CONSTITUTION
BARNARD CASTLE RUGBY UNION FOOTBALL CLUB
1 Name
The club will be called Barnard Castle Rugby Union Football Club (the Club) and will be affiliated to the English Rugby Football Union (the RFU) and to the Durham Rugby Union (the DRU).
2 Aims and objectives
The aims and objectives of the Club will be:
· to offer coaching and competitive opportunities in amateur Rugby Football;
· to promote the Club within the local community and Rugby Football;
· to manage the Birch Road Clubhouse and all other assets and facilities owned or occupied by the Club;
· to ensure a duty of care to all members of the Club;
· to provide all its services in a way that is fair and equally accessible to all members of the community;
· to ensure that all present and future members receive fair and equal treatment;
· to keep subscriptions at rates which are reasonable and affordable; and
· to operate as a community amateur sports club.
The Club will maintain at all times a policy of not poaching players from other clubs affiliated to the RFU.
The Club will have due regard to the law and to best practice with regards disability discrimination and child protection.
3 Powers
In furtherance of its aims and objectives, the Club will have power to:
· develop and maintain collaborative working relationships with other bodies;
· provide such services and facilities for its members as it shall deem appropriate;
· acquire or take possession of such property or other rights and facilities as it shall deem necessary;
· maintain and manage such assets as it shall acquire or possess, and make regulation for the proper use and management of same;
· raise funds and invite or receive donations and contributions, whether by subscription or otherwise, provided that the Club shall not engage in permanent trading activities not directly connected with the social, sporting or funding operations of the Club;
· receive money, invest money and borrow money and charge any of the Club’s property with the repayment of such borrowings;
· employ such persons as are necessary for the proper pursuit of the aims and objectives of the Club, provided that no Officer of the Club may be so employed;
· reimburse any person, whether Member or not, for any approved expenses genuinely incurred in the pursuance of the Club’s objectives and operations; and
· effect such insurance cover, and indemnify its employees, Members and voluntary workers from and against all risks incurred in the performance of their duties as the law may require, or the Club may deem appropriate.
4 Trustees
There shall be up to four Trustees of the Club, who shall be appointed as necessary in General Meeting. A Trustee shall hold office during their life, or until they shall resign in writing or until a resolution removing them shall be passed in General Meeting by two thirds of the Members present and entitled to vote.
The Trustees shall hold all property of the Club, to include any surplus or profit, for the use and benefit of the Club, and for no other purpose. The Trustees shall act in regard to any property of the Club in accordance with the directions of the Executive Committee. The Trustees and the Executive Committee shall accordingly be indemnified against expense and risk out of the Club property.
The income and property of this Club shall be applied solely towards promoting the Club’s aims and objectives as set forth in this Constitution, and no portion thereof shall be paid or transferred, directly or indirectly, to the Members of the Club.
5 Membership
Membership shall consist of officers and members of the Club, and no applicant shall be refused on the basis of sex, age, disability, ethnicity, nationality, sexual orientation, religion or other beliefs. The guiding principle will be membership open to all within the bounds set by availability of the Club’s resources. Refusal of membership shall only be made for fair and reasonable cause (e.g. regarding character or conduct likely to bring the Club into disrepute), and will be subject to an appeal process.
All members will be subject to the regulations of the constitution, and by joining the Club will be deemed to accept these regulations and any codes of conduct that the Club has adopted.
Members will be enrolled in one of the following categories:
· Full playing member
· Associate or Social member – (various grades available)
· Junior member (to include Family)
· Life member (either paid or honorary).
Membership fees will be set annually and determined at the Annual General Meeting. Fees will be payable annually, by a date to be determined by the Executive Committee.
6 Officers of the Club
The Officers of the Club will be:
· President (ex officio)
· Chair
· Honorary Secretary
· Treasurer
· any other relevant position approved at General meeting.
With the exception of the President, all Officers will be elected annually at the Annual General Meeting, and will retire each year, but will be eligible for re-appointment. The President will be invited to accept the position by the Executive Committee only.
7 Committee
The Club will be managed through the Executive Committee consisting of the Officers above named plus as many other nominees as the General Meeting shall approve. Only Officers and Members so elected at the General Meeting, plus the President, shall have the right to vote at meetings of the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee may co-opt other non-voting members, may convene consultative and informative meetings, and may form sub-Committees.
The Executive Committee will be convened by the Secretary of the Club and held no less than four times per year. The quorum required for business to be agreed at Executive Committee meetings will be three, which may include the president, the Officers and any other Members directly elected at the General Meeting.
The Executive Committee will be responsible for adopting new policy, codes of conduct and rules that affect the organisation of the Club.
The Executive Committee will have powers to appoint sub-committees as necessary and appoint advisers to the Executive Committee as necessary to fulfil its business.
The Executive Committee will be responsible for disciplinary hearings of members who infringe the Club rules/regulations/constitution. The Executive Committee will be responsible for taking any action of suspension or discipline following such hearings. At least one member of the Executive Committee will take no part in a disciplinary hearing so as to be able, if necessary, to chair and convene any appeals hearing.
The Officers will be individually and collectively empowered to carry out the day to day running of the Club, and to make such decisions as are appropriate given always that these shall be reported to the next appropriate Executive Committee and ratified where appropriate.
8 Finance
The Club Treasurer will be responsible for the finances of the Club.
The financial year of the Club will end on 31st May each year.
The Treasurer will present an audited statement of annual accounts to the next appropriate Executive Committee Meeting and copies will be openly displayed in the Clubhouse. A cumulative statement of management accounts will be presented to each Executive Committee Meeting and to the AGM.
All club monies other than operating cash floats will be banked in accounts held in the name of the Club. All cheques drawn against Club funds should hold the signatures of any two of the three Members nominated to the bank by the elected Officers.
9 Annual General Meetings
The Club Secretary will give notice of the Annual General Meeting (AGM). Not less than 21 clear days’ notice to be given to all members.
The AGM will receive a report from Officers of the Executive Committee, a copy of the most recent final accounts and a cumulative statement of current management accounts.
The Secretary prior to the AGM or at the Meeting will take nominations for members of the Executive Committee. Nominations for Officers should normally be submitted to the Secretary prior to the AGM.
Elections of Officers and Members of the Executive Committee are to take place at the AGM, where all senior members have the right to vote. The Executive Committee has the right to call Extraordinary General Meetings (EGMs) outside the AGM. Procedures for EGMs will be the same as for the AGM.
10 Discipline and appeals
All complaints regarding the behaviour of members should be submitted in writing to the Secretary. All appeals against refusal of membership should be similarly submitted. At the direction of the Secretary, the Executive Committee will appoint a panel from its membership to meet to hear complaints or appeals against refusal of membership within 21 days of their being lodged.
The Executive Committee has the power to take appropriate disciplinary action including the termination of membership. The outcome of a disciplinary hearing should be notified in writing to the person who lodged the complaint and the member against whom the complaint was made within 5 days of the hearing. A similar response time frame will apply to appeals against refusal of membership.
There will be the right of appeal in writing against the decision of the Executive Committee Panel within 21 days of notification of the outcome. The Executive Committee should then appoint a separate Appeals Panel which should consider the application within 10 days of the Secretary receiving the appeal.
11 Dissolution
A resolution to dissolve the club can only be passed at an AGM or EGM through a vote by not less than three quarters of the membership in attendance. Such resolution shall be expressly included in the notice of the meeting.
In the event of dissolution, the Trustees and Executive Committee shall be responsible for the orderly winding up of the Club’s affairs. Any assets of the Club that remain will become the property of the RFU for use by them in community related sports, unless the final General Meeting shall direct some or all of those assets to some other club which is CASC registered, and which has similar objectives to those of the Club.
12 Amendments to the constitution
The constitution will only be changed by majority vote at an AGM or EGM.
13 Declaration
Barnard Castle Rugby Union Football Club hereby adopts and accepts this constitution as a current operating guide regulating the actions of members. It is to be read in conjunction with the document DORIT 2006 which defines the mission statement and key objectives for the Development of Rugby in Teesdale, or with any superseding document adopted by the Club.
Interpretation of all the Clauses as set out above shall be consistent with the statutory requirements for CASCs as first provided for by the Finance Act 2002, and any subsequent additions and amendments thereto.
SIGNED: ..................................................... DATE: ..................................................
Name: …David Jackson…………………Position………..Club Chairman
SIGNED: ..................................................... DATE: ..................................................
Name: ….Tim Worley……………………..Position………..Club Secretary
RFU.com 
Search
