Club Rules

Constitution

1. Name:

The Club shall be called ”The Airdrie & District Angling Club” (and shall be known hereafter as the Club) and shall be a non-profit making body the object of which is to provide facilities at Hillend Loch, Airdrie for and to promote participation of the whole community in the sport of angling.

2. Membership:

a.      The Club may have different classes of membership and subscription on a non-discriminatory and fair basis. The Club will keep subscriptions at levels that will not pose a significant obstacle to people participating.

b.      As such, Membership shall consist of

i.         Adult,

ii.        Senior (Discount for over 65 years in 31st March of the current membership year),

iii.       Junior (Discount under the age of sixteen years in 1st March of the current year),

iv.       Honorary,

v.        Adult, Senior Discount, and Junior Discount Day Members,

vi.       Complimentary Member, and

vii.      Consistent Volunteer Member.

c.      Adult, Senior and Junior members may be Trout Season-only members, or Trout & Pike season members, or Pike Season-only members. Honorary members shall be Trout & Pike Season members. Adult, Senior Discount and Junior Discount Day Members may only be Trout Season members, and their fishing rights shall be as set out in the Bye Laws. Complimentary members shall only be Trout Season members, although the Committee shall have the discretion (on application by the Complimentary member) to allow that member to also be a Pike Season member. Consistent Volunteer members shall be Trout & Pike Season members.

d.      For the purposes of this Constitution, the Trout Season shall be defined as the period between 15 March and 6 October, and the Pike Season shall be defined as the period between 7 October and 14 March. References to being a Trout Season-only or a Pike-Season-only member are to the member having rights to fish during only the Trout Season or only the Pike Season, each member being nevertheless a member of the Club for the full Club year.

3. Membership Eligibility and Enrolment:

a.      Membership of the Club shall be open to anyone interested in the sport of angling, regardless of sex, age, disability, ethnicity, nationality, sexual orientation, religion or other beliefs, except as a necessary consequence of the requirements of angling.

b.      The Committee may from time to time invite any Honorary member to sit on a Disciplinary Committee. Only Honorary members may sit on a Disciplinary Committee. If fewer than three Honorary members agree to form a Disciplinary Committee from time to time, the duties of the Disciplinary Committee shall be exercised by the Secretary.

c.      The Club has a zero tolerance policy for poor conduct or character, and for conduct or character which is likely to bring the Club or the sport into disrepute. The Committee shall have the power to refuse membership, or to remove it, if this policy is breached. A non-member may not appeal against a decision to refuse membership. A member may appeal to the Disciplinary Committee against a decision to remove membership, by providing written grounds of appeal to the Secretary within fourteen days of being informed of the decision, following which the Disciplinary Committee will consider the matter (which may, at the Disciplinary Committee’s discretion, include a meeting between the Disciplinary Committee and the member) and make a final decision which will then be binding on the Club and the member.

d.      The Membership shall be limited to 900 or such Members (more or less) as may from time to time be fixed by the Committee

e.      The Committee will decide on the levels of subscriptions in each Club year and communicate that decision in advance of the annual enrolment.

f.       Members are required to re-register for membership each Club year, and to pay full subscriptions for that Club year, by 15th March. If a member fails to do so, they will be suspended from membership and any rights associated with membership. Any enrolment after 15th March will be at the discretion of the Committee. Pike membership may be renewed up until 30th September.

g.      The Committee may fix a period during which anglers may either register/re-register and pay online or personally attend the Club to register/re-register and pay their subscriptions. Membership tickets will be made available as soon as practically possible for collection at the Clubhouse. 

h.      Subscriptions not paid on time (15th March for Trout Members, 30th September for Pike Members) automatically removes the member from the Club membership.

i.       Members may not join mid-year.

4. Members’ right and obligations:

a.      All members shall be subject to the Constitution, Rules, Regulations and Byelaws of the Club, of which a copy shall always be exhibited in the Clubhouse.

b.      Intimation of Change of member details: Any Member changing their contact details must intimate the change to the Secretary in order for the Club to comply with data protection legislation and enable provision of services to the member. Any notices to be issued by the Club to a member shall be issued to the contact details notified by the member from time to time, and shall be validly issued if sent to such details.

c.      Assets Belong to Members. The property of the Club shall belong to the eligible voting members during their membership, but the right and interest of every such Member shall be personal to that Member and cease with their membership, and shall not be assignable or arrestable by heirs, executors or representatives.

d.      Neither the Club nor its Committee shall be responsible for any property belonging to Members or visitors whether in the Clubhouse, the car park or at the loch or lochside.

e.      Resignation from Membership: Any Member wishing to resign shall intimate their resignation in writing to the Secretary, who shall acknowledge same. No refund or part refund of membership paid will be given.

f.       All membership tickets / cards remain the property of the Club.

5. Voting Rights:

Where members of the Club are required to vote on a decision, each member of the Club (including Honorary members) shall have a single vote, with the exception of:

a.        Adult, Senior Discount, and Junior Discount Day members,

b.        Junior members,

c.        Pike-only season members,

d.        Complimentary members,

e.        Members who have been suspended or removed from membership (whether or not an appeal is pending against such suspension or removal),

none of whom shall have any vote.

6. Honorary Members:

a.      Honorary Membership shall be conferred on a person by the Committee in recognition of past services to the Club, or on a person who has held office with distinction on the committee of the Club and it may be reviewed from year to year.

b.      They shall have no right or interest in the property or liabilities of the Club.

c.      Members, including the Committee itself, may recommend that a person be conferred with Honorary Membership at any time, but the Committee’s decision on such matter is within its entire direction.

7. Complimentary Members:

The Committee may confer one year Complimentary membership on a person in recognition of services to the Club given in the previous year.

8. Members Subscriptions:

a.      The subscriptions payable by an Adult, Senior and Junior Member shall be amounts fixed by the Committee.

b.      In order to convey the rights associated with membership of the Club, payment of subscriptions must be made in full and no credit facilities will be offered by the Club.

c.      Members (or third parties for and on behalf of members, such as by way of gifts) may pay subscriptions at any time after the subscriptions are fixed by the Committee, subject to the final date for payment provided for in clause 3f.

9. Financial Year:

The financial year of the Club shall end on the 31st December.

10. Annual General Meeting (AGM):

a.      Subject to clause 11e, the AGM will be held in a convenient place on the last Sunday of April in each year and shall be convened by the Secretary. 

b.      An independent Chartered Accountant will be appointed by the Committee to audit the Club’s accounts prior to being presented to the AGM.

c.      Annual Balances: Prior to the AGM, the Treasurer shall submit a statement of the Club’s Accounts, together with the report of the Auditors thereon, to the Committee for approval, and the Committee shall thereafter authorise publication.

d.      Submission of Annual Balance Sheet: At the AGM, the Annual Balance Sheet shall be submitted.

e.      The AGM business may be conducted remotely or by mail-in ballot and at any time prior to the last Sunday in April each year as circumstances may reasonably require.

 f.     The Committee, at its discretion, may ask the members for a decision on a matter or number of matters without the necessity of an AGM or a Special General Meeting. Members may vote by online ballot or in writing, by any reasonable deadline as may be set by the Committee. Provided that the Committee has issued details of the matter or matters to be voted upon to the membership at the contact details provided by members, and provided that at least fifteen ballots are returned by the deadline, and provided a majority of those ballots is in favour of or against the matter in question, the vote on that matter will be binding on the Club. For the avoidance of doubt, the Committee may seek decisions from the members following the process outlined in this clause in relation to proposed amendments of this Constitution.

g.      At any AGM, the Chairperson’s authority must be respected at all times; failure to do so may result in the offender being asked to leave the meeting.

h.      To assist the orderly conduct of an AGM, every Member’s contribution to an AGM should be addressed to the Chairperson and not directly to any other individual present, and the Chairperson may limit discussion for reasons of time or to maintain good order.

11. Committee Meetings and Powers:

a.      The Committee shall meet at least once every month for the dispatch of all competent business.

b.      All meetings of the Club and Committee (including the AGM and any Special General Meeting) shall be chaired by the Chairperson, or in the Chairperson’s absence, by such individual as the meeting shall elect from those present.

c.      Fifteen members in the case of an AGM or a Special General Meeting of the Club and five in the case of a Committee Meeting shall form a quorum.

d.      A Committee Member who is absent from three consecutive Committee or general meetings of the Club, shall be automatically suspended from the Committee. The suspension will be communicated to the suspended member, and the remaining members of the Committee shall thereafter consider any explanation which is provided by the suspended member within 40 days of being notified of their suspension, and may decide whether to reinstate the suspended member or to remove them from the Committee.

e.      The Committee is subject to the Constitution and decisions made by Members at any General Meeting.

f.       The Committee shall have all the powers necessary for conducting of the affairs of the Club, and setting all Regulations and Bye-Laws

g.      Regulations and Bye-Laws made by the Committee shall be binding on every member until set aside by a General Meeting or revoked by the Committee.

h.      The Committee may appoint such Sub-Committees as they think necessary with or without full powers to act, and may appoint to any Sub-Committee other members of the Club for any special purpose.

i.       For the avoidance of doubt all claims against the Club or against Committee members in respect of their actions as Committee members on Club business, will be met from Club resources and will not be the personal responsibility of office bearers/committee members. 

12. Special General Meetings:

The Committee may convene a Special General Meeting of the Members when, and as often as they deem it necessary to do so.

13. Requisitioning of Special General Meeting by Members:

a.      A Special General Meeting may be called for at any time by not less than 25% of the entire membership signing and delivering to the Secretary a requisition to that effect, stating therein the business to be considered and the proposed decision(s) to be taken. 

b.      The Committee shall be bound to convene such a meeting within twelve weeks of the Secretary’s receipt of the signed requisition, and shall give notice to the membership of (a) the date and place of the meeting, and (b) the business to be conducted and the decision(s) to be taken, at least seven days in advance. 

c.      If the Committee fails to convene such a meeting within the twelve week period following receipt of a valid requisition by the Secretary, the requisitionists may themselves convene such a meeting by giving notice to the membership of (a) the date and place of the meeting, and (b) the business to be conducted and the decision(s) to be taken, at least seven days in advance. Such notice by the requisitionists may be given by both advertisement in the local newspaper and by notice exhibited on the Clubhouse Notice Board, so long as such advertisement and notice each state (a) the date and place of the meeting, and (b) the business to be conducted and the decision(s) to be taken, and so long as the advertisement and notice are both placed at least seven days in advance.

14. Committee: election and eligibility:

a.      The Club shall be managed by a Committee. The Committee shall be elected each year by the members at the AGM. Only members of the Club, with a record of good conduct and who have provided service to the Club, are eligible for election to the Committee. The outgoing Committee at the AGM, prior to its retirement taking effect, shall be the sole judge of a member’s eligibility for election to the new Committee.

b.      Following election of the Committee at the AGM, the Committee as so formed shall elect the Chairperson, Treasurer and Secretary from among their number as office bearers, provided that no office bearer shall hold the same office for more than five consecutive years, or return to such office within three years after ceasing to hold it.

c.      Elected Committee members must sign the HMRC ‘fit and proper test’ declaration before being accepted into the Committee.

d.      Subject as follows, all members of Committee (including those appointed under Clause 15e) shall retire annually by rotation at the AGM, and shall be eligible for re-election. In the event that an AGM is, for whatever reason, not held, or in the event that there is no election of a new Committee as provided for in this Clause 15, or if the number of eligible members seeking election to the Committee is less than the required number, the previous Committee shall remain in post until a valid election is held.

e.      Vacancies in the Committee: Vacancies in the Committee occurring during the financial year may be filled by the Committee appointing any eligible member or members. If the Committee does not make such an appointment or appointments, the Committee will nevertheless remain validly constituted until the next occurring AGM.

15. Chairperson’s Duties:

The Chairperson’s primary duty is to preserve order and guide the course of Club and Committee meetings, to act impartially and to see that the business of such meetings is transacted in a proper manner. 

16. Secretary’s Duties:

a.      The Secretary shall keep full and correct minutes of the proceedings and meetings of the Club and Committee, and shall keep an up-to-date list of Members, conduct correspondence with Members and others, and issue all notices to Members and the Committee, and otherwise act as the Club or its Committee may direct.

b.      The Committee may, if they so desire, elect a Minute Secretary from their number, who shall keep full and correct minutes of the proceedings of the Club.

17. Treasurer’s and Club Signatories’ Duties:

a.      From time to time, the Committee shall appoint at least two members, who may also be Committee members but may not be the Treasurer, to be known as Club Signatories, to whom power and responsibility is delegated by the Committee to receive money due to, and to pay money due by, the Club. Working together, the Club Signatories and the Treasurer shall keep correct accounts and books showing accurate financial affairs of the Club.

b.      All moneys received by the Treasurer or the Club Signatories shall be lodged in the name of the Club in the registered bank account.

c.      The Treasurer must set a financial plan for each year for approval by the Committee. Any payments outside the plan must be taken to the Committee for prior approval.

d.      All payments must be signed for two Club Signatories.

e.      The Treasurer must foster a cashless culture within the Club as much as possible. This includes ensuring as much as possible that all suppliers’ invoices and member’s expense payments are electronic.

f.       No member (including the Treasurer or the Club Signatories) has the power to enter into any contract on behalf of the Club or dispose of any Club assets or incur any liability on behalf of the Club or compromise any claims which the Club might have without the prior approval of the Committee.

g.      No other member can adopt any aspect of a Treasurer’s duties without the prior approval of the Committee.

h.      All investment monies may be placed with any Bank or Building Society up to a maximum of £85,000 in each establishment and any monies placed on deposit receipt shall be placed in the name of the Club.

18. Additional obligations on Office Bearers: Trustees:

a.      No office bearer shall rent or lease land to the Club.

b.      All Committee members must declare any conflict of interest to the Committee, such as private connection to suppliers, or participation of other family members within any responsible position within the Club. A responsible position is a member participating in any of the roles defined under the Club’s Role Register. The Committee will decide on acceptance of any conflict on a case by case basis.

c.      No Committee member can receive emoluments linked to their performance of any task on behalf of the Club, unless a declaration of interest has been approved by the Committee in advance. 

19. Bailiffs:

a.      Bailiffs will be appointed at the discretion of the Committee. Duly appointed Bailiffs have power to offer a loch side ticket to an angler, and shall support the Club in relation to member and public compliance to the Club bye-laws, and shall report to the Committee and/or relevant public authorities on matters of non-compliance.

b.      Bailiffs may receive commission from the sale of Permits.  The Committee shall set the Bailiff commission policy for any given Club year.

c.      To provide an up to date financial audit during the season all Bailiffs must hand in sold or part sold permit books and monies each month.

20. Shop outlets:

The Committee may authorize selected commercial outlets to sell day tickets on a commission basis.

21. Expenses and payments:

a.      All payments made to members must be by electronic means into a bank account in their name.

b.      All expenses incurred on behalf of the Club must be receipted.

c.      Travel expenses to and from any Committee approved “away competitions” are covered by HMRC CASC guidance and are therefore allowable for the Club to pay, subjects to receipts being provided to the Treasurer and the costs being reasonable. However, travel expenses to and from the Clubhouse are not covered by HMRC CASC guidance so are not paid by the Club.

d.      Honorariums are available to people providing services in the running of the Club. Qualifying roles and amounts paid are listed in the Role Register. If a role is shared then the honorarium is shared proportionally according to the share of work. The Role Register is maintained by the Committee and the payment amounts set by the Committee. Individuals receiving honorariums have responsibility to declare them to relevant agencies (e.g., HMRC, DWP and Pension Service).

22. Property:

The Title to the Clubhouse and other property and Lands shall be vested in the Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer and members of the Committee, and their successors in office, as Trustees for and behalf of the Club.

23. Lending / Borrowing Powers:

a.      The Club has no power to borrow or lend money.  However, the Committee may seek the approval of the members to borrow or lend money from time to time for any purpose approved by the members.

b.      The Committee has the power to invest and disburse the Club’s resources in the best interests of the Club as determined in its discretion. 

24. Income and Assets.

a.      All surplus income or profits are to be reinvested in the Club. No surpluses or assets will be distributed to members or third parties.

b.      In the event of the dissolution of the Club, any assets remaining after the satisfaction of all debts and liabilities shall not be paid to or distributed among the members of the Club, but shall be given or transferred to one or more of the following approved sporting or charitable bodies:

i.       A registered charitable organisation.

ii.      Another Club that is registered CASC.

iii.     The sport’s national governing body for use by them for related community sports.

25. Complaints:

All complaints or suggestions must be made in writing to the Secretary and such complaints or suggestions shall be submitted to and dealt with by the Committee at their next meeting, and its decision shall be final and binding on all concerned. 

26. Alteration of Constitution:

a.      Any alteration or addition to the Constitution may be made at any AGM or Special General Meeting, and Notice calling such meeting shall state the terms of the proposed alterations or additions.

b.      Any alteration or addition to the Constitution which is proposed to be submitted to an AGM or Special General Meeting shall be notified in writing to the Secretary at least twenty-one days before such meeting in the case of an AGM, or at least fourteen days before submitting a requisition in the case of a Special General Meeting.

c.      Any alteration or addition made to the Constitution at the Annual General Meeting or a Special General Meeting shall be operative from the date of said meeting.

d.      A majority of those present at an AGM or a Special General Meeting (or, where such a meeting is being held remotely and/or by ballot, a majority of those returning valid ballot papers) is necessary to authorise an alteration to the Constitution. 

27. Alteration of Bye-Laws:

a.      Local Rules, Regulations and Bye-Laws made from time to time by the Committee shall become and remain binding on members until altered by the Committee or the Club.

b.      A copy of all new local Rules, Regulations and Bye-Laws shall from time to time be posted on the notice board in the Clubhouse, and the same shall thereby be held to be duly notified to all concerned.