Duvelle Bowmen Constitution
1 NAME AND AFFILIATIONS
1.1 The club shall be known as ‘Duvelle Bowmen’, which will hereafter be referred to as ‘the Club’.
1.2 The Club shall be affiliated to the National Field Archery Society (NFAS). Whose rules will apply.
1.3 The Club Motto is "Fiat Virium, Semper Ridere" best translated as
"Give it all you've got but keep laughing”.
2 OBJECTIVES
2.1 The object of the club shall be the practice, encouragement and enjoyment of Field Archery.
3 COMMITTEE POWERS
3.1 The Committee has the power to:
1 Revoke or suspend the membership of any member, or refuse to accept or renew membership.
2 Acquire and provide grounds, equipment, coaching, training and shooting facilities, club house, transport, medical and related facilities
3 Provide, training, and related social and other facilities
4 Raise funds by appeals, subscriptions, loans, charges and events.
5 Open bank accounts
6 Set aside or apply funds for special purposes or as reserves
7 Deposit or invest funds in any lawful manner
8 Co-operate with the NFAS and secondly any club or body involved with it and thirdly with government and related agencies.
9 Do all other things reasonably necessary to advance the purposes.
3.2 NONE of the above powers may be used other than to advance the purposes of the club in line with the foregoing clauses and the general law.
4 MANAGEMENT
4.1 The day to day administration of the club shall be undertaken by the Executive Committee hereinafter called ‘the Committee’.
5 MEMBERSHIP
5.1 All members of Duvelle Bowmen must also be current members of the National Field Archery Society (NFAS).
5.2 Application for Membership of the Club shall be at the discretion of the committee and all new members will be assessed and proposed by a member of the committee.
5.3 All persons wishing to join the club must fill in an application form which should be passed to the Secretary of the Club.
5.4 Membership of the club shall be as a full shooting member. Full members shall be entitled to enjoy all the facilities of
the club, subject to abiding by the club rules, as set out in Appendix A.
5.5 All paid-up members, including Junior members, shall have the right to cast a vote.
5.6 The Club Committee may refuse membership, or remove it, only for good cause such as conduct or character likely to bring the Club or sport into disrepute. Appeal against refusal or removal may be made to an appointed panel consisting of club
committee members, whose decision will be final.
5.7 Every member is expected to contribute a minimum of one work day per year towards club activities. exceptions may be made due to ill health.
6 LIFE MEMBERS
6.1 The Club may also elect Life Members, but the number in existence at any one time shall not exceed three. Such members
shall not be liable to Club Subscriptions, though they shall be liable for any other relevant affiliations.
6.2 If a Life Member does not avail themselves of the benefits of Life Membership for a period of 5 years, they will not be counted in the maximum total in 6.1
7 COMMITTEE
7.1 The officers of the club Committee shall be: -
1. Chairman
2. Secretary
3. Treasurer
4. Club Captain
5. Equipment Officer
7.2 The Committee shall consist of the officers elected at the A.G.M. of the club, and a quorum shall consist of 3 members of
the Committee.
7.3 Officers shall be appointed annually at the Annual General Meeting. They shall be elected by ballot of the membership, by simple majority of those present. In the event of a tied vote, the Chairman shall have an additional casting vote.
7.4 In the absence of the Chairman at any meeting the Secretary or Treasurer will hold the chair for the duration of the meeting.
7.5 Members of the club must have been full members for at least 6 months before being eligible to stand for a position on
the Committee. Anyone standing for a committee position must be seconded by another club member.
7.6 More than one post can be held by any club member at any one time. Multiple committee posts can only be held if
second/third etc. post is uncontested.
7.7 Nominations for positions on the Committee must be received by the secretary at least 14 days prior to the Annual General
Meeting (AGM). Should a post be contested, all club members present will be asked to vote. In the event of a tied vote, the Chairman shall have an additional casting vote.
7.8 For the election of the Chairman, the next available Officer (in the above order) shall take the chair.
7.9 The Committee shall have the power to co-opt members onto the Committee as required.
7.10 Discretionary power is given to the Committee to decide any circumstances not covered by this Constitution.
7.11 The Committee has the right to veto any such proposal or action which the Committee deems to not be in the best interest of
the club, subject to consideration by the full membership at an AGM or Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM).
8 SUBSCRIPTIONS
8.1 The annual subscription shall become due on the 1st of April each year, and be paid to the Secretary no later than 15th
April.
8.2 The subscription shall be agreed annually at the AGM. of the club and will be set at a level to ensure the continuation
of the club and its agreed plans and commitments for the year ahead.
8.3 Membership of the NFAS is obligatory for all members. All members must renew their NFAS membership before 1st April each
year. This may be done online or by using the membership form from the NFAS Newsletter.
8.4 The Club may have different classes of membership and subscription on a non-discriminatory and fair basis.
8.5 There shall be a once only initial joining fee for new members of the club
9 ADDRESS
9.1 The postal address of the Club shall be that of the Secretary, or such other address as may be decided by the Committee
from time to time.
10 RULES, DISCIPLINE AND APPEALS
10.1 Club rules, which set the standard of conduct for club members in terms of both general behaviour and shooting practice, will be agreed annually to ensure they are updated in line with current law and best practice and have the support and agreement of the
membership.
10.2 All club members will be notified of the Club Rules and any variations to them that might be agreed.
10.3 All members will be required to act in accordance with the club rules.
10.4 All complaints regarding the behaviour of members should be submitted in writing to the Secretary.
10.5 The Management Committee will meet to hear complaints within 30 days of a complaint being lodged. The committee has the
power to take appropriate disciplinary action including the termination of membership.
10.6 The outcome of a disciplinary hearing should be notified in writing to the person who lodged the complaint and the member
against whom the complaint was made within 14 days of the hearing.
10.7 There will be the right of appeal to the Management Committee following disciplinary action being announced. The
committee should consider the appeal within 30 days of the Secretary receiving the appeal.
11 HEALTH & SAFETY
11.1 The club will agree a child protection policy (Appendix A) and follow and promote NFAS procedure when dealing with any
incident that arises.
11.2 The club will not tolerate any form of bullying or abuse from any member, assistant or visiting archer from any club
and take actions in accordance with the NFAS. Rules and regulations.
11.3 The club will adhere to the range safety as stated in the Rules of Shooting and the Health and Safety policy of NFAS
12 MEETINGS
12.1 The Committee will meet at least twice a year to conduct the business of the club
12.1 The A.G.M. shall be held between November 25 and December 24 each year and the accounting
year shall be from December 1 to November 30. The chairman (or secretary) and treasurer will both respectively be responsible
for submitting their reports and accounts for the previous financial year at each AGM.
12.3 An Extraordinary General meeting (EGM) / General Meeting (GM) shall be held at the request of the Committee or any
member who has the support of 5 other Club members. At least 14 days notice must be given by the secretary for either an EGM. or an AGM.
13 AMENDMENTS
13.2 No amendments shall be made to the constitution except by EGM or AGM. Proposals to amend the constitution must be submitted in writing in sufficient time for the secretary to advise all members at the same time that the notice for the meeting is issued.
13.2 The Constitution may be amended at a General Meeting by two-thirds of the votes cast but not in any event to alter its purposes
or winding up provisions.
13.3 The constitution of the club shall not be in any way at variance with the laws, rules and requirements of NFAS.
13.4 In matters affecting shooting and the technical requirements of archery, the rules of NFAS. shall be regarded as paramount.
14 POWER OF DECISION
14.1 Any matter not provided for in this constitution, or any question over the interpretation of it shall be dealt with by the Committee whose decision shall be final.
15 WINDING UP THE CLUB
15.1 The members may vote to wind up the Club if not less than three quarters of those present and voting support that proposal
at a properly convened general meeting
15.2 The Committee will then be responsible for the orderly winding up of the Club’s affairs.
15.3 After settling all liabilities of the Club, the Committee shall dispose of the net assets remaining to one or more of the
following:
i. To another Club with similar sports purposes which is a charity and/or
ii. To another Club with similar sports purposes which is a registered NFAS and/or
iii. To the Club’s national governing body for use by them for related community sports.
iv To a charity decided by the remaining membership by a simple majority vote.
Appendix A
Children & Vulnerable Adults Protection Statement.
‘This club believes that when dealing with children and vulnerable adults, their welfare should always be of paramount
importance. We are committed to providing an environment where young people can learn and participate in a sport free from harassment and abuse. All those people working with children have a moral responsibility to safeguard and promote a child’s welfare. This club has therefore adopted the NFAS Protection of Children and Vulnerable Adults Policy to ensure peace of mind for both adults and children.’
This constitution was agreed and adopted at the Annual General Meeting, held on December 13th 2013.
Updated at the AGM on Friday 30th November 2018.
Fiat Virium, Semper Ridere
