Club Constitution (Updated September 2021)

  1. Name
    1. The name of the Club shall be ‘Bitton Road Runners’, will be run as a not-for-profit organisation and will be affiliated to England Athletics (EA) as part of UK Athletics (UKA). The club may choose to belong to other organisation(s) that support the sport of running
  2. Object
    1. The object of the Club shall be to promote amateur athletics in the South Gloucestershire, Bath and North East Somerset and Bristol area. The Club ethos will be to extend a welcome to athletes of all standards and to be open and inclusive. The Club will adopt best practice in fairness, equal opportunities and in athletics.
    2. Membership of the Club shall be open, on application, to anyone interested in recreational or competitive running, regardless of sex, age, disability, ethnicity, race, nationality, sexual orientation, occupation, religion, political or other beliefs.
    3. Copies of the various Codes of Practice, Policy Statements and Procedure are listed here. These are updated as necessary and do not form part of the constitution.
      1. Equity Policy Statement
      2. Dealing with Emergencies, Accidents or Incidents
      3. Approved Routes and Risk Assessment
      4. Club Training Runs
      5. Club Coaches Main Duties
      6. Code of Conduct Club Officers and Volunteers
      7. Code of Conduct Juniors Track
      8. Code of Conduct Parents and Carers
      9. Health and Safety Policy
      10. Concerns and Complaints Policy
  3. Management
    1. The affairs of the club shall be conducted by a committee numbering not less than four and not more than 15.
    2. The committee shall meet not less than six times a year, and the presence of at least 50% voting members shall be necessary to form a quorum.
    3. The committee shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting and shall include a Chair, Secretary, Vice Chair and a Treasurer. The Chair can only stand for 3 consecutive years and cannot be re-elected to the post for at least one year. The chair can be re-elected for a 4th year and subsequent years if there are no other nominees.
    4. The committee shall have the power to fill any vacancies that occur amongst officers until the next Annual General Meeting.
    5. The committee shall have the power to co-opt extra members as required, such members to be without voting rights.
    6. Should any candidate poll more than 50 per cent of the votes in the ballot to form the committee then he/she shall be elected. If not, then the two candidates with the most votes will go forward to a second ballot and the candidate with the most votes in this ballot shall be elected.
    7. All members of the committee who wish to stand for the forthcoming year have to be re-nominated individually at least 14 days prior to the AGM.
    8. The junior section will elect officers to act as a sub-committee of the main committee. A junior liaison officer shall be appointed who will be a member of the main committee.
    9. The committee will elect a Welfare Officer who will act in accordance with UKA policy to deal with issues of welfare raised by club members, the position will not be held by a member of the committee to ensure confidentiality.
    10. If more than one person stands for any post, details will be circulated to club members who will have the opportunity to vote by e mail from 7 days prior to the meeting if they can not attend the AGM. Email voting will close at midnight on the day before the AGM. For those attending the AGM there will be a paper ballot on the night.
    11. Men's and ladies’ club captains and vice captains will be elected annually in September at an EGM called for this purpose. Voting rules as at the AGM will apply.
  4. Membership
    1. Membership of the club shall be confined to amateurs as defined by UKA.
    2. An application for membership must be made in writing on the form provided for that purpose.
    3. All persons training with the club will be expected to join Bitton Road Runners after a period of 12 weeks.
    4. The information on the application form will be regarded as confidential it will be recorded digitally and the information will only be available to those on the committee that are authorised to access the data management system or non committee members such as the membership secretary if authorised by the committee. Access will be password protected. Name and age categorisation lists will be made available to members organising Club competitions and Athletic Organisations to which the club is affiliated.A complete listing will be held on the system for use in case of emergency.The systems currently in use (April 2022) is Love Admin and England Athletics Portal . This may change but membership will be informed if and when any changes are made.
    5. Any member whose subscription is more than two months in arrears shall be deemed to be no longer a member of the club.
    6. A notice of resignation must be made in writing to the club secretary and shall be considered by the club within one calendar month of receipt (UKA Rule 3).
    7. As a condition of membership, the member agrees to assist with the organisation in at least one Bitton Road Runners organised event.
    8. The Committee shall have the power after due consideration of the facts to suspend or expel any member who in the opinion of the committee has been found guilty of misconduct (for example):
      1. Behaviour contrary to the constitution.
      2. Discourteousness to another club member.
    9. Any member expelled will have the right to appeal to the management committee meeting called at his/her request not later than two weeks from the date of expulsion.
  5. Subscriptions
    1. The elected committee shall set the annual subscription at the beginning of the financial year and present it to the Annual General Meeting (AGM)for debate and approval.
    2. All subscriptions shall be payable on election to membership and on the first day of April each year thereafter.
    3. Registration as a "competing member" with EA is optional for Bitton Road Runners members. A fee, additional to the membership fee is payable for registration to EA.
      Note: Some events, e.g. Midland Relays, specify registration of EA is mandatory therefore members who do not register will not be eligible to represent the club at these events.
  6. Colours
    1. The club colours shall be vest or t shirt: top half yellow, bottom half blue with “Bitton Road Runners” on the back.
    2. Club colours must be worn by all members representing the club at every competitive meeting and for club competition races. This requirement maybe relaxed for all members at a specific race e.g. The Christmas Cracker by the committee if a member taking part in that race requests an exemption 14 days in advance.
  7. Annual General Meeting
    1. A General Meeting shall be held in April to receive the committee’s report and financial statement, elect officers and committee members and deal with any other business relating to the club’s transactions.
    2. The Secretary shall give every member 28 days notice of the meeting by circular.
    3. Notice of any business which a member desires to be placed on the agenda must be given to the Secretary at least 14 days prior to the meeting.
  8. Financial Year
    1. The financial year of the club shall be from the first day of January to the thirty-first day of December, both days inclusive.All surplus income will be reinvested into the club and in the event of the club being dissolved any remaining assets will be donated to a nominated charity.
  9. Bank Account
    1. Bank accounts shall be maintained with a convenient bank in the name of the club.
    2. All cheques payable on the account must be signed by the Treasurer and either the Secretary, Chair or other nominated member, approved by the committee.
  10. Treasurer
    1. The Treasurer shall keep full and complete accounts and produce such accounts for audit each year.
    2. A financial statement for presentation at the AGM shall be produced by the Treasurer.
    3. The Junior Section will hold a float not to exceed £60 expenditure to be recorded and will be subject to audit.
  11. Audit
    1. An independent person approved by the committee shall audit the accounts prior to submission to the AGM.
    2. Two members of the club not eligible to sign cheques will view the audited accounts prior to the AGM.
  12. Alteration of Rules / Amendments to Constitution
    1. The management committee, by a majority at a quorate meeting, may make recommendations to the AGM for changes to the club constitution or club rules.
    2. No alteration or addition shall be made to the club constitution or club rules except at the AGM or EGM called for this purpose, and passed by two-thirds majority of members attending the meeting.
    3. The management Committee may deem it necessary to call on EGM to deal with changes to the club constitution or club rules. Four weeks notice must be given for an EGM.
    4. Ten ordinary paid up and voting members may petition the Honorary Secretary in writing to call an EGM at any time through the year to deal with club issues. Four weeks notice must be given for an EGM.
    5. Notice of any proposed amendments must reach the General Secretary in writing at least 14 days before the meeting.
    6. Voting rights as at the AGM pertain.
  13. Club Awards- voted for by members
    1. The Kevin Rose Trophy shall be presented annually to the Club member who has made “most progress during the year”. The membership should vote for the recipient of the Kevin Rose Trophy prior to the AGM the award to be presented at the awards evening.
    2. The Kath O’Connell (Club Person of the Year) Award shall be presented annually to the club member who has done exceptional work on behalf of the club during the year. The membership should vote for the recipient of this award prior to the AGM the award to be presented at the awards evening.
    3. The Emerging Athlete Award is given to a person who in the view of the coaches, has grown from a non-competing background to become an athlete who recognises the life-shaping opportunities and benefits that running brings. The award recognises that athletic performance does not always have to be measured in time and/or distance, but should reflect the importance of enthusiasm and the desire to become more mentally and physically resilient. The coaches are committed to developing athletes from all backgrounds and this award recognises that however simple running is, for some people, the early days are giant, tentative strides. Whether a novice or a member who regards exercise as 'work in progress', this award is for the early stages of development.
  14. Club Competitions
    1. The club will organise intra-club competitions, open to first claim members of Bitton Road Runners only.
    2. Rules, criteria and key dates for the club competitions will be determined and published by the committee.
  15. London Marathon Guaranteed Places
    1. Rules, criteria and key dates for the allocation of club places will be determined and published by the committee.