CLUB CONSTITUTION

ISSUE 5 OF THE CLUB'S CONSTITUTION EFFECTIVE 23 SEPTEMBER 2010

24 Sep 2010

Peterborough And District Amateur Radio Club (PADARC) Constitution

1. Name. The Club shall be known as Peterborough And District Amateur Radio Club (PADARC)

2. Aims. The aims of the Club shall be to further the interests of its Members in all aspects of amateur radio and directly associated activities.

3. Membership. Membership shall be open, subject to the discretion of the Committee, to all persons interested in the aims of the Club.

(a) Full Members. Full Members may be of any age and be one of the following:

(i) A licensed Radio Amateur.
(ii) Short Wave Listener (this is a generic term and may include VHF/UHF etc.).
(iii) Have an interest in amateur radio or related topics.
(iv) Be a partner of any of the foregoing.

An annual subscription will be levied on Full Members as determined at an AGM.

(b) Honorary Members. Honorary Membership may be granted to any person who in the opinion of the Committee has rendered outstanding service to the Club, either directly or indirectly. Such Membership shall carry the rights of Full Membership but shall be free from subscriptions. This shall be reviewed annually at the AGM.

(c) Guests. Members may invite guests to meetings. No guest may attend more than any three meetings in each year.

(d) Visitors. Visitors to the Club may attend up to 3 consecutive meetings after which they will be expected to become Full Members. Visitors will not be allowed to randomly choose which meetings they wish to attend without becoming Full Members.

(e) All Members shall abide by the Constitution of the Club. The Committee shall have the power to expel any member whose conduct, in the opinion of the majority of the full Committee, renders that person unfit to be a member of the Club. No member shall be expelled without first having been given an opportunity to appear before the Committee.

4. Subscriptions.

(a) The annual subscription for Membership shall be proposed by the Committee and agreed by Members annually at the AGM.

(b) All subscriptions shall be due and payable at the beginning of the financial year.

(c) The financial year shall run from 1st April to 31st March.

(d) A Member shall have deemed to have resigned from the Club if by the 30th June the subscription has not been paid.

(e) The Committee shall have the power to waive or reduce subscriptions in special circumstances for a period not exceeding two years at a time.

5. Finance.

All money received by the Club shall be promptly deposited in the Club's bank account. Withdrawals require two signatures from a list of four signatures nominated by the Committee. Expenditure in excess of £300 (in any one transaction) will require the approval of the majority of the Committee. Expenditure in excess of £500 (in any one transaction) will require the approval of at least 75% of members present at an AGM or EGM.

6. Membership of the Club's Committee.

The Club's affairs shall be administered by a Committee elected at the AGM. The Committee, in whom the Club's property shall be vested, shall consist of:

(a) A Chairman who will preside at all meetings at which he is present.

(b) A Vice-Chairman who will act as chairman in the absence of the Chairman.

(c) A Secretary who will be responsible for:

(1) Keeping the minutes of all meetings of the Club.
(2) Ensuring that all correspondence is correctly handled.
(3) Maintaining a master roll of all Members and Honorary Members.
(4) Maintaining a register of Club equipment.

(d) A Treasurer who will be responsible for:

(1) Keeping the Club's accounts.
(2) Advising the Committee on all financial matters.
(3) Preparing the accounts for audit and presenting them at the AGM.

(e) Six Ordinary Committee Members.

(f) At the discretion of the Committee, not more than four co-opted Members of which two have full voting powers, and the remaining two who are not permitted to vote.

(g) No member of the Committee may hold a position for more that two consecutive years, without re-election at the AGM.

7. Committee standing orders.

(a) The quorum for the Committee shall be 25%. In the absence of a quorum business may be dealt with but any decisions taken only become valid after ratification at the next meeting at which a quorum exists.

(b) Committee meetings may be called by the Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary or Treasurer.

8. Annual General Meeting (AGM).

(a) The Annual General Meeting shall normally be held not later than 31st March of each year. At least 28 days notice must be given to the secretary, who in turn shall give Members at least 14 days notice to Members either by E-mail or by notice board announcement posted at the club venue.

(b) The quorum for the meeting shall be 25%.

(c) The agenda for the meeting shall be:

(1) Apologies for absence.
(2) Minutes of the previous AGM.
(3) Chairman’s report.
(4) Secretary’s report.
(5) Treasurer’s report.
(6) Election of any new Members to the Committee.
(7) Review of Honorary Members.
(8) Election of auditor.
(9) Other business.

(d) Items (1) to (6) shall be chaired by the existing Chairman, and items (7) to (9) by the new Chairman if elected in item (6).

(e) Nominations for Committee Members will only be valid if confirmed by the nominee at the meeting or previously in writing.

9. Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM).

(a) Extraordinary General Meeting may be called by the Committee or not less than ten Members of the Club. The date of the meeting being the earliest convenient as decided by the Committee. At least 28 days notice must be given to the secretary, who in turn shall give Members at least 14 days notice to Members either by E-mail or by notice board announcement posted at the club venue.

(b) The quorum for the EGM shall be 25% of the Membership.

10. Amendments to the Constitution.

The Constitution may be amended only at an EGM called for that purpose.

11. Winding up of the Club.

The decision to wind up the Club may be taken only at an EGM. The funds of the Club shall, after the sale of all assets and the payment of all outstanding debts, be disposed of as directed by Members who attend the final winding-up EGM.

12. Amendments.

This replaced the Green Book. January 1987.
Replaces previous Constitution March 3rd 1999 (Issue 1)
Sunday, 8th February 2004 (Issue 2)
Wednesday 26th April 2006 (Issue 3)
Wednesday 27th January 2010 (Issue 4) - Removal of word 'society' in favour of word 'club'
Wednesday 22 September 2010 (Issue 5) – Changes to Membership, Rescheduling of Financial Year