a Committee
shall vacate his/her office if:
I. he/she gives notice of
his intention to resign and his/her resignation is accepted.
II. he/she fails to attend three consecutive meetings of the Committee
as may be convened unless the failure to attend was due to some
reason approved by the Committee.
10. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
In the first quarter of each
financial year the Committee shall convene an Annual General Meeting
of the Group, of which not less than fourteen days' notice shall
be given in writing to each member of the Group, and which all members
of the Group shall be entitled to attend, to:
I. Consider the Annual Report of the
Committee.
II. Consider the Group income and expenditure accounts for the preceding
Association financial year, a balance sheet showing the assets and
liabilities at the end of that year and the independent examiner's
certificate.
III. Appoint the Honorary Officers.
IV. Elect the Committee.
V. Appoint representatives to the governing body of the Area.
VI. Appoint an independent examiner or examiners.
VII. Discuss and consider motions, notice of which shall have been
given in writing to the Secretary.
VIII. Vote on any proposals to amend this constitution in accordance
with clause 14 hereof.
11. SPECIAL GENERAL MEETING OF THE GROUP
The Chairman or the Secretary
may at any time, and shall within 21 days of receiving a request
to do so, signed by not less than one twentieth of the members of
the Group with a minimum of ten members, and giving reasons for
the request, call a Special General Meeting, of which fourteen days'
notice shall be given. The notice of the meeting shall contain notice
of the matters to be discussed and the terms of any motions which
it is intended to move.
12. FINANCE (more detailed wording than previously)
I. All monies raised by
and on behalf of the Group including any funding received from the
Area shall be applied in furtherance of the objects of the Association.
II. The Honorary Treasurer shall keep proper financial records and
shall report regularly to the Committee. If required by the Area,
he/she shall be responsible for the preparation of the annual budget
for the Group and its submission to the Area Treasurer for approval.
He/she shall also be responsible for the preparation annually of
Group income and expenditure accounts for the preceding Association
financial year, a balance sheet showing the assets and liabilities
at the end of that year, and for their submission to the Group's
independent examiner.
III. All accounts in the name of the
Group shall be opened at such Bank as the Board of Trustees may
approve. All monies received shall be paid into the Bank and all
payments, other than petty cash payments, shall be made by cheque
or appropriate form of electronic transmission subject to appropriate
controls. Cheques shall be signed by the Honorary Treasurer and/or
other officers as decided by the Group Committee. To enable petty
cash expenses to be paid, an advance shall be made to the Honorary
Treasurer when necessary.
IV. The independent examiner(s) report shall be addressed to the
members of the Group and to the Area Treasurer.
13. DISSOLUTION
If, in the event of the dissolution
of the Group, confirmed by a majority of those present and voting
at a General Meeting of the Group, there remains after the satisfaction
of its debts and liabilities any property whatever, it shall be
transferred to the Area.
14. ALTERATIONS TO THE CONSTITUTION
I. Insofar as any alteration
or amendment is not inconsistent with the RA’s Memorandum
and Articles of Association and standing orders, this Constitution
may be amended, subject to prior approval by the Area governing
body, at any General Meeting, in accordance with the approval of
a two-thirds majority of members present and voting.
II. Any proposal for such alteration must be delivered in writing
to the Secretary of the Group not less than twenty-eight days before
the meeting of the Group at which it is to be discussed and not
less than fourteen days' notice of this meeting, giving the terms
of the proposed alteration, shall be given to the members of the
Group.
15. NOTICE (New clause)
The accidental omission to give notice of a meeting
or the non-receipt of a notice of meeting by any member shall not
invalidate any proceedings or resolutions at any meeting of the Group
or any committee.
Extract from ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION OF
THE RAMBLERS’ ASSOCIATION
6. Local Groups
6.1 Local Groups may be
established by Areas or the Board of Trustees to carry out the objects
of the Association.
Each Local Group shall
be responsible to and represented on the governing body of the Area
within which it is based, and shall adopt a Constitution which is
substantially in accordance with the Model Constitution for Groups
prepared by the Association and which is approved by the governing
body of the Area.
Groups are not empowered
to seek publicity on Area issues other than in full conformity with
the declared policy of the Association on the particular matters
unless the express consent of the governing body of the Area has
first been obtained.
Groups shall, not later
than 31st March in each year:
(a) forward to the Treasurer
of the Area and to the Association copies of the Group Income and
Expenditure Accounts for the preceding financial year and a balance
sheet showing the assets and liabilities at the end of the financial
year, together with a copy of the auditor’s certificate; and
(b) forward to the Secretary
of the Area a copy of the Group annual report for the preceding
financial year.
The governing body of the
Area shall have power in accordance with a resolution passed by
two-thirds of those present and voting at a meeting properly convened,
to recommend the Board of Trustees to cancel recognition of a Group
upon giving notice to the members of the Group. Any Group whose
membership is so terminated shall have the right to appeal in writing
to the Board of Trustees, who shall communicate their decision to
the Secretary of the Group.
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