STTA constitution
1. Name
The name of this organisation shall be the Scunthorpe Table Tennis Association, hereafter referred to as the ‘STTA’.
2. Aims and Objectives
a) To promote and encourage the playing of competitive table tennis, in the area of Scunthorpe and the surrounding district and by so doing, improve playing standards.
b) To promote and encourage the formation of Table Tennis Clubs, in the area of Scunthorpe and the surrounding district and by so doing, make table tennis more available to everyone.
c) To acquire and hold equipment, including trophies, to be used for the purpose of furthering the aforesaid objectives and to join with any other body, or organisation, in such furtherance.
d) To promote, manage and conduct League activities between affiliated clubs and such tournaments, as the Committee may decide to organise.
3. Affiliation
The STTA shall be affiliated to the Table Tennis England, hereafter referred to as the ‘TTE’, the Lincolnshire Table Tennis Association, hereafter referred to as the ‘LTTA’ and such other bodies, as the Committee may deem necessary, or appropriate.
4. Constitution and League Rules
a) The STTA Constitution and League Rules, shall be made available to all Members, by including them in the annual League Handbook.
b) No alterations, or amendments, to the STTA Constitution, or the League Rules, shall be made, except at the STTA’s Annual General Meeting, or at an Extraordinary General Meeting, called specifically for that purpose [see Rule 14].
5. TTE Rules
The STTA shall abide by and be compliant with, the rules of the TTE.
6. Annual Subscriptions
a) The level of all subscriptions and fees, for the coming season, which shall take account of TTE affiliation fees and any other fees, or payments levied by them, shall be determined at the Annual General Meeting.
b) Subscriptions for the coming season, must be paid to the Match Secretary, by 15 September, or within seven days, in the case of new Members registering after this date. It shall be the responsibility of the League Team Captain, to ensure all amounts due, relating to his team and individual players, are received by the due date.
c) The STTA Committee does not wish to preclude any person from being able to play table tennis, on the grounds of inability to pay and representation, from that person, or their representative, will be given due consideration and treated confidentially. Such a representation, can initially be made, to any current member of the STTA Committee.
7. Management
a) The Management of the STTA shall be in the hands of the Committee [see Rule 8], who shall in all things act for and on behalf of the STTA, in accordance with the Constitution and the League Rules. The decisions of the Committee shall, in any way, be binding.
b) The Committee shall meet once a month and at such other times, as the Committee may deem necessary.
c) Minutes of all meetings shall be taken and made available to any current Member, upon written request to the Secretary.
d) Decisions of the Committee will be determined by a majority of those present, excluding the Chairman of the meeting, or acting Chairman. In the event of a deadlock, then the decision of the Chairman, or acting Chairman, shall be binding.
e) A quorum shall be formed by five Committee Members, two of whom must be Committee Officials [see Rule 8a)] and one of these must be the President, Chairman, or Secretary.
f) In the absence of the elected Chairman, any Committee Official [see Rule 8a)], as shall be
decided by those present, at the time of the meeting, may chair an official Committee meeting.
8. Constitution of Committee
a) The Committee shall consist of a minimum of twelve Committee Members, of whom eight shall be Committee Officials; namely a President, Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, Match Secretary, Press Officer and LTTA Representative.
b) The Committee shall have the right to co-opt any Member, at anytime, onto the Committee, where the number of Committee Members is less than the number permitted by Rule 8a), or where a position becomes vacant.
9. Election/Resignation of Committee Officials
a) Committee Officials [see Rule 8a)] shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting.
b) Nominations for Committee Officials shall be self-nominating and must be notified to the Secretary, together with the name of a proposer and seconder, who must be current Members of the STTA, at least twenty one days prior to the Annual General Meeting. Only where no nominations for any particular position are received, prior to the Annual General Meeting, shall nominations be accepted from the floor, at the Annual General Meeting.
c) Members may apply for more than one Committee Official position. If they are not elected to any of the positions applied for, then if they have not indicated otherwise, they will automatically be eligible for election, as a Committee Member.
d) A list of nominated persons and the position(s) applied for, shall be communicated to each League Team’s Captain, at least fourteen days prior to the Annual General Meeting.
e) Each Committee Official position shall be decided by a simple majority, with a show of hands by all those eligible persons present, other than the Chairman of the meeting. Where there is more than one candidate for any particular position, the person with the most votes shall be elected. In the event of a deadlock, the decision of the Chairman of the meeting shall be binding. [Note: This gives the Chairman of the meeting the opportunity to ask the person(s) with the fewer, or fewest number of votes to withdraw and then have a further show of hands for the remaining candidates, or make the decision as to who should be elected himself].
f) Committee Official positions, as appropriate, shall be voted upon in the following order:-
President, Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, Match Secretary,
Publicity Officer, then LTTA Representative.
g) All Committee Officials shall hold office until the second Annual General Meeting after their appointment, but in the first period after the adoption of this Constitution, the Vice-Chairman, Secretary, Publicity Officer and LTTA Representative shall only hold office until the next AGM, after their appointment.
h) All Committee Officials resigning under Rule 9g), shall be eligible for re-election, at the same Annual General Meeting, without further nomination.
i) A list of those Committee Officials due to resign under Rule 9g), shall be communicated to Members via the League Handbook, distributed at the start of the season, or to each League Team’s Captain, before the end of the year, prior to the Annual General Meeting to be held the following year.
j) Committee Officials wishing to resign at the end of their period of office and not seek re-election, in their current capacity, or decide to resign before the expiration of their period of office, must give due notice to the Committee, as soon as possible, prior to the Annual General Meeting.
k) Candidates who have been nominated for a Committee Official position and are unable to attend the Annual General Meeting, can still be elected in their absence, so long as the reason for their absence has been communicated to the Secretary, prior to the commencement of the meeting and this is accepted by a majority of those present and eligible to vote.
l) A person may withdraw their nomination, at anytime, prior to voting taking place for their position.
m) In the event of the death, or early resignation of a Committee Official, then his place may be taken by any Member of the Committee, until the next Annual General Meeting, so voted by the other Members of the Committee.
10. Election/Resignation of Committee Members, other than Committee Officials
a) The Committee Members shall be decided, after the election of the Committee Officials, at the Annual General Meeting.
b) Where there are more candidates than Committee Member vacancies, there shall be a vote, by a show of hands, of all those present and eligible to vote, for each candidate in turn, alphabetically. The person with the most votes shall be elected first, the person with the second highest next and so on. In the event of a deadlock for the final vacancy, or vacancies, the decision of the Chairman, or acting Chairman of the meeting, shall be binding. [Note: This gives the Chairman, or the acting Chairman of the meeting, the opportunity to either ask those present and eligible to vote, to cast their votes again, for the remaining candidates, or make the decision as to who should be elected himself].
c) All Committee Members, elected to the Committee, at the Annual General Meeting, shall hold office until the next Annual General Meeting.
d) Those Committee Members due to resign under Rule 9g), shall be eligible for re-election, without nomination, at the Annual General Meeting.
e) Nominations for Committee Members, shall be self-nominating and must be notified to the Secretary, together with the name of a proposer and seconder, who must be current Members of the STTA, at least twenty one days prior to the Annual General Meeting. A list of nominated persons shall be communicated to each League Team’s Captain, at least fourteen days prior to the Annual General Meeting.
f) Candidates who have been nominated for a position on the Committee and are unable to attend the Annual General Meeting, can still be elected in their absence, so long as the reason for their absence has been given to the Secretary, prior to the commencement of the meeting and this is accepted by a majority of those present and eligible to vote.
g) A person may withdraw their nomination, at anytime, prior to voting taking place for their position.
11. Finance
a) The financial year shall be from 1 May to the following 30 April.
b) The Committee shall ultimately be responsible for maintaining proper and adequate records of all financial transactions, but the duties will be carried out by the Treasurer.
c) The Treasurer shall produce a financial report at each Committee meeting, as appropriate.
d) All items due for payment, or paid since the previous Committee meeting, shall be submitted for the approval of the Committee and passed for payment. A record must be made in the Minutes, of the authorisation of the payments.
e) The STTA shall maintain a bank current account, in its name.
f) In the event of there being surplus funds, then the STTA may maintain an additional deposit account, in its name, which must allow for immediate withdrawals, as required.
g) Signatories to all bank/building society accounts shall be the Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer, with any two from four being authorised to sign, on behalf of the STTA.
h) All funds received, shall be paid directly into any of the STTA accounts, as soon as practicable. All cheques should be made payable to ‘Scunthorpe Table Tennis Association’, or ‘STTA’.
i) The accounts, books and other documents shall be delivered, as soon as practicable, after 30 April, for audit.
j) A Financial Statement, for the year ending 30 April, shall be presented at the following Annual General Meeting, for approval, by a majority of those present and eligible to vote.
12. Insurance
a) The STTA shall take out a public liability policy of insurance.
b) All Members shall comply with the terms of the insurance policy, a copy of which shall be held by the Treasurer and shall be available for inspection at reasonable notice.
13. Annual General Meeting
a) The Annual General Meeting shall be held on the last Wednesday in June.
b) The time, venue and agenda for the Annual General Meeting, shall be circulated at least fourteen days prior to the date of the meeting.
c) It is in the best interests of all League Teams, that the Team Captain from each team, or a representative on the Team’s behalf, shall be present at the Annual General Meeting. Teams that are unable to send a representative, must notify the Secretary, prior to the date set for the Annual General Meeting, explaining the reason for their non-attendance.
d) Only current Members of the STTA, may attend the Annual General Meeting and they shall each have only one vote.
e) The Annual General Meeting shall be chaired throughout, by the current Chairman, or in his absence, any other Committee Official, agreed to by a majority of those present and eligible to vote, at the Annual General Meeting.
f) All decisions at the Annual General Meeting shall be decided by a majority of those eligible to vote, other than the Chairman. In the event of a deadlock, then the decision of the Chairman of the meeting shall be binding.
g) Members wishing to raise any matters at the Annual General Meeting, must first of all submit their intentions, in writing, to the Secretary, at least twenty eight days prior to the Annual General Meeting. The matter will then be considered, by the Committee, for approval. Such approval should not be denied, except under exceptional circumstances.
h) Subscriptions and fees for the coming season, shall be approved at the Annual General Meeting.
i) A quorum shall be formed by any three of the Committee Officials [see Rule 8a)], one of whom must be the President, Chairman, or Secretary, any two Committee Members and five current Non-Committee Members.
14. Extraordinary General Meeting
a) The Committee must call an Extraordinary General Meeting, within thirty days of receiving a requisition, which must be signed by at least three Members of the STTA. The notice requesting the meeting shall state its object(s) and no other business shall be discussed at such a meeting.
b) Notice of the Extraordinary General Meeting, stating its object(s), shall be communicated to all League Team Captains, at least fourteen days prior to the meeting.
c) It is in the best interests of all League Teams, that the Team Captain from each team, or a representative on the Team’s behalf, shall be present at the Extraordinary General Meeting. Teams that are unable to send a representative, must notify the Secretary, prior to the date set for the Extraordinary General Meeting, explaining the reason for their non-attendance.
d) Only current Members of the STTA, may attend the Extraordinary General Meeting.
e) The Extraordinary General Meeting shall be chaired by the current Chairman, or in his absence, any other Committee Official, agreed to by a majority of those present and eligible to vote at the Extraordinary General Meeting.
f) All decisions at the Extraordinary General Meeting, shall be decided by a majority of those present and eligible to vote, other than the Chairman. In the event of a deadlock, then the decision of the Chairman of the meeting, shall be binding.
g) A quorum shall be formed by any three of the Committee Officials [see Rule 8a)], one of whom must be the President, Chairman, or Secretary, any two Committee Members and five current Non-Committee Members.
15. Dissolution
a) The STTA can only be dissolved by a resolution of two thirds of the majority of those Members eligible to vote and attending a General Meeting, or voting by proxy.
b) In the event of a Dissolution, the Committee Officials are empowered to dispose of the STTA’s assets and discharge all debts and liabilities of the STTA forthwith.
c) If, upon the Dissolution of the STTA, there remains, after the satisfaction of all its debts and liabilities, any property whatsoever, the same shall not be paid to, or distributed among the Members of the STTA, but shall be given, or transferred, to some other institution, or institutions, having objects similar to the objects of the STTA and if and so far, as effect cannot be given to such provision, then to some charitable institution.
16. Proposals, Alterations, Suggestions, Recommendations, Amendments and Feedback
The Committee welcomes any positive communications, which endeavour to help the STTA achieve its declared aims and objectives [see Rule 2].
Players starting after Christmas league fees will be, seniors £16 & juniors £9 including the TTE fee £10/£6.
Bank Transfers can be made ~ Sort Code: 404024 A/c No: 42023008
A/c Name: STTA, or ScunTableTennis
Reference: 15/16 Sub + your surname
and, if room, your first name, or initials