New Constitution
Posted in General News - January 27 2010
At the last AGM our new Constitution was approved .
1. Name.
The Cub shall be called The Schull Harbour Sailing Club, hereinafter referred to as The Club. The Club will be incorporated as a company limited by guarantee.
2. Headquarters.
The club will be based at Schull, Co. Cork and all written correspondence should be addressed to SHSC, C/o The Post Office, Schull, Co. Cork.
3. Club Flag.
The Club burgee shall be Long Island Beacon on a blue background with the lettering SHSC running vertically down the mast edge.
4. Objects of The Club.
The promotion of sailing (racing and cruising) within a friendly, sociable environment. The Club shall be affiliated to the Irish Sailing Association
5. Club Management.
Being a limited liability company The Club shall appoint 3(three) Directors, one of which shall be the Company Secretary. The Directors will be elected at the Annual General Meeting, or a properly convened Extraordinary General Meeting, and will automatically stand for re-election every 5(five) years.
The daily management of the club shall be by an executive committee comprising the Commodore, Vice-Commodore, Financial Officer, Club Secretary, Membership Secretary, and Sailing Captain. This executive committee will be elected at the Annual General Meeting, or a properly convened Extraordinary General Meeting. The Commodore and Vice-Commodore will be elected for a 2(two) year term of office, the other office holding members of the committee will stand for re-election every year.
The executive committee may then appoint or co-opt further members to the committee from time to time as deemed necessary for the efficient running of The Club.
Proposals for the election of club officials should be received in writing at The Club headquarters, or by e-mail, at least 7(seven) days prior to meeting at which elections are to be conducted. A member being proposed for office must be a current member of The Club, be over 18 years of age, must have given their permission and have both a proposer and a seconder.
All positions within the management team of The Club are honorary and no payments shall be made except the reimbursement of reasonable expenses directly incurred on behalf of The Club.
6. Club Meetings.
a. Annual General Meetings (AGM).
A general meeting of members of the club shall be held annually. Notice of meeting to be posted or e-mailed to the members 21 days in advance of the meeting, and prior to the meeting members to receive copies of the annual accounts together with nominations received for club officers. The business of the meeting will include:
Approve the minutes of the previous year’s AGM.
Receive report from the Commodore and the Directors.
Receive a report from the Financial Officer and approve the Annual Accounts.
Appoint auditors responsible for auditing The Club’s accounts.
Elect the Executive Committee.
Fix the subscription rates for the ensuing year.
Consider any proposal which has been received for changes to the Constitution.
Deal with other relevant business.
10 Members shall form a quorum at a general meeting. Only members whose subscription is paid up to date are entitled to vote. Each subscription within a category carries one vote. Only members over 18 years of age are entitled to vote.
b. Extraordinary General Meetings (EGM).
An EGM of the membership can be called at any time on a resolution of the committee or at the request of 20 ordinary members. Notice of meeting to be posted or e-mailed to the members 21 days in advance of the meeting. 10 Members shall form a quorum at a general meeting.
c. Board Meetings
Board meetings may be convened at any time as thought necessary by the Board. There shall, however, be at least one Board meeting held annually in advance of the AGM. The Board may require any club officers they wish to attend such meetings.
d. Committee Meetings
Committee meeting will be called by the Commodore, or by any member of the Board, as is thought necessary. Four officers will form a quorum for such a meeting and minutes will be kept of all decisions taken at such meetings. All committee members and Board members are entitled to attend such meetings.
7. Membership.
There are three classes of subscription membership:
- Boat Owner Membership (Boat Owner Membership is defined as an individual or individuals who own a boat together with their spouses or partners and any children of the adults who are under eighteen years of age as of the 1st May in the year of membership)
- Individual Membership.
- Family Membership (Family Membership is defined as Two Adults and all or any children of the adults under eighteen years of age as of the 1st May in the year of membership)
Membership subscriptions will be set each year at the AGM and become payable on the 1st January. All memberships paid before 1st June will be subject to a discount to encourage prompt payment. The level of the prompt payment discount will be set at the AGM along with the subscription rates.
Applications for memberships can be made to any Committee Member for the time being as defined in this constitution. An applicant for membership shall become a member of Schull Harbour Sailing Club on approval by a majority vote of the Committee and payment of the relevant membership subscription.
The admission and dismissal of all members shall be solely at the discretion of the committee.
8. Sailing Rules.
All boats taking part in an event organised by The Club must have a nominated ‘skipper’. It will normally be assumed that the boat owner is the ‘skipper’ so long as he is on board during the event. If the owner is not on his boat during an event then the nominated ‘skipper’, who must be a member of The Club, takes full responsibility for the boat and undertakes the following assurances.
All boat owners and skippers, by taking part in a club event, provide an assurance to The Club that:
- they have adequate insurance cover against loss, damage or injury to persons, boats or equipment at all times and however occurring and shall maintain adequate third party insurance cover and can produce a valid certificate of insurance upon request.
- their boats have sufficient and appropriate safety equipment on board for the type of sailing being undertaken and that their crew have been sufficiently briefed in the use of such equipment should it ever prove necessary.
All boats taking part in The Club racing events which are based upon the ECHO progressive handicap must have a current ECHO certificate issued by the ISA.
All boats taking part in The Club racing events which are based upon the IRC handicap system must hold a current IRC cert.
All boat owners and skippers undertake to comply with the administrative requirements and rules laid down from time to time by the committee to help organise efficient and safe sailing events.
The committee shall be responsible for adopting a set of Sailing Instructions at the beginning of each season that shall, subject to the provisions of this constitution, govern the conduct of club sailing.
9. Other Matters.
The committee, whose decision shall be final, shall deal with any other matter not provided for within this constitution.
10. Dissolution.
In the event of the dissolution of the club, the assets shall be realised and any surplus, after payment of all liabilities, shall not be paid to the members but shall be applied at the discretion of the Directors for the promotion of the sport of sailing, in such a way as they think proper.
11. Changes to the Constitution.
All club members, whether office holders or any class of ordinary members, may propose changes to the constitution subject to their being over 18 years of age. Any proposal by an ordinary member of the club for any changes to this constitution shall be sent in writing to The Club headquarters at least one month before the date of the AGM. All such proposed alterations, which must be proposed and seconded, shall be circulated to the members with the notice of the meeting and put to the vote of the meeting. Provided a majority of two thirds of the votes of those present shall be cast in favour then it shall be deemed to form part of the constitution of The Club.