Rules and Regulations of the Old Eleans' Club

Name and Objects

1. The Club shall be called “The Old Eleans’ Club” and the objects of the Club shall be:

(a) To promote good fellowship and activities amongst Old Eleans and between past, present and future members of King’s Ely (the School);

(b) To defray the expenses incidental to keeping up the Register of names and addresses of Old Eleans;

(c) To provide the incidental expenses attendant on the Annual Dinner and on any other events authorised by the Committee;

(d) To give the School prizes for such purposes as the Committee of the Club shall determine annually;

(e) To give support to any Association, Club or Society formed for the purpose of representing Old Eleans in any sphere ;

(f) To make contributions from time to time to the Old Eleans’ Charitable Trust and to any Fund or Subscription List promoted by the school or the Club for any special purpose or occasion;

(g) To present books, works of art, or objects of interest to the school library etc;

(h) To give to and further in any way possible the interest and objects of the School;

(i) To carry out such other objects as the Club in General Meeting shall from time to time determine.

Membership

2. Membership is divided into Ordinary and Honorary Members.

3. Anyone who has been educated at King’s Acremont, King’s Junior, King’s Senior or King’s International shall be eligible for Ordinary Membership of the Club on leaving the School and having attained the age of 16, subject to having paid the subscription in force at the time (see 8 below) and their election being ratified by the Committee, save that Ordinary Membership may be delayed or withheld at the discretion of the Principal where a pupil has been expelled or required to be removed from the School or for other exceptional reason, in which case any subscription already paid shall be returned.

4. The Committee shall be entitled to invite to Honorary Membership any person, who although not educated at the school, has rendered special service to the school. Honorary Members shall be entitled to the same privileges as Ordinary Members except that:

i. They shall not be entitled to speak at General Meetings unless invited to do so by the Chairman; and

ii. They shall not be entitled to vote at General Meetings.

Honorary Members shall be eligible for elections for Office and if so elected shall have the privileges of full Membership during their tenure of Office.

5. ALL Members are entitled to wear the approved Club colours.

6. Each Member of the Club is asked to inform the Honorary Secretary of their postal and email address and any change thereof and all notices delivered or sent by post or email to the last address notified to the Honorary Secretary shall be deemed sufficient.

7. Membership shall be terminated in the following cases:

(a) If the Club, by a majority of 2/3 of the Ordinary Members present at a General Meeting, so resolve on the grounds that the Member’s conduct is detrimental to the interests of the Club; or

(b) If a Member shall tender their resignation in writing to the Honorary Secretary.

Subscriptions

8. No person may become an Ordinary Member of the Club until their subscription has been paid.

9. Any applicant who has paid the current single life subscription shall become an Ordinary Member for life and shall cease to be liable for further payment.

10. Where Membership has been terminated in accordance with rule 7 (a) any subscriptions paid by the Member concerned shall be forfeited.

11. Full life Membership prior to October 1985 shall remain valid.

Meetings

12. An Annual General Meeting of the Club shall be at a time and place to be fixed by the committee.

13. The business of an Annual General Meeting shall be:

(a) To receive a report from the Committee and / or President;

(b) To receive and consider the audited accounts for the preceding financial year;

(d) To elect the Honorary Secretary, Honorary Treasurer and Social Secretary;

(e) To elect up to ten Ordinary Members to the Committee;

(f) to appoint an Honorary Auditor for the following year;

(g) any other business that may properly be conducted at an Annual General Meeting.

14. Publication of a notice of an AGM in a newsletter or on the Club website shall be sufficient.

15. A Special General Meeting shall be held at any time at the request of The President, the Committee, or upon the written request of not less than 10 Ordinary Members, delivered to the Secretary.

16. At least twenty-eight clear days’ notice of an AGM shall be sent by post or email to every Member at the last address known to the Honorary Secretary and such notice shall specify the time and place where the meeting shall be held and the nature of the business to be transacted. The accidental omission to send a notice or the non-receipt of the same shall not invalidate any proceedings or resolution.

17. Any Ordinary Member desirous of moving a resolution at a General Meeting of the Club shall give not less than four weeks’ notice in writing to the Honorary Secretary specifying the resolution to be moved. No resolution shall be discussed or moved at a General Meeting of the Club unless due notice thereof has been given.

18. The Rules and Regulations may be altered at any General Meeting of the Club of which due notice shall be given in accordance with Rule 16, by resolution passed by a majority of two thirds of the Ordinary Members present.

19. The quorum at a General Meeting of the Club shall be nine Ordinary Members present in person.

20. The President of the Club shall act as Chairperson at all General Meetings of the Club but in their absence the Chair shall be taken by the Deputy President or the most recent Past President or in their absence by such other Committee Member of the Club as the Ordinary Members shall elect.

21. Every Ordinary Member shall be entitled to one vote on each motion or resolution before any General Meeting. In the event of equality of votes the Chairperson shall have the casting vote.

Vice Presidents

22. The Vice Presidents shall be the Principal, previous Principals and other Members who have rendered special service to the Club and who are elected in the General Meeting.

Past Presidents

23. Members who have served a term as President shall be known as Past President and their names with a year or years of office shall be published under such title on the Club website from time to time as directed by the Committee

Management

24. The general management of the Club, together with its finances and the election of Members, shall be entrusted to the discretion of the Committee which shall consist of:

(a) The President

(b) The Deputy President

(d) The Principal for the time being of the School or their nominee from the academic staff

(e) The Honorary Secretary

(f) The Honorary Treasurer and

(g) The duly elected Committee Members.

25. The President shall be an Ordinary Member of the Club, and shall be elected at the AGM and shall take office at the conclusion of the meeting. They shall serve for two years but will not be precluded from election to the office of President in the future.

26. The officers mentioned in Rule 24 (b), (c), (e), (f) and (g) shall hold their offices for one year, but shall be eligible for re-election.

27. In the event of a vacancy occurring among the Members of the Committee any Member of the Club, provided that Rule 29 is observed, may be appointed by the Committee to fill such vacancy until the next AGM when they shall retire but shall be eligible for re-election. Up to three additional Members of the Committee may be co-opted to broaden the basis of the Membership.

28. The Committee may invite any Ordinary or Honorary Member to attend and take part in the discussions at a Committee meeting but such Members shall not be entitled to vote on any resolution before the Committee.

29. The Committee may appoint sub-committees consisting of Ordinary and Honorary Members of the Club and depute to them any of its powers, except those relating to the election of Members. Membership of any such sub-committee shall consist of at least one Member of the Committee , who shall be responsible for reporting the proceedings to the President and/or the Honorary Secretary. The business of a sub-committee shall be conducted in accordance with the directions of the Committee.

30. Five Members of the Committee present shall form a quorum.

31. The Committee shall hold not less than two meetings in a year and the Honorary Secretary shall send fourteen clear days’ notice of every such meeting to every Member of the Committee.

32. There shall be presented to every AGM an annual report of the activities of the Club during the preceding year (see Rule 13a).

33. The Honorary Secretary shall make and keep proper Minutes of all meetings of the Club and of the Committee and shall be responsible for the dispatch of all notices required to be given under these rules.

Annual Reporting to Members

34. The Committee shall prepare and publish in October / November of each year on the Club website:

(a) The rules of the Club

(b) The Annual Report (Rule 33 above)

(d) A programme of Club events

(e) News of interest about Old Eleans and the School

(f) Such other items as the Committee may think fit.

Annual Dinner

35. The Committee shall organise an annual dinner, to which Old Eleans who are not Members of the Club may be admitted on the same terms as Members and of which not less than twenty-one clear days’ notice shall be given to all Members, to be held on such day at and at such time and place as may be fixed by the Committee

Finance

36. The Honorary Treasurer shall keep such proper books and accounts that shall enable him* to present to every AGM or at such other time on reasonable notice at the request of the Committee an accurate report and statement of the Finances of the Club.

37. The Honorary Treasurer shall receive and pay all monies on behalf of the Club and they shall keep a bank account of for all monies not invested in the name of the Club at the National Westminster Bank Limited, Ely or some other bank selected by the Committee.

38. The Honorary Treasurer shall invest any moneys of the Club not immediately required for its purposes in or upon such investments, securities or property of whatsoever nature as may be thought fit and to vary the investment thereof in such manner as may from time to time be determined by the Committee.

39. The Club’s financial year shall run from the 1st of August to the 31st of July.

40. the Honorary Auditors, who shall not be Members of the Committee, shall be appointed each year at the AGM and shall be eligible for reappointment. In the event of resignation of the Honorary Auditors during the year of office the Committee may appoint other auditors to act until the next AGM.