1. Title 1.1. The Club shall be called Lansdown Hockey Club ( the Club ). 2. Colours 2.1. The principal colours of the Club shall be black and gold shirts, black shorts/skirts and black and gold socks. 2.2. The alternative colours shall be red shirts, black shorts/skirts and red socks. 3. Objectives 3.1. The objectives of the Club shall be: 3.1.1. promoting, developing and encouraging hockey in general; 3.1.2. playing of Men s, Women s, Mixed and Youth hockey, according to the Rules of the Game as authorised by the Hockey Rules Board and the International Hockey Federation or such other rules as are approved from time to time by the central body governing English Hockey; 3.1.3. organising training and coaching to maintain and improve standards of playing; 3.1.4. facilitating the attainment of coaching and umpiring qualifications and providing opportunities for these to be practiced within the Club; 3.1.5. raising funds by any means approved by the Committee; 3.1.6. providing ancillary activities as required, such as supplying refreshments to guests and members following matches; 3.1.7. providing the facilities required by the game of hockey and for the entertainment of guests and the Club s membership. 4. Affiliation 4.1. The Club shall be affiliated to the presiding hockey associations in Gloucestershire, the West of England and the central body governing English Hockey. 4.2. The Committee shall have the discretion to affiliate to any other hockey associations as deemed appropriate to achieve the objectives of the Club. 5. Association with Other Sports Clubs 5.1. The Committee shall have the power to make arrangements, including payments, with any other Sports Organisation for the use of facilities or grounds which will benefit the Club. 5.2. The Committee will be responsible for ensuring the Club abides by any rules within the constitution of such Sports Organisation that are applicable to the facilities or ground being used. 5.3. Any decision involving membership of, or paying subscriptions to another organisation shall require prior approval of the Club at an Annual General Meeting or Extra-Ordinary General Meeting. 6. Membership 6.1. Admission 6.1.1. each candidate for admission to the Club shall have their request for membership reviewed by the Committee; 6.1.2. each candidate will automatically assume Membership unless a two-thirds majority of the Committee in attendance votes to reject the admission; 6.1.3. where a Membership is rejected, the Hon. Secretary will, upon instruction from the Committee: 6.1.3.1. notify the individual in writing of the rejection within 7 working days of the decision and provide them with the date of the next Committee Meeting where they may appeal against the decision; 6.1.3.2. make provision at the next meeting to enable the affected individual to appeal to the Committee. 6.1.3.3. no admission will be rejected without the right of appeal. 6.2. Membership Year 6.2.1. the membership year will run from 1st October in any year to the following 30th September (to tie in with the dates by which the Annual General Meeting and Pre-season Meeting must be held). 6.3. Life Members 6.3.1. Hon. Life Membership may be conferred on past members of the Club and others who have rendered special services to the Club; Approved Page: 1 of 7 Date: 6 September 2002
6.3.2. Life members shall have the right to vote at Club meetings and shall not be required to pay a subscription, except that in respect of any Sports Organisation to which the Club is affiliated; 6.3.3. proposals for Life Membership shall be submitted to the Committee for consideration, and if approved, proposed by the Committee for election at the Annual General Meeting. 7. Annual General Meeting ( AGM ) 7.1. Business which may be transacted 7.1.1. receiving reports from the Committee Members and Captains for the preceding year; 7.1.2. electing the Club Committee for the ensuing year; 7.1.3. electing Captains and Vice-Captains; 7.1.4. electing Life Members; 7.1.5. electing a President; 7.1.6. electing a Vice-President(s); 7.1.7. receiving summarised accounts for the preceding year; 7.1.8. appointing auditors; 7.1.9. any other business at the discretion of the Chair of the meeting. 7.2. Timing & Notice 7.2.1. the AGM shall be held each year before the end of May at a venue to be decided by the Committee; 7.2.2. fourteen days clear written Notice shall be given of such a meeting to all members, including the President, Vice-Presidents and Life Members; 7.2.3. the Notice of the AGM will by issued by the Hon. Secretary, on instruction of the Committee and will contain: 7.2.3.1. a copy of the Agenda; 7.2.3.2. minutes of the last AGM; 7.2.3.3. a request for nomination for election of the Committee, Captains and Vice-Captains along with a closing date and return address; 7.2.3.4. when applicable, minutes of an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting. 7.3. Nomination Process 7.3.1. the Committee has the discretion to determine whether a pre-meeting nomination process will be offered. If one is to be offered then it will operate as follows: 7.3.2. nominations for Committee members, Captains and Vice-Captains, duly seconded, should be returned to the Hon. Secretary by the closing date declared on the meeting Notice; 7.3.3. the Hon. Secretary will make nominations received available upon request prior to the meeting; 7.3.4. if no nominations are received by the Hon. Secretary by the closing date, then nominations may be taken at the meeting. 7.4. Election & Voting 7.4.1. each member of the Club shall have one vote other than the Chair who shall also have a casting vote; 7.4.2. business shall be transacted by a simple majority of those present entitled to vote and voting unless otherwise stipulated herein; 7.4.3. all motions and nominations shall be proposed and seconded by persons entitled to vote; 7.4.4. where a pre-meeting nomination process has been offered, those unable to attend the meeting may register their vote in writing, in advance of the meeting (via the Hon. Secretary) for contested nominations received in advance of the meeting; 7.4.5. all candidates for contested positions shall have the right to address the meeting prior to voting taking place; 7.4.6. a quorum of twenty members of the Club is required for the meeting to be valid; 7.4.7. a resolution passed at a previous AGM, EGM or PSM can not be rescinded save by a resolution, notice of which shall be given on the agenda, and carried by an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of 7.5. Conduct of the Meeting 7.5.1. minutes will be taken by the secretary of the meeting; 7.5.2. the Chairman, or in his/her absence the Vice-Chairman shall take the Chair at the AGM, in the absence of both the above the members present shall appoint one of their number to Chair the meeting. 8. Pre-Season Meeting ( PSM ) 8.1. Business which may be transacted 8.1.1. election to outstanding Committee posts; 8.1.2. election to outstanding Captains and Vice-Captains positions; 8.1.3. receiving and approving the audited accounts for the preceding year; 8.1.4. fixing Subscriptions and Match Fees for the ensuing year; 8.1.5. any other business at the discretion of the Chair of the meeting. Approved Page: 2 of 7 Date: 6 September 2002
8.2. Timing & Notice 8.2.1. the PSM shall be held each year before the end of September at a venue to be decided by the Committee; 8.2.2. fourteen days clear written Notice shall be given of such a meeting to all members, including the President, Vice-Presidents and Life Members; 8.2.3. the Notice of the PSM will by issued by the Hon. Secretary, on instruction of the Committee and will contain: 8.2.3.1. a copy of the Agenda; 8.2.3.2. minutes of the last PSM; 8.3. Election & Voting 8.3.1. each member of the Club shall have one vote other than the Chair who shall also have a casting vote; 8.3.2. business shall be transacted by a simple majority of those present entitled to vote and voting unless otherwise stipulated herein; 8.3.3. all motions and nominations shall be proposed and seconded by persons entitled to vote; 8.3.4. all candidates for contested positions shall have the right to address the meeting prior to voting taking place; 8.3.5. a quorum of twenty members of the Club is required for the meeting to be valid; 8.3.6. a resolution passed at a previous AGM, EGM or PSM can not be rescinded save by a resolution, notice of which shall be given on the agenda, and carried by an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of 8.4. Conduct of the Meeting 8.4.1. minutes will be taken by the secretary of the meeting; 8.4.2. the Chairman, or in his/her absence the Vice-Chairman shall take the Chair at the PSM, in the absence of both the above the members present shall appoint one of their number to Chair the meeting. 9. Extra-Ordinary General Meetings (EGM) 9.1. Business which may be transacted 9.1.1. this will be clearly defined by those requisitioning the meeting. 9.2. Timing & Notice 9.2.1. the Hon. Secretary may convene an EGM at anytime: 9.2.2. at the request of the Committee; 9.2.3. upon receiving a requisition in writing from at least fifteen members of the Club which clearly states the reason for such request. 9.2.4. the EGM shall be held within 28 days of receipt of the demand by the Hon. Secretary; 9.2.5. fourteen days clear written Notice shall be given of such a meeting to all members, including the President, Vice-Presidents and Life Members; 9.2.6. the Notice of the EGM will by issued by the Hon. Secretary, on instruction of the Committee, and will contain a clear account of the purpose for which the meeting has been called and/or shall set out the resolution(s) to be considered. 9.3. Election & Voting 9.3.1. each member of the Club shall have one vote other than the Chair who shall also have a casting vote; 9.3.2. business shall be transacted by a simple majority of those present entitled to vote and voting unless otherwise stipulated herein; 9.3.3. all motions and nominations shall be proposed and seconded by persons entitled to vote; 9.3.4. a quorum of twenty members of the Club is required for the meeting to be valid. 9.3.5. a resolution passed at a previous AGM, EGM or PSM can not be rescinded save by a resolution, notice of which shall be given on the agenda, and carried by an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of 9.4. Conduct of the Meeting 9.4.1. minutes will be taken by the secretary of the meeting; 9.4.2. the Chairman, or in his/her absence the Vice-Chairman shall take the Chair at the EGM, in the absence of both the above the members present shall appoint one of their number to Chair the meeting; 9.4.3. minutes of the meeting will be circulated at the next AGM. 10. Subscriptions & Match Fees 10.1. Subscriptions 10.1.1. subscriptions, as set at the PSM, shall be payable by the 1st October of each year. 10.1.2. for new members subscriptions are due once they have participated in four matches for the Club. If the new member joins after 1st October, they will pay a pro-rata amount based on the number of complete months remaining in the membership year as determined by the Treasurer dependent on the exact date of payment; Approved Page: 3 of 7 Date: 6 September 2002
10.1.3. a member not paying his/her subscription by 1st December in the membership year shall, unless for a reason satisfactory to the Committee, be deemed to have resigned and be ineligible for selection to any team. The member so affected shall be notified by the Hon. Secretary on the instruction of the Committee. 10.2. Match Fees 10.2.1. match fees, as set at the PSM, are due on the day of matches; 10.2.2. the Committee has the discretion to increase the match fees for members who have not paid their subscription as stipulated. In such cases, excess payment of match fees will not count towards the subscription when subsequently paid; 10.2.3. new members will be allowed to participate in four matches for the Club at the normal match fee rate prior to joining and being requested to pay a subscription. 11. Disciplinary Matters 11.1. The Club and its members will adhere to: 11.1.1. the Disciplinary Code determined by the central body governing English Hockey (the Code ); 11.1.2. the rules (the Rules ) of any association to which it is affiliated (the Association ) and any Sports Organisation with whom it has made arrangements (the Organisation ). 11.2. The action to be taken by the Club for any alleged breach of the Code will be: 11.2.1. the Captain of the team for which the member was playing will notify the Hon Secretary within two days after the day of the game concerned. If the member was not playing for a Lansdown team, they should notify the Hon Secretary themselves; 11.2.2. on receipt of notification from the Captain and/or member the Hon Secretary will notify the member in writing of what involvement they are and are not permitted to have with the Club in line with the Code; 11.2.3. on receipt of official notification of the alleged breach of the Code the Hon Secretary will convene a Disciplinary Panel (the Panel ) to consider the alleged breach and whether the Club should take any additional action; 11.2.4. the Panel will consist of a minimum of three and maximum of five drawn from the Committee and will follow the procedures laid down in the Code; 11.2.5. the Panel will elect a Chair. Each member of the Panel will have a vote except the Chair who will also have the casting vote; 11.2.6. the Hon Secretary will provide notice of the Panel to the member concerned, they are able to attend the meeting to give their view and call any witnesses; 11.2.7. minutes of the meeting will be taken and the conclusions submitted in writing to the relevant authorities and the member as required by the Code. The decision of the Panel shall be final subject to the normal appeal process permitted by the Code. 11.3. The action to be taken by the Club for any alleged breach of the Rules will be: 11.3.1. on receipt of a complaint from any Association or Organisation for an alleged breach of its Rules by a member of the Club, the Committee will consider the matter and decide the action to be taken. 11.3.2. The member concerned will have the opportunity to appear before the Committee and give their views of the incident and call any witnesses. 11.3.3. The conclusions will be minuted and provided to the member in writing. The decision of the Committee shall be final. 12. Resignation and Expulsion 12.1. Resignation 12.1.1. a member desiring to resign from the Club shall give written notice of such intention to the Hon. Secretary; 12.1.2. any subscription refund is at the discretion of the Committee, pro-rata for the full membership year net of any outstanding monies owing the Club. 12.2. Expulsion 12.2.1. the Committee shall have the power to expel any member whose conduct shall in the opinion of the Committee render him/her unfit for membership of the Club; 12.2.2. before any such member is expelled the Hon. Secretary shall give him/her seven day s clear written notice to attend a meeting of the Committee and shall inform him/her of the complaints made against him/her; 12.2.3. no member shall be expelled without first having an opportunity of appearing before the Committee and answering to the complaints made him/her and unless at least two-thirds of the Committee then present vote in favour of such expulsion; 12.2.4. the Committee s decision shall be final; Approved Page: 4 of 7 Date: 6 September 2002
12.2.5. such person shall not be eligible to play for the Club or for re-admission to membership for two years after the date of expulsion and only then upon special consideration of his or her application by the Committee; 12.2.6. the expelled member shall have no automatic right to the return of his or her Subscription or any portion thereof; 12.2.7. the Committee shall have the power to exclude the member from the Clubhouse or Club grounds until such expulsion meeting has been held. Approved Page: 5 of 7 Date: 6 September 2002
13. Management of the Club 13.1. Composition of the Club s Committee shall be: 13.1.1. Chairman 13.1.2. Vice-Chairman 13.1.3. Hon. Secretary 13.1.4. Treasurer 13.1.5. Fixture/Match Secretaries 13.1.6. Fixture/Match Secretaries 13.1.7. Entertainments Secretary 13.1.8. Publicity Officer 13.1.9. Team Captains or, in their absence their Vice-Captains where elected at an AGM or PSM, shall be ex-officio members 13.1.10. up to four other members of the Club may be elected as Members of the Committee at an AGM or PSM; 13.1.11. each member of the Committee shall have one vote irrespective of the number of capacities in which attending, other than the Chair who shall also have a casting vote. 13.1.12. seven of the Committee shall form a quorum; 13.2. Business which may be transacted at Committee meetings 13.2.1. the interface between the Club and the various Associations and Sporting Organisations with whom it is affiliated or has an ongoing and beneficial relationship; 13.2.2. the representation of the Club in dealings with other outside people, bodies or organizations; 13.2.3. preparing an annual budget for the Club and monitoring its financial position; 13.2.4. to ensure all arrangements for the general management of the Club are completed in a timely manner to permit the objectives of the Club being met on an ongoing basis. 13.3. Remit of the Committee 13.3.1. the Committee shall have the power to fill any vacancy that may occur in their number; 13.3.2. the Committee shall have the power to co-opt up to three additional Club Members to the Committee to serve for such period as the Committee may decide, the term not extending beyond the next AGM; 13.3.3. the Committee shall have sole management of the Club and its property, and decide any questions upon the interpretation of this or anything relating to the Club not provided for by the ; 13.3.4. only the Committee shall have the power to propose a new President of the Club, who shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting for a term of office of up to five years. The President will be eligible for re-election; 13.3.5. only the Committee shall have the power to propose new Vice-Presidents of the Club (being former members of the Club or others who have rendered significant services to the Club), who shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting for a term of office of up to five years. The Vice- Presidents will be eligible for re-election; 13.3.6. the Committee may delegate specific functions to Club Members whilst retaining responsibility; 13.3.7. the Committee may invite any person to attend for all or part of a meeting. Such person shall not be entitled to vote; 13.3.8. the funds belonging to the Club will be administered by the Committee and will be kept in separate accounts at such Bank(s) or Building Society(s) as determined by the resolution of the Committee. The mandate for withdrawals shall require the signature of the Treasurer and two others, as determined by the Committee; 13.3.9. the financial year shall end 31st March of each year, and summarized accounts will be presented to the Annual General Meeting. Accounts will be subject to Annual Audit and presented to the Pre- Season Meeting for approval. Approved Page: 6 of 7 Date: 6 September 2002
14. Amendment of this Lansdown Hockey Club 14.1. Amendments to this can only be made and passed by an AGM or EGM. 14.2. Any proposed amendments shall be sent in writing to the Hon. Secretary, together with the names of the Proposer and Seconder, in sufficient time to enable the details to be circulated with the Notice of the Meeting at which they are to be considered. 14.3. No clause of the shall be amended unless carried by an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of 15. Trust Fund and Trustees 15.1. The Committee shall have the power to appoint Trustees, no more than four in number, in whom shall be vested all freehold and leasehold property belonging to the Club, to be dealt with by them as the Committee may from time to time direct by resolution (of which an entry in the minute book shall be conclusive evidence). 15.2. The Trustees shall be indemnified against risk and expense out of Club property. 15.3. The Trustees shall hold office until death or resignation of until removed from office by resolution of the Committee who may for any reason which may seem sufficient to the majority of them present and voting at any meeting remove any Trustee or Trustees from the office of Trustee. 15.4. The Committee shall have the power by resolution to nominate any additional or replacement Trustees, but for the purpose of giving effect to such nomination the President is hereby nominated as the person to appoint new Trustees of the Club within the meaning of section 36 of the Trustee Act 1925 and he shall be by Deed duly appoint the person so nominated by the Committee as the new Trustee or Trustees of the Club and the provisions of the Trustee Act 1925 shall apply to any such appointment. 16. Indemnity 16.1. the Club shall indemnify each of its officials against any claim which may arise from any action taken with the authority of the Club.; 16.2. for the purpose of this clause an official shall be deemed to be any person serving on a Committee or Sub- Committee of the Club or appointed to a position to act on behalf of the Club. 17. Dissolution 17.1. No resolution for the dissolution of the Club shall be passed unless carried by an affirmative vote of at least twothirds of those present entitled to vote and voting at an AGM or EGM. 17.2. On a resolution being passed by an AGM or EGM to dissolve the Club the Committee shall realise the assets of the Club and shall make provision for its liabilities. 17.3. The remaining assets at the date of dissolution shall be distributed in such manner as determined by the AGM or EGM or, if such meeting so decides, by the Committee. 18. Matters not covered by the 18.1. The Committee shall have power to act on any matter on which the is silent but action shall be taken at the next General Meeting to ratify the action, which has been taken. Approved Page: 7 of 7 Date: 6 September 2002