AINTREE VIPERS FOOTBALL CLUB CONSTITUTION

 

Founded March 2008   

LCFA Affiliation Number:  JYY00557

 

1) Club

The Club will be called Aintree Vipers Football Club (from here on known as 'the Club').

 

 

2) Objectives

The Club's primary objective will be to provide Association Football, coaching, personal development and social activities for its members and others connected with the Club.

 

3) Club Rules

These rules form a binding agreement between The Club and each of its members. The Club Rules will be published on The Club Website and a written copy will be available to any member on request.

 

4) Club Administration

The Club shall be administered by a committee, which shall be called the Management Committee. The Officers and members of the Management Committee shall be elected at the A.G.M. The Committee shall comprise:

Club Officials :

There are three official posts within the Club, and their roles are defined here:

Club Chairman

To be responsible for the direction, policy and image of the Club.

To chair all meetings of the Club General Committee.

To exercise a casting vote when votes counted are evenly split.

To ensure that the General Committee fulfills all its responsibilities and commitments.

To ensure the Club upholds the Constitution at all times.

To act in an advisory capacity to the Club as a whole, and the Committee in particular.

Club Secretary

To be responsible for all aspects of membership as defined in the Constitution.

To keep adequate and appropriate records of all meetings and decisions.

To arrange the dates, times, places and agendas of all meetings.

To ensure all members are informed of all meetings on a timely basis.

To periodically produce and issue a newsletter to keep all members up to date.

To represent the Club with the league, Referees Society and F.A. etc. at all times.

To deal with all official correspondence in a timely and effective manner.

To assist with the arrangement and execution of any Club organised social activities.

Treasurer

To maintain an accurate and up to date Book of Accounts at all times

To be responsible for all moneys paid into and out of the Club at all times.

To keep and issue appropriate receipts for all transactions.

To make the accounts available to the General Committee and auditor(s) on request.

To actively make it his/her business to ensure all financial activity is handled properly.

 

One person may hold no more than two positions of Club Official at any time.

Should at any time during their period of office an Officer of the Club resign, the position will be filled by co-opting a committee member, agreed by the Committee, for the remainder of the resignee's term of office.

The Management Committee will meet as deemed necessary.

At such meetings of the Committee, three members inclusive of the Club Chairman and Secretary shall form a quorum.

In the absence of the Chairman at any meeting, the Committee will elect another committee member to Chair the meeting.

 

General Committee :

The Committee will consist of up to six other elected members. At such meetings of the Committee, three members inclusive of the Club Chairman and Secretary shall form a quorum.

Decisions shall be made by simple majority of those members present. The Committee should represent the Club at all times when dealing with all official bodies over Club matters but all correspondence must be directed through the Club Secretary.

In addition to its elected members the Committee may also co- opt up to four further members. Such members shall, at the discretion of the committee, be entitled to vote at meetings.

All members of the Committee shall by definition be Full members of the Club.  

Any member of the Committee may call a meeting by giving not less than seven days' notice to all members of the Club Committee.

Any vacancy which occurs on the Committee during the season may be filled by the

Committee, and the member appointed may hold office until the next Annual General Meeting, at which point he/she must stand for election to the position if he/she wishes to continue. Any outgoing members may be re-elected.

 

5) Powers of the Committee

(a) To appoint such sub-committees as may be deemed necessary from time to time and to receive reports from such sub-committees at its meetings.

(b) To fill such vacancies as may arise in its Constitution between Annual General Meetings.

(c) To declare a seat vacant should a member be absent from 3 consecutive meetings without an explanation deemed to be satisfactory.

(d) To employ and pay any person or persons to carry out work for the Club in order to promote the Objectives of the club.

(e) To purchase, lease, rent, hire or otherwise acquire any property for the promotion of the Objectives of the Club.  All purchases of equipment will be at the discretion of the Committee and the Club Secretary will keep a list of all Club equipment.

 

The powers listed here are not exhaustive and further powers are vested in the Committee throughout this document.

 

6) Club Membership

There shall be three classes of membership: Junior, Associate and Full Membership.

 

Junior members are playing members, in that they will play for and represent the team on the field. Playing membership shall be open to children who meet the age requirements of any of the Club's teams. Playing members must register with the club and the relevant Leagues (via the Club Secretary) and have paid subscriptions, as determined by the Committee. A register of all playing members of the Club will be kept by the Secretary at all times. All playing members within the Club will be deemed to be Junior Members of the Club. Junior members shall not be entitled to vote.

 

Full membership of the Club shall be open to any parent / guardian of a current playing member or any person who is actively involved in the management / coaching of the club and / or team(s).  All parents / guardians are deemed to be full members upon acceptance of their child into the club and upon acceptance and agreement with the clubs Constitution and policies. Full members may seek election to the Club's General Committee, and to do so they must present themselves for election at the Club's Annual General Meeting. Full members shall be entitled to vote at Annual and Special General Meetings of the Club.

 

Associate membership of the club shall be open to any parent/guardian of a current playing member, and all parents and guardians are deemed to be Associate members of the Club upon acceptance of their child into the club and agreement with the Club's Constitution and Policies. Associate members shall be entitled to participate at Annual and Special General Meetings of the Club however they will not be entitled to vote.

If it is the club's interests, the Committee may at their discretion make provisions to exceptionally appoint Associate members (i.e. not necessarily parents/guardians of playing members). Associate members shall not be entitled to vote.

 

7) Disciplinary Procedures

Where a members behaviour is of cause for concern, The Committee shall have the right to warn the member as to their future conduct, suspend them from the Club for a given period, or expel them from the Club.

The Committee shall appoint such sub-committees as are necessary to deal with the issue of discipline.

The Secretary will give seven days notice to all parties concerned in the potential disciplinary action, of the intention of a disciplinary sub-committee to form and consider the case. Evidence for such a disciplinary hearing shall then be forwarded in writing to the Club Secretary.

The committee shall have the power to fine, suspend or expel players should it become necessary, as well as issue written warnings, two of which will suffice to give grounds for the General committee to consider expelling a player from the Club.

If a member of the Committee has a conflict of interest in the situation being discussed, then they shall excuse themselves from the procedure.

 

8) Rules and Regulations

(a) The Club shall have the status of an Affiliated Member Club of The Football Association by virtue of its membership of The Liverpool County Football Association. The Rules and Regulations of The Football Association Limited and parent County: Liverpool County FA, and any League or Competition to which the Club is affiliated (for the time of its affiliation) shall be deemed incorporated into the Constitution.

(b) The Committee shall be responsible for updating, publishing and upholding the Club's Codes of Conduct for Players, Coaches, Officials and Spectators/Parents, which shall incorporate the Football Association's own Codes of Conduct. The Committee shall also produce and uphold an Equal Opportunities Policy and an Anti-Discrimination Policy.

(c) The Club is aware of and will follow the guidelines of The Football Association's Child Protection Policies and Procedures. The Club will produce a Child Protection Policy in line with current FA best practice and ensure that is kept up to date.

(d )All members when joining the club will be deemed to have read the Club documents, and agreed to adhere to them.

 

 

 

9) Child Protection

The Club are committed to the protection of the children within it, therefore it will  produce and publish a Child Protection Policy which will be considered as part of this constitution.

The Club will appoint a Child Protection Officer (From here on known as the CPO) who will attend a Football Association Child protection Course and hold a current certificate.

The CPO will ensure that they are up to date with current guidelines and best practice requirements at all times.

The CPO will monitor and review this policy to ensure that it is kept up to date with current guidelines and best practice requirements at all times.

The CPO will advise the committee of any practice, incident or occurrence which is in breach of guidelines and procedures.

All Club and Team Officials must be aware of their duties regarding the Child Protection Policy. Should there be any incident (or suspected incident) regarding a breach of the Child Protection Policy then this must be reported to the CPO as soon as possible.

All Team Officials, and any person working with the clubs children will have a current Criminal Record Bureau check and a copy of the disclosure will be held by the CPO.

No identifiable image of any child (whether alone or as part of a team) will be published on the Club website or in the local press unless the parent / guardian of that child has provided written consent on the players registration form.

The Player registration form will be completed and signed by parents annually. Completion of the form by the parent /guardian will constitute their consent for the child to play and train for the team. It will also record the parents consents for use of photographs, first aid and medical attention. It is the parent/guardian’s responsibility to ensure that the emergency contact details are kept up to date and to notify changes to the Club as son as possible.

 

10) Subscription Fees

The Subscription (from here on known as Subs) for each playing member shall be agreed by the Committee before the start of each season.

Subs are due every week and players must pay Subs for weeks that they are absent.  In the event of a player being in arrears of 4 weeks subs, they will receive a written non-payment of subscription note requestin that subs are brought up to date within 7 days. Failure of a player to bring arrears up to date will be referred to the Committee who may decide that the players membership should be terminated.

The Secretary has the discretion to waive subscription fees for a member where there are exceptional circumstances such as cases of hardship. Any such decisions must be recorded and made available to the Committee for inspection.

 

Subs may be increased during the year if required to cover the costs of training, administration, facilities, equipment, referees' fees or any other expenses incurred in the running of the Club.

 

Further fees will be levied during the season, in respect of a players league registration or Fines incurred by a player as a result of unacceptable behaviour during league matches.

 

 

11) Insurance

An individual policy taken out by the Football Association and subscribed to by the Club will provide cover for Public Liability.

 

 

12) Resignation and Expulsion

Members may resign from the club at any time, upon written notification to the Club Secretary.

Members may be expelled from the club if the Committee passes a motion of censure, or

receives notice of a motion of censure from a disciplinary sub-committee.

Resigned or expelled members shall forfeit all such rights to or claim upon the Club or its

property or funds as he/she otherwise would have by reason of his/her membership. He/she shall not be entitled to any return of subscription and shall immediately become liable to pay any monies outstanding at that time.

 

 

13) Annual and Special General Meeting

An Annual General Meeting (AGM) shall be held in each year to

(i) Receive a report of the activities of the Club over the previous year

(ii) Receive a report of the Club's finances over the previous year

(iii) Elect the members of the Club Committee

(iv) Consider any other business

The date of the AGM will be decided by the Chairman & Secretary, and will be published on the  website  giving  a minimum of 10 days notice. Notices will be issued to all playing members.

Notice of any resolutions to be proposed at the AGM shall be given in writing to the Club Secretary not less than 7 days before the AGM.

The Secretary will prepare an agenda of proposed business.

 

Nominations for election of members as Club Officers and to the Committee shall be submitted in writing by a proposer and a seconder, both of whom must be existing Full members of the club,  not less than 7 days before the meeting. 

Should more nominations be received than the number of places available on the Committee, or the individual Club Official posts, then an election shall be held at the AGM. A simple majority over the other candidates shall be sufficient to be deemed elected.

 

Should less nominations be received before the meeting, than the number of places available on the Committee, or the individual Club Official posts, those submitted shall be deemed to be elected and nominations for the remaining positions shall be accepted from persons present at the meeting and election by a simple majority shall be sufficient to be deemed elected.

 

A Special General Meeting (SGM) may be called at any time by the Committee, or by a written request, signed by not less than five Full / Associate members, to the Club Secretary. In both cases, 14 days notice shall be given to the membership, and the order for the meeting must state the purposes for which the Meeting is required and the resolutions proposed. The Club Secretary shall send to each member, at their last known address, written notice of the date of a Special General Meeting

together with the resolutions to be proposed at least 7 days before the Meeting.

 

Each member present at either an AGM or an SGM shall have one vote and resolutions shall be passed by a simple majority. In the event of equality of votes, the Chair of the Meeting shall have a casting vote. The Club Secretary, shall record the Minutes of the Meeting.

 

14) Club Teams

The Team Officials will be: A Manager, A Coach and their assistants.  Managers, Coaches and assistants will be over eighteen years of age.

Team Officials:

Will attend league meetings as required.

Will liaise with all opposing Clubs over fixtures, venues, referees, kits etc.

Will arrange referees for all home league fixtures.

Team Officials will be expected to know and abide by the Clubs guidelines, policies and the Coach/ Officials Code of Conduct.

 

The Team Officials will attempt to educate their players in the latest sport science ideas and training best practice, to maximise fitness, health and wellbeing of the players. A Team Official will be appointed as Training Programme Manager  who will be responsible for researching and preparing a training programme which reflects the  current sport science ideas and best practices.

 

Team Players:

Players will be expected to know and abide by the Players Code of Conduct.
In the event of misconduct of a player whilst representing the Club they shall be liable to such action as deemed necessary by the Team Officials  and/or the Club Management Committee.

Players are responsible for the payment of Fines arising from being booked during a match.

 

15) Club Finances

A bank account shall be opened and maintained in the name of the Club. Designated account signatories shall be the Club Chairman, the Club Secretary and the Treasurer.  If one person is assuming two of these positions, then a third signatory will be appointed from the committee. Up to two more designated signatories may be authorised at the discretion of the Treasurer and if allowed within the provisions of the banks arrangements.

The Monies from the Club Account may be withdrawn by any two authorised signatories. All monies payable to the Club shall be received by the Treasurer and deposited in the Club Account,  with the exception of a petty cash amount not exceeding £25, to be held by the Treasurer for the payment of Referees fees etc.

The income and assets of the Club (the Club Property) shall be applied only in furtherance of the Objectives of the Club.

The Club Committee shall have the power to authorise the payment and remuneration of reasonable expenses to any member of the Club and to any other person or persons for services rendered to the Club .

The Club monies may provide sporting and related social activities, sporting equipment, coaching, courses, insurance cover, and other benefits as provided for in the Finance Act 2002. No Officer or member of the Management Committee shall act as auditor.

16) Data Protection

In order for the club to properly conduct its business and to ensure the safety of its players it will be necessary for officials of the club to hold data on its members, be this in paper or electronic format and that data will be held in accordance with the data protection act.

Personal data records relating to members will have been supplied by the filling out of application forms such as the Players Registration Form which will contain parental consents. In addition, officials may find it appropriate to hold passport type photo’s of players for use in registering players.

All personal information supplied to the Club and held in its membership records will be treated as strictly confidential. Information held about members will not be disclosed to third parties other than the FA.

Any official found to be in breach of the club rules on data protection will be subject to enquiry and possible exclusion from the club.

 

 

17) Amendments to this Constitution

Notice of proposed alterations or amendments to be considered at the A.G.M. shall be submitted to the Secretary no later than thirty days prior to the date of the A.G.M. and such proposals will be published with notice of the A.G.M.

 

No alteration to this Constitution shall be made except at an Annual General Meeting or at a Special General Meeting convened for that purpose. Notice of proposed alterations or amendments to be considered at the A.G.M or S.G.M shall be submitted to the Secretary no later than 14 days prior to the date of the meeting.

 

 

18) Complaints Procedure

All complaints of any kind should be reported in writing to the Club Secretary. If he/she is unable to deal with them he/she will submit them to the Committee whose decision shall be final. In no incidence shall any Club member assume responsibility to directly reprimand any other member. Any member wishing to complain about a third party external to the Club (i.e. such as Officials, Referees, Managers, visiting Supporters etc.) must without exception do so via the Club Secretary.

The written report should include:

i) Details of what, when and where the occurrence took place.

ii) any witness statement and names.

iii) Names of any other who you believe to have been treated in a similar way

iv) Details of any former complaints made about the incident, date, when and to whom made.

v) A preference of a solution to the incident.

 

 

19) Other Business

Any matters not governed by the foregoing Rules shall be dealt with by the Committee, the decision of which shall be final and binding.

 

 

20) Dissolution

A resolution to dissolve the Club shall only be proposed at a General Meeting and shall be carried by at least three-quarters of the members present. The dissolution shall take effect from the date of the resolution and the members of the Committee shall be responsible for winding up the assets and liabilities of the Club.

Any surplus assets remaining after the discharge of the debts and liabilities of the Club shall be disposed of in accordance with the wishes of the Members present at such a General Meeting which dissolves the Club.

Surplus funds may only be donated to a registered charity.