Constitution
- Name
The name of the group shall be Les Amitiés Françaises de Waverley, hereinafter known as The Association .
- Aim
The aim of The Association is to organise events to promote French culture and the French language,
- Membership
Paying Membership is open to anyone who:
- is aged over 18
- supports the aim of the Association
Note: School members will be permitted to attend talks on a non-paying basis.
Membership will begin as soon as the membership form and first annual payment has been received.
There will be an annual membership fee which will be notified at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) and will be payable by all members (see below). This fee will be decided from time to time by the committee and advised to the members. This will give the members:
- access to monthly meetings
- access to the AGM and voting rights
- ability to sign up for any visits or hospitality events
- access to the closed WhatsApp group
A list of all members will be kept by the Membership Secretary.
The Association has a Data Privacy policy, which is shown on its website.
3.1 Ceasing to be a member
Members may resign at any time in writing to the Membership Secretary.
Any member who has not paid their membership fee for one year will be contacted by the committee, who will then decide whether that member is deemed to have resigned.
Any offensive behaviour, including racist, sexist or inflammatory remarks, will not be permitted. Anyone behaving in an offensive way or breaking the equal opportunities policy may be asked not to attend further meetings or to resign from the Association if an apology is not given or the behaviour is repeated. The individual concerned shall have the right to be heard by the committee, accompanied by a friend, before a final decision is made.
- Equal Opportunities
The Association will not discriminate on the grounds of sex, race (including colour, ethnic or national origin), sexual orientation, disability, gender reassignment, religious or political belief, pregnancy or maternity, marital status or age.
- Officers and committee
The business of the Association will be carried out by a Committee elected at the Annual General Meeting.
A committee member is elected on an annual basis, but can be re-elected indefinitely.
In the event of an Officer standing down during the year a replacement will be elected by the committee and endorsed by the members at the next Annual General Meeting.
Committee meetings will usually be held every two months, with a minimum of 4 per annum. The date of each committee meeting will be agreed at the previous committee meeting. If necessary, they can be held by electronic means.
The quorum for Committee meetings is three Committee members.
The Committee will consist of a maximum of 8 members and a minimum of 3. The Committee will appoint Officers to the following roles:
- Chair, who shall chair both general and committee meetings. In the absence of the Chair, a meeting will be chaired by a committee member appointed by a simple majority of committee members present.
- Secretary, who shall be responsible for the taking of minutes and the distribution of all papers
- Membership Secretary, who shall be responsible for keeping records of members
- Treasurer who shall be responsible for maintaining accounts and financial control
- Programme Secretary who is responsible for organising the meetings and events
- Communications Secretary, who will manage the Website, monthly Info’mail, Facebook page and other communication and publicity channels.
All questions that arise at any meeting will be discussed openly and the meeting will seek to find general agreement that everyone present can agree to.
If a consensus cannot be reached a vote will be taken and a decision will be made by a simple majority of members present. If the number of votes cast on each side is equal, the chair of the meeting shall have an additional casting vote.
Any Committee member not attending three meetings, within the calendar year, without apology will be contacted by the Secretary and asked if they wish to resign.
Committee meetings are open to the elected committee members, however, from time to time, it may be necessary to invite a member of the Association with certain specialist skills or knowledge to attend a meeting, but they will have no voting right.
- Meetings
If necessary, General Meetings can be held by electronic means.
6.1. Annual General Meetings
An Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held each year, following the approval of the accounts by the Committee and following their independent examination.
All members will be notified in writing at least 4 weeks before the date of the meeting, giving the venue, date and time.
Nominations for the committee may be made to the Secretary before the meeting, or at the meeting.
The quorum for the AGM will be 10% of the membership or 10 members, whichever is the greater number.
At the AGM:
The Committee will present a report of the work of The Association.
- during the past year.
- The Committee will present the accounts of The Assocation for the past year.
- The Officers and Committee for the next year will each be elected by one proposer and one seconder from among those ordinary members qualified to attend. The names of those proposing and seconding will be minuted.
- Any proposals given to the Secretary at least 7 days in advance of the meeting will be discussed.
6.2 Special General Meetings
The Secretary will call a Special General Meeting at the request of the majority of the committee or at least eight other members giving a written request to the Chair or Secretary stating the reason for their request.
The meeting will take place within twenty-one days of the request.
All members will be given two weeks’ notice of such a meeting, giving the venue, date, time and agenda, and notice may be by telephone, email or post.
The quorum for the Special General Meeting will be 10% of the membership or 10 members, whichever is the greater number.
6.3 Events
Events are open to all paid-up members and guests accepted for the event and will be held regularly throughout the year in accordance with The Association’s activity programme.
These events will be held in Godalming or as otherwise announced and on the dates as listed in the programme.
- Finances
An account will be maintained on behalf of the Association at a bank agreed by the committee. Cheque signatory(ies) will be nominated by the Committee (one to be the Treasurer). The signatories must not be related nor members of the same household.
All payments must be authorised by the Treasurer.
- For cheque payments, two signatories are required.
- For other payments, a requisition note will be sent to the Treasurer by the committee member requesting the payment, for approval. These notes will be held by the Treasurer.’
Records of income and expenditure will be maintained by the Treasurer and a financial statement given at each meeting. The Treasurer will carry out budget forecasts and other financial work as necessary.
The financial year end of the Association will be the 30th June or as otherwise amended.
Thereafter, the Treasurer will prepare the annual statement of accounts for approval by the committee and independent examination.
All money raised by or on behalf of The Association is only to be used to further its aims as specified in item 2 of this constitution.
- Amendments to the Constitution
Amendments to the constitution may only be made at the Annual General Meeting or a Special General Meeting.
Any proposal to amend the constitution must be given to the Secretary in writing. The proposal must then be circulated with the notice of meeting.
Any proposal to amend the constitution will require a two thirds majority of those present and entitled to vote.
- Dissolution
The Association may be dissolved by a resolution passed by two-thirds of those present and voting at a Special General Meeting called for this purpose (see 6.2 for the procedure to be followed for calling a Special General Meeting).
If it is agreed to dissolve the Association, all remaining money and other assets, once outstanding debts have been paid, will be donated to a local charitable organisation, or a body having similar aims to the Association. The organisation will be agreed at the meeting which agrees the dissolution.
- Adoption of new constitution
This amended constitution was agreed at the Committee of The Association held February 2022 and duly recorded in the minutes of The Association
Date …28……/…09………/……2021……….
Name and position …Christine Mathez-Davey. President……………………………………….
Signed ………Agreed in 28/09/2021 Committee meeting minutes………………………………….
Name and position …Alan Liddle. Secretary……………………………………….
Signed ……… Agreed in 28/09/2021 Committee meeting minutes ………………………………….