Club Constitution

Formally adopted at the 2016 AGM
Updated in 2020, 2022 and 2023

Mission Statement

“Hammersmith Chess Club aims to be the best and friendliest chess club in West London.”
This will be achieved by the adoption of the following principles:

A. To provide members of the Hammersmith Chess Club wishing to play chess with a forum in which to do so. This includes competitive league chess and internal club tournaments
B. To teach the basic understanding of the rules of chess for beginners as well as analysis and tactics for more advanced players.
C. To share information among the members so that anyone wishing to do so may find an opponent to play in order to improve their skills
D. To have the most up to date website and be at the cutting edge of social media usage to promote the club to members and potential members

Hammersmith Chess Club Constitution

Name
The Club shall be known as Hammersmith Chess Club

Object
The object of the club is to deliver the mission statement and the four founding principles

Definition of a Member Of the Club
A member of the club is a person who has paid the required membership fee of the club as agreed at the AGM. If the member wishes to participate in the League teams run by the Club they must also be members of the English Chess Federation

The Club AGM
The club AGM will take place within 45 days after the 31 st May each year

The Club Year
The club year runs from the first of June to the last Monday of May the following year.

Management of the Club

The day to day running of the club shall be managed by a Committee consisting of the following Officers of the club. Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, PR Officer, Club Captain, Auditor and Webmaster. The Club Captain must not be already be fulfilling another position on the Committee

The Committee

  • The role of the committee is:
  • Appointing team captains
  • Keep all members informed of all business to do with the club
  • Safeguard the financial welfare of the club
  • The Committee will hold three/four meetings throughout the year.

Committee Rules

The committee shall abide by the following rules

  • Decide on all Grievance disputes. The decision of the Committee will be final after a discussion of the incident
  • Apologies for absence must be given to the Secretary in good time
  • An Extraordinary Meeting of the Committee can be called by the two members of the Committee if something potentially catastrophic needs to be confronted
  • Each Committee meeting will have reports from all Officers.
  • An agenda for the next Committee meeting will be supplied by the Secretary with the minutes of the previous meeting
  • The committee has the power to appoint a temporary replacement in the event of the demise or resignation of a Committee member. However, this member must stand down at the next AGM or seek election from the membership
  • The committee has the power to co-opt on two extra members if required
  • The adoption of a motion shall be as follows. A motion will be proposed by a member of the Committee and seconded by another. A discussion will take place followed by a vote. The motion will succeed on a majority vote with the Chair of the meeting having a casting vote
  • Voting on agreed actions shall be by majority voting with the Chairman having the casting vote
  • The Secretary will take the minutes of each committee meeting. They will then be presented to the other members of the Committee one week before the next Committee meeting
  • A quorum shall be five including the Chairman
  • The date of the first meeting will be on the opening night in September of the Chess Club
  • The dates of the Committee meetings will be agreed by the Committee once the calendar for the coming chess year have been agreed.
  • Any member can stand for any position on the Committee but must have their nomination seconded by another member and give notice to the Secretary 21 days before the AGM
  • Committee members serve from the AGM to the following AGM in the next year. They have to be elected by the club members at the AGM.

Duties of the Officers of the Committee

The Chairman 

  • Serve as presiding officer at all meetings.
  • Oversee all activities of the club.
  • Conduct all meetings in a prompt and professional manner
  • Be an official signatory on any Bank accounts held by the Club
  • Decide the formation of sub-committees to deliver on the objectives and principles of the club. These will need approval from the Committee

The Secretary

  • Be in overall charge of internal and external communication for the Committee and the club
  • Be in charge of membership applications
  • Be in charge of the membership list
  • Be an official signatory on any Bank accounts held by the Club
  • Preside over meetings in the absence of the Chairman
  • In charge of the fixture list and calendar of the club
  • Produce minutes of the Committee and AGM meetings

The Treasurer

  • Be in charge of the financial affairs of the club and safeguard its assets and future operation
  • Be an official signatory on any Bank accounts held by the club
  • Be in charge of membership fee collection
  • Preside over meetings of the Committee in the absence of the Chairman and Secretary
  • Any financial expenditure must go through the Treasurer and if above £10 must be approved by the Committee
  • Must produce financial reports and cash flow projection for the Committee and the AGM

The PR Officer

  • Be in charge over the delivery of the mission statement and four founding principles
  • Promote the interests and achievements of the club to the community of Hammersmith
  • Form relationships with media outlets, libraries, schools, other clubs and organisations to promote the welfare and interests of the club and chess
  • Must adhere to the mission statement and founding principles of the club
  • Produce blogs for the club website and encourage all members to contribute

The Webmaster

  • In charge of keeping the website up to date and engaging for members and to the outside
  • In charge of the social media accounts of the club

The Club Captain

  • Represent Captains and member’s views on the Committee
  • Club Tournament Director – in charge of the internal competitions run by the club
  • Holds delegated authority from the Committee to appoint team Captains

The Auditor

  • Sign off the club accounts each year and confirm they are a true record for the AGM
  • Support and if necessary deputise for the treasurer at Committee meetings

The Diversity Officer

  • Suggesting and promoting ways to make the club a more attractive proposition for all minority groups – in the world of chess this includes Women, girls, juniors, all ethnic minorities and LGBT individuals
  • To provide a voice at Committee meetings on all proposals, ensuring club activities take account of diverse viewpoints and do not discriminate
  • Helping enshrine best practice in diversity in all activities the club undertakes
  • Promoting measures to help recruit more members from under-represented minorities at the club

The Junior Officer

  • Form the Junior Sub-Committee
  • Oversee the work of the Junior Sub-Committee
  • Manage the allocated budget for the Junior Section
  • Formulate a programme for the Junior Section
  • Liaise with the Child Protection Officer to ensure all protocols are being observed
  • Represent the interests of Junior Section on the Club Committee

Member ex-portfolio

  • To support members of the Committee in the running of the club or any events that need to be organised

The Annual General Meeting (AGM)

  • The AGM will take place within 45 days after the 31 st May each year
  • The AGM is the ultimate decision-making forum within the club
  • A quorum for an AGM will be 10 members
  • The minutes of the previous AGM will be will be sent out by the Secretary with the information pack for the AGM.
  • The notification of the AGM will take place in a form of an announcement on the club website of 30 days prior to the actual meeting
  • The AGM will be presided over by the Chairman who cannot vote except in a tie when his vote shall decide
  • Voting will be decided by majority voting in all matters except a change to the constitution which will require two thirds of the vote
  • Any member can propose a motion for consideration by the AGM provided he or she has a seconder, and has done this in writing to the Secretary 21 days before the AGM
  • The AGM agenda will follow this format
    • Matters arising from the previous AGM minutes
    • Approval of those minutes by vote
    • Reports from the Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, PR Officer, Webmaster and Club Captain
    • Questions from the floor for the reports will then be called for
    • Once finished the reports will be accepted by vote
    • The Treasurer will the present the Committee’s recommendation for the annual subscription for the forthcoming year outlining the reasons for the figures presented. The meeting will be asked to approve the subscription
    • The election of Officers for the following year
    • The appointment of an auditor
    • The presentation of trophies and awards to recipients
    • Any Other Business and the closure of the AGM

Grievance or Dispute Procedure

  • If the matter occurs in an internal club match, the said aggrieved member must raise the matter with an officer of the club within 7 days. The officer will try to mediate and resolve said matter but if unable to do so will bring it to the attention of the Committee. The Committee will discuss the matter and come to a decision.
  • If the complainant wishes to appeal the decision they must do so within four weeks of the initial decision being given. This must be done in writing to the Secretary or an Officer of the club. The Committee will then appoint an appeals panel to rule on the dispute.
  • The Committee will appoint a fully paid member of the club to preside, and the complainant can also nominate a fully paid member of the club to the panel. These two people will nominate a third fully paid member of the club to the panel, to form the Appeals Panel. The Appeals Panel will then hear the substance of the complaint from all relevant sources and then make a decision which will be final, with no recourse to further action on either party.
  • If the matter occurs in an external team situation. The member must bring the matter to the attention of their team captain who will try to resolve the matter with the opponent’s captain there and then. If this is not possible, then the matter will be referred to the Club Committee and the Governing Body of the League concerned. The decision of the Committee and the Governing Body will be final with no recourse to any other body.

This Constitution was adopted by the AGM of the Hammersmith Chess Club June 2016