Club Constitution
Nottingham Radio Control Society (Langar Model Aircraft Club)
CONSITUTION
Words of masculine gender should be taken to include the feminine gender unless the context indicates otherwise.
GENERAL
- The club is called Nottingham Radio Control Society and is known as
Langar Model Aircraft Club / Langar MAC. It is affiliated to the British Model Flying Association. - The aim of the club shall be the promotion of the safe and responsible
flying of fixed wing model aircraft. - Alterations to this constitution can only be made at an Annual General
Meeting or at an Extraordinary General Meeting called for that purpose. Any
Proposed alterations must be submitted to the secretary in writing at least 14 days prior to the meeting.
MEMBERS - A “member” means any class of membership.
- The Committee has the right to refuse membership to new applicants.
- New members will be required to serve an initial probationary period
of 3 months. - A limit on the number of members may be implemented with
agreement of the membership at an AGM or EGM. New applicants that are
either Juniors or new to the hobby may be excepted. - All club members must be members of the British Model Flying
Association and must be able to provide evidence of such on request. The
only exception to this is for those members who play no active part in flying
activities at sites where the Club has an involvement, i.e. social members
only. - A member may be made a life member for extensive services to the
club. Life members can only be created by a majority ballot of club members
at the Annual General Meeting. - All members, without exception, must comply with all club rules.
Failure to do so may result in disciplinary action by the Club which may lead
to dismissal. - Members may invite guest fliers to the site only by arrangement with
the Committee. The club member must assume total responsibility for the
actions and safety of their guest who must also hold BMFA membership. - Subscriptions are due by the 1stJanuary each year. Current Members
may defer this until the 31st January but after this date will not qualify for any early payment reduction. BMFA membership must be in place before flying. New members joining after the 1st Sept will pay half the subscription fee.
RULES, DISCIPLINE AND SAFETY - Additions and amendments to field safety rules can only be made by
proposals at a General Meeting. - All field safety rules and regulations will be reviewed annually, and will
be considered binding for 12 months, excepting where urgent action is
required. This action must then be ratified by the members at the next
general meeting. - Any complaint concerning a member must be made in writing, signed
by the complainant(s) and then forwarded to the Club Secretary to be
addressed at a committee meeting convened for that purpose. - Where an allegation of misconduct is made against a member, the
member may be suspended from all club activities while an investigation is
carried out. - The Committee may impose a suspension from flying at a club venue,
not exceeding 28 days, upon any member in the event of misconduct. Any
suspension must be accompanied by a verbal and/or written warning as
deemed appropriate in accordance with the procedure in clause 21. - The Committee may consider removal of membership where conduct
on the field or elsewhere is considered to be prejudicial to the club. Dismissal will be in accordance with the following procedure in order to comply with the laws of natural justice:
- The member is to be given a verbal warning by an
authorised Committee Member in which the member is
made aware of his misdemeanour and what he is
reasonably required to do to make amends. - If the member does not respond, he is to be given a
written warning by an authorised Committee Member to
advise him of his misdemeanour and what he is
reasonably required to do to make amends. - If he still fails to respond, the Committee should invite
him in writing to meet with them at an agreed date and
time to discuss the situation, advising that they are
considering withdrawal of his membership. - If he still fails to respond to reasoning or fails to attend
without reasonable cause, the Committee can advise him
in writing that his membership is withdrawn, stating the
reasons why this decision was reached. - When the member is advised of withdrawal of his
membership, he must be given the right of appeal. If he
opts to appeal, this will be to the Club membership at an
EGM which the Committee would call on his behalf at an
agreed date and time. The motion to uphold the
membership withdrawal or reverse it must be by a
majority vote of all members present at the meeting. - In the event of gross misconduct, immediate dismissal
without warnings may be considered but the member
must still be accorded his rights to present his case to the
Committee and be given a right of appeal in accordance
with sub-paragraphs c, d and e above. - In the event of dismissal, the Committee will arrange for
the member’s current membership fee to be reimbursed
in full.
- Members must not use the club or its facilities for financial gain.
FLYING - The Committee, Officers and Instructors, will be responsible for the
running of the flying field at all times. Appointment to the position of
Instructor or Examiner can only be made by a Committee decision. - All flying members must have passed the BMFA Achievement Scheme
‘A’ Certificate before being permitted to fly unsupervised. If the ‘A’ Certificate was gained away from the Langar Model Flying Club, the member must satisfy a club examiner or committee member of their competence and
awareness of the conditions at the club flying site. - If in the opinion of a committee member, instructor or examiner, any
member whose flying standards drop below the minimum requirement solo
standard will be required to rejoin the training scheme until the desired
standards of flying are met.
COMMITTEE STRUCTURE AND APPOINTMENTS - The club shall be administered and guided by an elected committee of
five members, all of whom must hold membership of the British Model Flying Association. They shall be as follows: –
- Chairman: – shall be responsible for the running of all club
meetings. He shall also be responsible for the corporate
image of the Club to the general public at large. He will
have a casting vote when there is a tie in voting at a
General Meeting. - Vice Chairman: – will assist the Chairman in his duties if
required. He may also take over the duties of the
Chairman should it be necessary. - Secretary: – will be responsible for the day to day running
of the Club. He will be responsible for correspondence &
will furnish the Chairman with an agenda for all Club
meetings and supply all necessary papers for the
conducting of these meetings. - Treasurer: – will be responsible for the safe keeping and
prudent handling of all club income and expenditure. He
will obtain receipts for all transactions made. He will
present the accounts for audit. He must present the
books 1 week before the AGM and present the balance
sheet to the Secretary for distribution at the AGM. - Safety Officer: – will be responsible for ensuring that both
the BMFA and the Club Safety Codes are followed. He will
be assisted by all other Committee members acting as
Assistant Safety Officers. - Membership Representative: – will be responsible for
reviewing new memberships & act on behalf of a member
who is undergoing any grievance or disciplinary
procedures. - Training Officer: – covers all aspects of training
requirements for the membership.
- The Committee posts stand for a term of the following year by a simple
majority of the members present at the meeting, unless a vote of noconfidence is passed at the AGM or EGM. - Subject to venue availability, the committee shall aim to hold regular
meeting and to convene for any urgent business that may arise. - Committee members shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting
from written nominations, received prior to the meeting. The Committee will
be elected by majority vote by show of hands from members present. All fully paid-up members and life members are eligible to vote. - Should a committee position become vacant, the Committee may, by a
majority vote, co-opt a replacement who will then serve until the following
Annual General Meeting.
COMMITTEE ORGANISATION AND POWERS - Members elected to office will have full voting rights at all meetings. In
the event of a tie the Chairman will have a casting vote in addition to his
initial standing vote. - The Committee are authorised to carry out negotiations and make
decisions in the interest of the club or on behalf of the membership where
necessary without consulting the members beforehand. Approval for large
expenditures (>£500) should involve the memberships approval. - Any Committee Member or Officer wishing to resign before completing
their term must do so in writing to the Club Chairman or Secretary as
appropriate. - Any member of the Committee who is absent from three consecutive
Committee meetings without reasonable cause will automatically forfeit his
seat on the Committee.
VOTING AND CONDUCT OF COMMITTEE MEETINGS - All committee meetings will be agenda’d and minuted. Minutes of
committee meetings will be made available to members on request to the
secretary. - A quorum of any Committee meeting shall consist of a majority of
Committee Members. - All proposals must be seconded and voted upon. A majority vote of
those present is required to carry any proposal. - Voting will normally be by a show of hands, however a secret ballot
must be taken should any committee member request that this be done.
Proxy and postal votes will not be permitted. - An audio recording of committee meetings may be taken by the
secretary only, for the sole purpose of producing accurate minutes. The audio recording must be deleted once the written minutes are approved. - Non committee members may attend committee meetings as
observers by applying to the Secretary at least 14 days before the meeting.
Any non Committee Member may be asked to leave the meeting subject to
approval from the Committee.
VOTING AND CONDUCT OF GENERAL MEETINGS - All general meetings will be agenda’d and minuted. Any other business will
only be accepted at general meetings if the Secretary is given at least 14 days notice in writing of the item to be discussed. - A quorum of any general meeting is to be at least one quarter of the
membership. - All proposals must be seconded and voted upon. A majority vote of those
present is required to carry any proposal including proposals to alter this
constitution. - Voting will normally be by a show of hands, however a secret ballot must
be taken should any member request that this be done. Proxy and postal votes will not be permitted. - Amendments to proposals must be voted upon first.
- An audio recording of general meetings may be taken by the secretary
only, for the sole purpose of producing accurate minutes. The audio recording must be deleted once the written minutes are approved. - Non club members may attend Club meetings as observers as invited
guests of a club by applying to the Secretary at least 14 days before the meeting. Any non Club member may be asked to leave the meeting subject to approval from the Committee. - The Committee, through the Chairman has the power to ask a person to
leave any meeting in the event of that person disrupting the meeting. - Patrons of the club have no voting rights but are free to attend all club
meetings.
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGS - A date for the Annual General Meeting will be decided each year by the
Committee. At least 28 days notice of the meeting will be given in writing to all Club members. - Annual subscriptions and the joining fee will be decided at the Annual
General Meeting. - A competent individual (non-committee member) shall be elected by the
Committee to carry out an independent examination of the accounts before the Annual General Meeting to verify that the balance sheet is correct and fairly represents the expenditure and receipts of the club, its assets and its liabilities.
EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETINGS - The Secretary will convene an Extraordinary Committee Meeting within 14
days on request from any officer of the Committee, stating the business to be discussed. - The Secretary shall convene an Extraordinary General Meeting of the club
by a resolution of the Committee stating the business to be brought before the meeting, of which 14 days notice has been given to all members in writing stating the business to be discussed. - The Secretary shall convene an Extraordinary General Meeting of the club
on receipt of a request in writing signed by not less than 10 members of the
club, stating the business to be brought before the meeting. The meeting must be called within 28 days of request and 14 days notice must be given to all members in writing stating the business to be discussed. - When a request for a meeting is made in accordance with Article 51 and it
is not called within 28 days, the requisitioners may themselves convene an
Extraordinary General Meeting of the Club by giving 14 days notice in writing to all members, duly setting out the purpose for which the meeting was called. Any resolutions passed at such a meeting shall have the same force and effect as if they were passed at a meeting convened by the Committee.
INSURANCE AND INDEMNITY - The club will hold both Civil and Employers Liability Insurance,
provided through affiliation with the BMFA. - The club will indemnify all committee members if they incur any
liability on behalf of the club. - In the event of a Committee Member being awarded damages or costs
in the course of proceedings taken by him in his representative capacity, such damages or costs will belong to the Club and not the Committee Member personally and upon receipt that Committee Member will pay them to the Club Treasurer. - When there is a joint meeting between the Langar Model Flying Club
and another club, the participating club must be able to provide evidence of
adequate insurance cover well in advance of the event.
DISSOLUTION OF THE CLUB - Should it be considered necessary or desirable to dissolve the Club, the
Committee will call an Extraordinary General Meeting. Should a quorum fail
to appear, the meeting will be adjourned and a further EGM must be called
within 14 days. The second meeting will proceed even if a quorum is not
present and the motion will then be carried by a simple majority vote. - On dissolution and after the sale of assets, settlement of all
outstanding debts and the refund of subscriptions for the remaining part of
the year to the paid up members; the funds remaining will be distributed to
an appropriate charity identified by the majority of the committee. - If the final accounts are less than required to refund the subscriptions
to the members, the total money remaining will be held in trust by the BMFA
for a period of ten years. All members will receive a final statement of
accounts.
BMFA Note :- Upon dissolution where clubs place funds in trust with the
BMFA it is held for up to 10 years and returned in the event the club is
reformed. After 10 years the funds get transfered to the Development fund
and used to further model flying in the UK.