CDARS Constitution

Chesham & District Amateur Radio Society
Constitution
14 April 2021

Name

The name of the society is the Chesham and District Amateur Radio Society.

Aims

The aims of the Society are to further the interests of its members in all aspects of amateur radio and directly associated activities.

Membership

Membership is open, subject to the discretion of the Committee, to all persons interested in furthering the aims of the Society. There are the following categories of membership:

  1. Full members are 18 years of age or over.
  2. Student members are under 18 years of age.
  3. Associate Membership may be granted at the discretion of the Committee to persons who wish to assist the Society. Associate Members have no voting rights at CDARS. Associate Membership is free of subscription and is renewed annually.
  4. Honorary life membership may be granted to any person who, in the opinion of the Committee, has rendered outstanding service to the Society, either directly or indirectly. Such membership shall carry the rights of full membership but shall be free of subscriptions.
  5. Members are encouraged to invite guests to meetings. Visitors will be asked to make a contribution towards the Society’s running costs.

All members shall abide by the constitution of the society. The Committee has the power to expel any member whose conduct, in the opinion of at least three quarters of the full committee, renders that person unfit to be a member of the Society. No member shall be expelled without first having been given an opportunity to appear before the Committee.

Subscriptions

The annual membership subscription fee shall be proposed by the Treasurer, and agreed at an AGM.

All subscriptions are due and payable at the beginning of the financial year. Members more than two calendar months in arrears will lose their voting rights.

The financial year runs from 1 January to 31 December.

A member is deemed to have resigned from the Society if, by the end of the financial year, the subscription has not been paid.

Subscriptions for members joining more than three calendar months after the start of the financial year may be determined on a pro rata basis.

Membership of the Society’s Committee

The Society’s affairs are administered by a Committee elected at the Annual General Meeting.

The Committee, in whom the Society’s property shall be vested, consists of :

  1. A Chairman who presides at all meetings at which he/she is present. It is expected that a member will not hold this position for more than three consecutive years, but this may be extended at an AGM. The Chairman shall appoint a person, usually another Committee member, to act on his/her behalf on each occasion at which he/she is unable to attend a Committee Meeting, Annual General Meeting or Extra-Ordinary General Meeting.
  2. A Secretary, who is responsible for:
  • keeping the minutes of meetings of the Society
  • ensuring that correspondence is correctly handled
  • maintaining a roll of members and honorary members
  • maintaining a register of Society equipment
  1. A Treasurer, who will be responsible for:
  • all financial transactions made on behalf of the Society, and is accountable to the Committee for all such expenditure.
  • keeping the Society’s accounts
  • advising the Committee on all financial matters
  • preparing the accounts for audit and presenting them at the AGM
  1. Not less than two, and not more than five, Ordinary Committee Members
  2. Not more than two co-opted members who have full voting powers, and not more than three co-opted members who are not permitted to vote

During or before the first Committee Meeting each year the Chairman shall assign portfolios to committee members, appropriate to the activities of the Society at the time. These may include, but not necessarily be confined to:

  1. Contest Coordinator
  2. Events Manager
  3. Licence Course Manager
  4. Programme Diary Manager
  5. Publicity Manager
  6. Purchasing Manager
  7. QSL Manager
  8. RSGB Exam Secretary
  9. Webmaster

Committee Standing Orders

The quorum for the Committee shall be at least half of those members of the Committee with voting rights. In the absence of a quorum business may be dealt with but any decisions taken only become valid after ratification either at the next meeting at which a quorum exists or similarly by electronic communication.

Committee meetings may be called by the Chairman, the Secretary, or any three elected members of the Committee.

Committee meetings may be held in person or using an online service at the discretion and with the agreement of the whole committee.

The Chairman may vote. In the event of a tie the Chairman has a second, casting, vote.

At the discretion of the Chairman, Committee business may be conducted by means of electronic communication such as email, telephone, online meeting or texting.

Annual General Meeting

The AGM shall normally be held on a Wednesday before 1st March each year. At least 21 days’ notice shall be given to each member in writing or by electronic communication and an announcement on the Society’s website.

The AGM may be held in person, or using an online service at the discretion of the Committee.

The quorum for the meeting shall be at least one third of the membership.

The agenda for the meeting is:

  1. Register of those present
  2. Apologies for absence
  3. Minutes of the previous AGM
  4. Chairman’s report
  5. Secretary’s report
  6. Treasurer’s report
  7. Election of the new Committee
  8. Appointment of auditors
  9. Other business

Items a) to f) are chaired by the outgoing Chairman, item g) by an acting Chairman who is not standing for office and the remaining business by the newly elected Chairman.

Nominations for Committee members will only be valid if confirmed by the nominee at the meeting or previously in writing.

Items to be raised by members under Any Other Business should be notified to the Secretary not less than 21 days before the AGM. Items not pre-notified may be accepted, at the Chairman’s discretion, but may be held over to a later date.

Extra-ordinary General Meeting

An Extraordinary General Meeting may be called by the Committee or not less than one fifth of the members of the Society, the date of the meeting being the earliest convenient as decided by the Committee. At least 28 days’ notice in writing must be given to the Secretary who in turn shall give members at least 14 days’ notice in writing or by electronic means of the agenda. No other business may be transacted at the EGM.

The quorum for the EGM shall be at least one third of the membership of the Society.

Members may authorise a proxy to vote on their behalf at an EGM after notice in writing to the Secretary.

Amendments to the Constitution

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

Winding up of the Society

The decision to wind up the Society can be taken only at an EGM.

The funds of the Society shall, after the sale of all assets and the payment of outstanding debts, be disposed of as directed by members at the final EGM.