| Words of masculine gender should be taken to include the feminine gender unless the context indicates otherwise. | ||
GENERAL | ||
| 1 | The club shall be called SLEAP MODEL FLYERS and will be affiliated to the British Model Flying Association. | |
| 2 | Only appointed committee members should enter into any discussions related to the club with the members of Shropshire Aircraft Club (SAC) or other person having an influence or in control of a flying site. A minimum of two committee members shall be present at any such meeting or discussion with SAC, except where one committee member is appointed as special liaison officer. All conversations and discussions must be immediately reported to the committee. | |
| 3 | The club's principal aim shall be the promotion of safe and responsible model aircraft flying for sport and pleasure. Flying is permitted of Radio Controlled, and Control Line Electric and IC aircraft and helicopters. | |
| 4 | Alterations to this constitution can only be made at an Annual General Meeting or at a 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 | ||
| 5 | Membership applications shall be circulated to the committee for review, and to members if the committee determines appropriate. The Committee has the right to refuse membership to applicants. The club operates a policy of non-discrimination on the basis of protected characteristics, including race, colour, disability and sexuality. | |
| 6 | New members will serve an initial probationary period of 12 months. During this time they will not be eligible to serve on the Committee and may have their membership terminated at the discretion of the Committee for unsatisfactory conduct or as being incompatible with the membership or objectives of the club. | |
| 7 | New members’ subscriptions shall be as determined by the committee. | |
| 8 | The club will circulate communications and information by electronic means including email and supported groups such as SMF WhatsApp. Where appropriate they will also be available on the members area of the SMF website. It is the member’s responsibility to ensure that they check regularly and are currently up to date. | |
| 9 | Members should send their important communications to the secretary directly. | |
| 10 | Members must pay the next year’s membership fee in full by the last day of the current year (December 31st) in order to maintain their membership for the following year. Fees must be paid directly into the Sleap Model Flyers bank account. | |
| 11 | Members who have not renewed their membership for the following year by Dec 31st of the current year will be deemed to have left the club and a renewal after this period will be treated as a new membership. | |
| 12 | All 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 the club whatsoever; i.e. social members only. | |
| 13 | All members must comply with current CAA requirements. Evidence of CAA registration must be provided on request. The only exception is for those members who play no active part in the club whatsoever: I.E. social members only. | |
| 14 | All members, without exception, must comply with all club and site rules. Failure to do so may result in disciplinary action by the Club which may lead to dismissal. | |
| 15 | Members may invite guest fliers to the site only after prior arrangement with the Committee but they must be BMFA insured and the club member must assume total responsibility for the actions and safety of the guest. Guests must fly under the supervision of instructors if their ability requires it, and such arrangements must be made in advance of the visit. | |
RULES, DISCIPLINE AND SAFETY | ||
| (see Appendix 1, Pg 8 for disciplinary procedure guidance) | ||
| 16 | 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. | |
| 17 | Any complaint concerning any member must be made in writing and signed by the complainant(s). The written complaint must then be forwarded to the Secretary so that the matter can be addressed at the next Committee meeting. | |
| 18 | Where an allegation of misconduct is made against a member, the member may, at the discretion of the committee, be suspended from all club activities while an investigation is carried out. | |
| 19 | The Committee may impose a suspension from club activities including attendance at the club flying site, not exceeding 60 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 Article 20. | |
| 20 | 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: | |
| a. | 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 misdemeanor and what he is reasonably required to do to make amends. | |
| b. | If he still fails to respond, the Committee should invite him in writing to meet with them at a previously agreed date and time to discuss the situation, advising they are considering withdrawal of his membership. | |
| c. | 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. | |
| d. | When the member is advised of withdrawal of his membership, has the right of appeal. If he opts to appeal, this will be to the Club membership either at a General Meeting. The motion to reverse the withdrawal of membership would require a majority vote of the membership present. | |
In the event of gross misconduct, immediate dismissal without warnings may be considered. The member may present his case to the Committee and appeal in accordance with paragraph d above. In the event of dismissal the Committee will arrange for the member’s current SMF membership fee (excluding BMFA subscription) to be reimbursed in full. | ||
FLYING | ||
| 21 | 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. | |
| 22 | All flying members must have a BMFA “A” certificate, or be approved as able to fly in a sufficiently controlled and safe manner by an instructor, examiner, or committee member before being permitted to fly unsupervised. The approval must be recorded, and may be withdrawn if necessary if the standard of flying is not maintained. | |
| 23 | Any member whose flying standards drop below the minimum requirement solo standard or are unsafe will be required to rejoin the training scheme until the desired standards of flying are met. | |
COMMITTEE STRUCTURE AND APPOINTMENTS | ||
| 24 | The Committee of the Club shall comprise of not more than 5 members. | |
| 25 | The Officers of the committee shall be, Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, Webmaster, Flying / Safety Officer, who may assume other positions such as vice chairman, and site maintenance. | |
| 26 | One senior club member should be appointed annually as the clubs’ BMFA delegate who should represent the club at relevant meetings if required. | |
| 27 | All Committee and ordinary members, must hold membership of the British Model Flying Association. | |
| 28 | Committee officers and members shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting from written nominations received no later than 28 days prior to the meeting, to serve for a period of one year. The Committee will be elected by majority vote from members present. All fully paid up members and life members are eligible to vote. Only in the event that no nominations are received in advance for a committee position will it be permitted to accept nominations from the floor at the Annual General Meeting. | |
| 29 | 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 | ||
| 30 | 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. | |
| 31 | 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. Approval from the membership at an ordinary meeting must be sought for expenditure greater than £750. | |
| 32 | Each Committee officer is required to submit a sample of his signature for banking reference purposes. | |
| 33 | On-line payments for services or materials required by the club, and approved by the committee may be made by the Treasurer. | |
| 34 | The Secretary must be informed of any negotiations proposed by club members which affect the Club as a whole and copies of any written correspondence must be submitted to him for record purposes. | |
| 35 | The Secretary or other committee member will be reimbursed for expenses reasonably incurred in their position on the committee, or as approved by the committee. | |
| 36 | No member of the Committee or Officer of the club may be a Committee Member or Officer of another model flying club. | |
| 37 | Any Committee Member or Officer wishing to resign must do so in writing. | |
| 38 | Any member of the Committee who is absent from three consecutive Committee meetings without reasonable cause may forfeit his seat on the Committee, at the discretion of the other committee members. | |
| 39 | The Committee may pay accounts and incur any normal liabilities on behalf of the club. | |
VOTING AND CONDUCT OF COMMITTEE MEETINGS | ||
| 40 | All committee meetings will be agenda’d and minuted. Minutes of committee meetings will be made available to members on request to the secretary. | |
| 41 | A quorum of any Committee meeting shall consist of a majority of Committee Members. | |
| 42 | All proposals must be seconded and voted upon. A majority vote of those present is required to carry any proposal. | |
| 43 | 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. | |
| 44 | 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. | |
| 45 | 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 | ||
| 46 | All general meetings will be agenda’d and minuted. | |
| 47 | Any other business items will not be accepted at any general meeting, however members may submit proposals for consideration at a general meeting. Proposals must be received at least 14 days prior to the date of the general meeting. The secretary will inform all members of the final agenda 14 days in advance of a general meeting. | |
| 48 | A quorum of any general meeting is to be at least one quarter of the membership. | |
| 49 | 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. | |
| 50 | 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. | |
| 51 | Amendments to proposals must be voted upon first. | |
| 52 | 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. | |
| 53 | No video or audio recordings or transmissions may be taken at the meeting by any member by any means such as personal electronic equipment other than under para 52 above. | |
| 54 | 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. | |
| 55 | 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. | |
| 56 | Patrons of the club have no voting rights but are free to attend all club meetings. | |
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGS | ||
| 57 | A date for the Annual General Meeting will be decided each year by the Committee. At least 3 months notice of the meeting will be to all Club members. | |
| 58 | Annual subscriptions and the joining fee will be decided at the Annual General Meeting. | |
| 59 | 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 | ||
| 60 | 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. | |
| 61 | 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. | |
| 62 | 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 stating the business to be discussed. | |
INSURANCE AND INDEMNITY | ||
| 63 | The club will hold both Civil and Employers Liability Insurance, provided through affiliation to the BMFA. | |
| 64 | The club will indemnify all committee officers and committee members if they incur any liability on behalf of the club. | |
| 65 | 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. | |
| 66 | When there is a joint meeting between SMF 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 | ||
| 67 | 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. | |
| 68 | 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 held in trust by the BMFA for a period of 10 years and then used to support their Flying site. | |
| 69 | If the final accounts are less than required to refund the subscriptions to the members, the total money remaining will be donated to the BMFA as para 67. All members will receive a final statement of accounts. | |