1) TITLE.
The
Club shall be called the "Red Rose Cave and Pothole Club" herein
after referred to as the Club.
2) OBJECTS.
a)
The objects of the Club shall be to
further the interests of speleology in all its scientific and sporting aspects.
b)
To promote such social activities as members may require after due
consideration by the committee.
3) MEMBERSHIP.
a)
Three levels
of membership are available, Full Membership, Probationary Membership, and
Social membership. The minimum age for Full membership shall be fifteen years.
b)
All prospective members shall tender their application for
membership together with the signatures of a Proposer and Seconder, who shall
be full members of the club, and a probationary fee (as in 3c), to the Honorary
Secretary. They shall then at the next committee meeting of the club be
accepted as a probationary member unless a simple majority of the committee are against, on
grounds of their caving safety record or any behavior deemed detrimental to the
best interests of the club.
After a period of six
months, during which time they must attend at least two caving meets with full
club members, and having successfully completed their caving record sheet, they
shall become eligible for consideration for full membership, upon acceptance by
a
simple majority of the committee. The prospective member must attend when his
application for full membership is being considered.
Upon acceptance as a full member they should then pay
the balance of that years annual subscription calculated from the end of the
six months period already paid.
If at the end of the six month period the prospective
member is not present, or has not attended at least two caving meets with full
club members during their probationary period then if they desire, on payment
of a further probationary fee (as in 3c), they may continue as a probationary
member for a maximum of a further six months after which time they must
re-apply as a new prospective member.
c)
The annual subscription for full members and social members and the
entry fee for probationary members shall be fixed at an AGM.
d)
All subscriptions shall be due on the 1st January every year.
e)
All subscriptions shall be made payable to the Club and upon payment to
the Honorary Treasurer a receipt shall be given.
f)
Any member who has not renewed their subscription by the end of February
shall be reminded in writing. If by the end of March the subscription has not
been paid the membership will be deemed to have ceased. If re-election be
sought during the same year then one and a half times the full subscription for
the year shall be payable. If membership be sought after this period then such
persons will be treated as new members.
g) The
committee is empowered to add to the annual subscription rate an amount up to a
maximum required to fulfil the clubs obligation to provide Public Liability
Insurance for each member.
4) FUNDS.
a) All the monies of the club should be
paid into an account except for whatever sum shall be deemed necessary by the
Honorary Treasurer as cash in hand. The account(s) shall be maintained in the
name of the Club at such banks and building societies as shall be defined by
the committee. All cheques drawn upon by the Club shall be endorsed by the
Treasurer and any committee member(s) designated at the A.G.M.
b)
A receipt shall be given for all monies paid to the Club.
c)
The Honorary Treasurer shall present an audited balance sheet and
financial report at the Annual General Meeting.
d)
An auditor
shall be appointed by the committee.
e)
Any surplus
funds shall remain invested within the club and not distributed amongst its
members or third parties.
f) No member shall be paid any fees or honorarium except
for approved expenses incurred whilst carrying out the duties of their
position. A member may however
enter into an agreement to supply goods or services not related to his own
participation in the sport provided the terms have been agreed between the
committee and the member on a contractual basis.
5) ANNUAL
GENERAL MEETING.
a)
An Annual General Meeting shall be held on the first Sunday in April
unless this falls during a Bank Holiday period when the second Sunday shall
apply. A Chairperson shall be elected by those present.
b)
Notification of an A.G.M shall be given
to members not less than 4 weeks prior to the date of the A.G.M.
6) ELECTION
OF OFFICERS.
a) After the presentation of their reports
at the A.G.M. all officers of the Club shall be deemed to have retired and all
official posts shall become vacant.
b) The Chairperson shall then accept
nominations for these posts and from those nominated one shall be elected by a
free ballot of those members entitled to vote.
c)
All full and social members shall be eligible for nomination of any
official post, but 2/3 of the elected officers must be full members.
d) Officers shall consist of: President,
Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer, H.Q.Warden, H.Q.Engineer, Tackle Master, News-Sheet Editor,
Newsletter Editor, Meets Secretary, Social Secretary, CNCC Representative,
Journal Editor, Librarian, Conservation Officer, Easegill Project Officer and
Safety and Training Officer.
7) SPECIAL
MEETING.
An
Extraordinary General Meeting may be convened at the request of the Secretary
or in writing by four full members (as in 15) and notification shall be given
to all members not less than 4 weeks prior to the date of said meeting.
8) CONTROL
OF THE CLUB.
a) The committee shall be responsible for
the maintenance and control of the Club.
b)
The Committee shall consist of all officers (as in 6d) with powers to
co-opt.
c)
A quorum of six committee members shall be formed before a meeting shall
commence.
9) VOTING.
a) No member shall be entitled to vote at
any meeting unless they have fulfilled the requirements of 3f and no
probationary member shall be entitled to vote.
b)
Amendments to the Constitution may only be voted on by full members.
c)
At all meetings a majority vote shall decide
d)
The Chairperson shall have a casting vote only.
e)
Full members and social members may vote by post on any issue (except
9b), but proxy voting is not allowed.
d)
An agenda
shall be published 4 weeks before the date of a General Meeting
10) CLUB CAVING EQUIPMENT.
a) For private meets requesting the use of
club tackle, notice must be given to the Tackle Master or SRT Tackle Master at
least seven days beforehand.
b)
Club meets
shall have preference in the use of equipment.
c)
Equipment
shall be returned no later than 5 working days after the completion of the meet
unless by alternative arrangement with the Tackle Master.
d) All equipment shall be inspected before
use, cleaned after use and signed out and in by the user.
e) All equipment shall be inspected at
least twice a year by the elected Tackle Master and SRT Tackle Master.
11) LIABILITY.
All
members of the Club shall at the discretion of the committee, and as part of
their annual subscription, be covered by an approved Public Liability Insurance
policy. Neither the Club nor any individual member shall accept liability for
any loss or injury, sustained by any member or visitor on any meet whatsoever.
12) UNDERGROUND
CO-ORDINATORS.
a)
On all meets the party shall choose a co-ordinator who shall ensure that
sufficient tackle is available on meets and that a newsletter report is
written.
b)
All members
must learn the standard whistle signals for use on pitches
as defined by the Cave Rescue Organisation, i.e. One
blast - stop; two blasts - up; three blasts - down; six consecutive blasts -
Distress signal.
All members must be able to tie a Bowline
and a Figure of Eight knot.
c) All members shall be responsible for
equipping themselves with suitable underground clothing, lighting, helmet,
boots, whistle and exposure bag.
13) VISITORS.
Club
members wishing to invite visitors to an open meet must first introduce them to
the meet co-ordinator.
14) CONDUCT.
Should
any member be guilty of conduct, which the Committee considers detrimental to
the best interests of the Club, the committee may suspend the member from
membership for a period of time. A member may be excluded from membership by an
extra-ordinary general meeting in which case they shall have the right to be
confronted by their accusers and shall have the right to question them.
15) AMENDMENTS TO THE
CONSTITUTION.
This
Constitution may only be amended at an A.G.M. of the Club or by a special
meeting convened for that purpose (as in 7) with written proposals of
amendments to the Constitution by a proposer and seconder 4 weeks in advance of
the date of the meeting.
16)
DISSOLUTION
If upon the dissolution of the club there
remains, after the satisfaction of all its debts and liabilities any assets
whatsoever, the same shall not be paid to or distributed among the membership,
but instead the Committee shall dispose of the net assets remaining to one or
more of the following:
a)
to another
club or organization with similar purposes, which is a registered charity
b)
to another
club or organization with similar purposes, which is a registered Community
Amateur Sports Club (CASC)
c)
to the clubs
governing body for use by them for related community sports.
17)
EQUAL
OPPORTUNITIES
The club subscribes to, and will review annually, an Equal Opportunities
Policy to ensure that all of its activities and policies do not discriminate
against any Member, Official or Prospective Member on grounds of their race,
colour, nationality, ethnic origin, gender, martial status, religion, sexual
orientation or physical ability.
We, as current officers of the Red Rose
Cave and Pothole Club confirm that the constitution above was duly approved by
the membership on 15th. August 2004.
Modified 15th.
August 2004
(Incorporating changes
approved for CASC status)
Previous edition: 4th. April 2004
SUPERCEDES: All
previous copies of the Constitution.