Golden Valley Walking Club
Golden Valley Walking Club Constitution and Rules
1. Title
1.1 The Club shall be called “The Golden Valley Walking Club”
2. Aims
2.1 To encourage good health and wellbeing and provide physical and mental health rehabilitation facilities, by organising an annual walking programme for members.
2.2 Walk Locations: To provide different environmental exploration opportunities in the United Kingdom. The walks will take place in the Golden Valley Herefordshire, The Black Mountains, The Brecon Beacons, Abergavenny, Monmouth, Symonds Yat, and The Forest of Dean, Llanwrtyd Wells, and other locations.
2.3 Members Choice: To provide members with a choice of different walks to enhance their walking ability, enjoyment and aspirations. Choices to including countryside walks, mountain and hill walks, local walks, short distance walks, and long distance walks.
2.4 Members Support: To support all members of the Club in their enjoyment of walking and the countryside. To provide DBS checked personnel in safeguarding roles where necessary.
2.5. To promote the enhancement, development, conservation, and protection of Public Rights of Way. To promote the enjoyment of Open Spaces.
3. Membership
3.1 Interested persons are welcome to come on any walk suitable to their ability, after which they will be invited to join the Club. There is no membership fee and access to the club is free at point of entry.
3.2 Data Protection: New members will be asked to provide email contact details and will be provided with written GDPR details. Their details will be held by the Membership Officer.
3.3 Ceasing to be a Member: Members may resign at any time in writing to the Membership Officer.
4. Equal Opportunities
4.1 Golden Valley Walking Club will not discriminate on the grounds of gender, race, colour, ethnic or national origin, sexuality, disability, religious or political belief, marital status or age.
4.2 Any offensive behaviour, including racist, sexist or inflammatory remarks, will not be permitted. Anyone behaving in an offensive way or breaking the equal opportunities policy may be asked not to attend further walks or to resign from the club if an apology is not given or the behaviour is repeated. The individual concerned shall have the right to be heard by the club management committee, accompanied by a friend, before a final decision is made.
5. Officers and Committee
The business of the group will be carried out by a Committee elected at the Annual General Meeting for a period of 2 years. The Committee will meet as necessary and not less than three times a year.
The Committee will consist of 8 members, and be composed of 5 officers and 3 committee members. Up to 2 additional members may be co-opted onto the committee at the discretion of the Committee.
The officers’ roles are as follows:
Chair, who shall chair all general and committee meetings
Secretary, who shall be responsible for the taking of minutes and the distribution of all papers
Membership Officer, who shall be responsible for keeping records of members
Treasurer who shall be responsible for maintaining accounts
Administration Officer
In the event of an officer standing down during the year a replacement will be elected by the next Committee Meeting of members.
Any committee member not attending a meeting without apology for three months will be contacted by the committee and asked if they wish to resign.
The Committee meetings will be open to any member of the Golden Valley Walking Club wishing to attend, who may speak but not vote.
6 Meetings
6.1 Annual General Meetings
An Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held within fifteen months of the previous AGM.
All members will be notified in writing at least 3 weeks before the date of the meeting, giving the venue, date and time.
Nominations for the committee may be made to the Secretary before the meeting, or at the meeting.
The quorum for the AGM will be 15 members.
At the AGM:-
The Secretary will call a Special General Meeting at the request of the majority of the committee or at least eight other members giving a written request to the Chair or Secretary stating the reason for their request.
The meeting will take place within twenty-one days of the request.
All members will be given two weeks’ notice of such a meeting, giving the venue, date, time and agenda, and notice may be by telephone, email or post.
The quorum for the Special General Meeting will be 15 members.
6.3 Committee Meetings
Committee meetings may be called by the Chair or Secretary. Committee members must receive notice of meetings at least 7 days before the meeting.
The quorum for Committee meetings is five Committee members.
7. Rules of Procedure for meetings
All questions that arise at any meeting will be discussed openly and the meeting will seek to find general agreement that everyone present can agree to.
If a consensus cannot be reached a vote will be taken and a decision will be made by a simple majority of members present. If the number of votes cast on each side is equal, the chair of the meeting shall have an additional casting vote.
8. Finances
An account will be maintained on behalf of the Club at a bank agreed by the committee. Two cheque signatories will be nominated by the Committee (one to be the Treasurer). The signatories must not be related nor members of the same household.
All payments will be authorised by either of the two signatories.
Records of income and expenditure will be maintained by the Treasurer and a financial statement given at each meeting.
All money raised by or on behalf of The Golden Valley Walking Club is only to be used to further the aims of the group, as specified in item 2 of this constitution.
9. Amendments to the Constitution
Amendments to the constitution may only be made at the Annual General Meeting or a Special General Meeting.
Any proposal to amend the constitution must be given to the Secretary in writing. The proposal must then be circulated with the notice of meeting.
Any proposal to amend the constitution will require a two thirds majority of those present and entitled to vote.
10. Dissolution
If a meeting, by simple majority, decides that it is necessary to close down the Club it may call a Special General Meeting to do so. The sole business of this meeting will be to dissolve the group.
If it is agreed to dissolve the Club, all remaining money and other assets, once outstanding debts have been paid, will be donated to a local charitable organisation.
The organisation will be nominated at the meeting which agrees the dissolution.
This constitution was agreed at the Inaugural General Meeting of the Golden Valley Walking Club and amended at the Annual General Meeting 2022.