12. Annual General Meeting.

a. The Institute shall hold an Annual General Meeting. In any event 15 months must not elapse without an Annual General Meeting and at least 42 days notice in writing shall be given to all members.

b. The business of the Annual General Meeting shall include:

i. the receipt and consideration of the Annual Report of the Chairman on behalf of the Board of Directors.
ii. the Accounts of the Institute for the previous year.
iii. the election of the Board of Directors for the ensuing year.
iv. the appointment of Auditors for the ensuing year.
v. the consideration of motions submitted and raised upon prescribed notice by members entitled to submit motions.

c. Members wishing to move resolutions shall send their proposals, duly seconded, in writing or by E.mail to the Executive Officer to be received at least 28 days prior to the Annual General Meeting date at which they are to be considered. The proposing member must attend in person to present their proposal.

d. The agenda for the meeting shall be published, and upon written or E.mail request of a member will be sent by post or E.mail at least 7 days prior to the Meeting.

13. Extraordinary General Meeting.
By order of the Board of Directors or on receipt of a request signed by not less than 25 voting members stating the reason therein, the Executive Officer shall call an Extraordinary General Meeting. Members shall be given at least 28 days notice, by post or E.mail of the purpose for which the meeting is called. No other business shall be transacted at this meeting.

14. Voting at General Meetings.
a. Club Members, providing a representative of that Club is present at the meeting, Individual Members, President or Patron, Honorary Life Members, Honorary Life Vice Presidents and Retired Members shall each be entitled to one vote. Voting cards will be issued where appropriate. There will be no proxy voting.

b. A simple majority vote shall decide all issues except as stated in the Constitution Paragraphs, 15 and 18.

15. Alteration to Constitution.
No alteration to the Constitution of the Institute shall be made except by a 75% majority of the voting members present and voting at any Annual General Meeting or Extraordinary General Meeting.

16. Funds of the Institute.

a. The funds of the Institute shall be controlled by the Board of Directors.

b. The Financial Year of the Institute shall be from the 1st April to March 31st.

c. The Accounts for each financial year shall be audited before submission to the Annual General Meeting.

17. Regional Organisation
In order to further the objects of the Institute throughout the whole country, the formation of regional organisations to operate within the framework and principles of the Institute shall be encouraged.

18. Dissolution

a. The Institute may be dissolved by a postal ballot subject to a majority of the votes received being in favour.

b. Should dissolution be decided, the Board of Directors shall direct the realisation of the whole Institute’s assets, shall discharge all its legal liabilities, and shall make over the surplus of the Institutes funds, if any, to charity or institution(s) within the terms of Section 1 of the Recreational Charities Act 1958, whose objects are considered by the Board as being closely related to the interests of the Institute.

19. Members’ Liability.
The liability of members is limited to the amount of their annual subscription in any one-year.

5. Election, Removal & Reinstatement.

a. Application for individual and commercial associate membership shall be in writing, or electronically on the official form, and the applicant shall undertake to conform to the Constitution of the Institute. Applications shall be subject to acceptance by the Executive Officer, and no election to membership shall be deemed to be complete until confirmed in
writing by the Executive Officer.

b. Membership may be revoked by the Executive Officer if it is found that:

i. the information provided on the application form was incorrect at the time of the application, or that the member no longer qualifies in accordance with the Constitution of the Institute..
ii. the member is guilty of conduct liable to bring the Institute or its members into disrepute.

c. Any member whose membership is revoked will have the right of appeal to the Board of Directors.

d. Temporary unemployment shall not cancel membership.

e. Any individual, retired or commercial member whose subscription is more than three months in arrears shall cease to be a member if the subscription remains unpaid after 28 days notice has been given that it is overdue. Reinstatement after such disqualification shall be subject to the approval of the Board of Directors, and on such terms and conditions as they may decide.

6. Subscriptions.
The Annual subscription for all classes of membership shall be payable on 1st April each year, and will be at rates to be ratified by the members attending the Annual General Meeting. Members joining after 1st January shall pay 125% of the annual rate to the 31st March of the following year in which they are accepted.

7. Ex Officio Members.
An ex-officio PRESIDENT and/or PATRON of the Institute may be appointed by the Board of Directors, and shall normally hold office for a period of not more than two years. The President and/or Patron may attend Board Meetings but shall not have any voting rights at such meetings.
An HONORARY LIFE VICE PRESIDENCY may be awarded at the discretion of the Board of Directors and will include all persons previously awarded this title by the predecessor Association.

8. Officers of the Institute.

a. The Officers of the Institute shall be:

i. CHAIRMAN who shall have a casting vote at all meetings, for the status quo.
ii. VICE CHAIRMAN who shall support and where necessary deputise for the Chairman in the fulfilment of his or her duties.
iii. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR who may be a paid official of the Institute and who will be appointed by and report to the Board of Directors All Institute business shall be conducted through this Officer, with the exception of duties specifically delegated to other Officers. The Executive Director may have voting rights at the discretion of the Board of Directors.
iv. FINANCE DIRECTOR who shall receive, disburse and account for all monies received on behalf of the Institute. All accounts must be audited annually by an independent auditor and such audited accounts must be presented and adopted by the Annual General Meeting of the Institute. The Finance Director may have voting rights at the discretion of the Board of Directors.

b. Members to be eligible for election as Officers of the Institute shall, except in exceptional circumstances have been members of the Board of Directors for a minimum of two years, with the exception of paid officers.

c. Other Officers may be appointed by the Board of Directors from within the members of the Institute, to carry out specialised functions as and when required.

d. The Chairman and Vice Chairman shall be elected, at an Annual General Meeting, for a maximum period of two years by the voting members. He/She will normally have been a member of the Board of Directors for the preceding two years before being considered for the role, and except in exceptional circumstances the Vice Chairman will accede to the role of Chairman as and when the vacancy occurs.

e. The Executive Officer and Finance Officer shall be appointed by the Board of Directors and will therefore not be elected by the voting members.

f. In the event of a vacancy occurring during the term of any of these offices, the Board of Directors shall have the power to fill the office until the next Annual General Meeting.

9. Management.

a. The general management of the Institute shall be vested in the Board of Directors.

b. The day-to-day management of the Institute shall be carried out by a Management Committee which shall comprise of the Chairman, Vice Chairman, Finance Director, Business Director and Executive Officer plus any other person the Board of Directors deems appropriate.

10. Election and Appointment to the Board of Directors.

a. There will be a qualifying time of at least one year’s Membership of the Institute or previous Recreation Managers' Association before being considered for membership of the Board of Directors.

b. The Board will be made up of the following elected persons –
Chairman and Vice Chairman,

c. plus the following persons who will each have a specific function within the Institute and the Board, -
Conference Director, Education Director, Certification Director Membership Services Director and Social Director. Each of the above Directors will be elected at the Annual General Meeting and each will be eligible for re-election.

d. Other persons may be co-opted to the Board from time to time as the Board of Directors deems fit.

e. The Board of Directors will also comprise of the following non elected persons

i. Executive Officer
ii. Finance Director,
iii. Business Director, who would normally be the Managing Director of the Route Organisation Ltd. or a person representing the Route Organisation.
iv. Commercial Director, who would normally be nominated by the Route Organisation Ltd..

f. The Board of Directors may, from time to time and at its sole discretion, award ex gratia payments and/or honoraria to any person.

g. Nominations for the elected members of the Board of Directors must be forwarded in writing or by E.mail to reach the Executive Officer no later than 28 days before the date of the Annual General Meeting, together with the names of the proposer and seconder, and the consent of the nominee.

h. If more than one person is nominated for any position on the Board of Directors election shall be by postal or E.mail ballot. The Executive Officer shall forward to all members entitled to vote, a Ballot Paper together with a list of nominations for election, giving the names of each candidate, his or her club or establishment, stating by whom each candidate was proposed and, where appropriate, their record of attendance at meetings in the preceding 12 months. Members shall record their choice of candidates, and all votes shall be counted on Ballot Papers, received by post, E.mail or by hand by no later than noon on the day of the Annual General Meeting, by the Executive Officer and two members of the Board of Directors not involved in the ballot.

i. Individuals eligible for election to the Board of Directors shall be, Persons representing Club Members (see 3a. above) Individual Members and Honorary Members.

11. Powers of the Board.

a. The Board shall meet at least once every quarter during its year of office, and five members, one of which must be Officers, shall form a quorum.

b. The Board shall have full powers to administer the affairs of the Institute in accordance with the Constitution; to be the sole authority for the interpretation of the Constitution; and empowered to determine any point not provided for in the Constitution, subject only to the direction of a General Meeting.

c. The Board shall have the power to co-opt members for specific duties and only until the next Annual General Meeting.

d. The Board shall have the power to appoint sub-committees and to determine their constitution and responsibilities. The Officers of the Institute shall be ex-officio members of all such sub-committees.

1. Title.
The title is the ‘BRITISH INSTITUTE OF CLUB MANAGEMENT’
The Institute was formerly known as the Recreation Managers' Association of Great Britain.

2. Objectives.
The objectives of the Institute shall be to:
a. preserve and enhance the standards of club management in Great Britain.
b. provide members with a forum for the exchange of experience, ideas and suggestions.
c. provide an information and education service to members.
d. establish and maintain relations with other bodies having associated interests.
e. lobby, as appropriate, on behalf of the membership.

3. Membership.
There shall be the following classes of membership and entrance to all must be approved by the Board of Directors.

a. Club Membership.
A club registered as trade or business partner with the Route Organisation Ltd. will be deemed to be a club member of the Institute.

b. Individual Members.
Application for Individual membership will be considered from any person who is regularly employed in or involved with the management, supervision or organisation in a club or similar leisure business.

c. Honorary Life Members and Honorary Life Vice Presidents.
Members and other individuals may be granted Honorary Life Membership or Honorary Life Vice Presidency, upon retirement from regular employment in the leisure industry, at the discretion of the Board of Directors, in recognition of notable service to the Institute or its predecessor Association.

d. Retired Members.
Members and other individuals who have retired from the industry may continue in membership as Retired members. There will be a small nominal fee set by the Board of Directors to cover communication costs throughout the year.

e. Commercial Associate Members.
Commercial organisations may, at the discretion of the Board of Directors, be admitted as Commercial Associate Members.

f. Business Partners.
The Institute may appoint from time to time, and at the sole discretion of the Board of Directors, a Business Partner or Partners in order to further the objectives of the Institute.

g. Social Members.
Social membership may be granted to individuals who wish to participate in social activities and events organised by the Institute.

4. Rights of Individuals and Club Members.
One representative of each Club holding club membership (see 3a. above), Individual Members, President or Patron, Honorary Life Members or Honorary Life Vice Presidents and Retired Members shall each have voting rights, at any General Meeting of the Institute.