The Norwich and District Goat Club Rules & Regulations

Committee:

a) The committee shall be responsible for the general management of the club and its finances.

b) With the exception of the President  and Vice Presidents, (which are lifelong positions), officers of the club shall be elected at an Annual General Meeting (AGM)  and shall consist of:

1. Chair person
2. Vice Chair person
3. Secretary
4. Treasurer
5. Show Co-ordinator

The officers may remain in post longer than one year but shall be required to be re-elected every 5 years.

• The committee shall consist of the elected officers and not less than five members elected from the membership.
• Not less than five members of the committee shall form a quorum.
• The committee shall have the power to co-opt any person onto the committee to give advice or guidance. Each such person shall have a vote on the committee for such items as they have been co-opted for only.
• The committee shall have the authority to authorise the purchase of items deemed necessary to carry out the objectives of the club and to raise funds.
• The committee shall meet as required to deal with the affairs of the club.
• An inventory, held by the Treasurer, shall be kept of all property owned by the club. Such property shall not be disposed of without the consent of the committee.
• The committee shall have the authority to appoint an assistant to the Secretary or Treasurer to assist the elected officer in their duties.
• Emergency matters: The Chair Person,  Vice Chair Person, Treasurer or  Secretary may action any matters, providing that three out of the four are in agreement.  The full committee will be kept informed of the action taken and the decision ratified as soon as practicable.
• The Show Co-ordinator/Show Secretary shall be responsible for running and organising the club shows, for appointing the necessary team to steward such shows, and for reporting to the committee the progress, entries, results and accounts of the shows. The Show Co-ordinator/Show Secretary must seek authorisation from the committee for expenses for the shows.

Presidents and Vice Presidents:

a) The President and Vice President roles are lifelong positions and shall be elected by the committee. They become exofficio members.

b) Non committee members may make nominations for these positions in writing to the Secretary, for consideration by the committee.

Finances:

a) The club finances shall be the responsibility of the committee and administered by the Treasurer.

b) The club financial year shall commence on the 1^st of January each year.

Subscriptions:

a) The annual subscriptions shall be determined by the membership at the AGM, on the recommendation of the committee, for the following financial year.

b) The annual subscription shall be paid by the 1^st February each year and if the subscription remains unpaid on the 1^st April of the current year, all privileges of membership or affiliation shall cease.

c) New members joining part way through the year shall pay a reduced rate based on the remaining period (calculated by months) for that year. This amount will be set by the committee each year and will not be negotiable.

d) Existing members making late payments, will not be eligible to reduced rates for part years (as in c above)

Shows:

a) All show fees must be paid in full by the date specified on the entry form. Late entries may be accepted at the discretion of the Show Co-ordinator/Show Secretary, but these may  be subject to a late entry fee as specified on the entry form. If fees are not paid in full and on time this may result in non-entry to the show.

b) Non-members may be charged an additional fee for each entry to the show. The amount will be clearly stated on the entry form.

c) The club is under no obligation to refund entry fees for non-attendance at shows.

Complaints:

a) In the event of a complaint against a member or members, for having failed to observe any of the rules, or for being guilty of conduct harmful to the club or its reputation, (this includes comments on social media), the person complaining must do so in writing to the Secretary or the Chair.

b) If the committee wishes to raise a complaint against a member, the Chair will instruct a spokesperson from the committee to present the complaint in writing.

c) An investigation by the committee will be conducted within 2 weeks of a complaint being received. .

d) The committee may nominate a sub-committee to investigate the matter and the result then reported to the full committee for a decision.

e) In the event of a complaint being substantiated, such member(s) may be removed from the club by a resolution passed by a majority of the committee present at the meeting. The committee shall be required to give a reason for the decision. The member shall have the right to appeal in writing to the Chair within 1 month. At that point, the committee shall call an Emergency General Meeting (EGM). A member removed from the club under this rule, shall have no claim to the return of his/her/their subscription, or any part thereof, or to the return of any monies paid to the club.

Annual General Meeting (AGM):

a) Shall be held within the two calendar months of the 1^st of January. The Treasurer shall present a statement of the accounts for the twelve months ending 31^st December preceding.

b) The quorum of the AGM shall be seven members. The Chairperson shall have the casting vote.

c) The existing Chairperson shall conduct the meeting until the selection of the Chairperson for the new year is completed. Then the new Chairperson will take the chair.

d) In the event that there is no existing Chair or Vice Chair present, a member of the committee will be nominated by the committee to take on that role.

e) The officers of the committee and their terms of office are listed in rule 4b.Where new officers are to be appointed, they will be elected by vote at the AGM. They must have been nominated in writing on an agreed club nomination form, and be received by the Secretary by the 31^st January. Nomination forms will be obtainable from the Secretary. The person so nominated, must have given his/her consent and also at least two voting members must have signed the form.

f) When more than one person has been nominated for any post, the election of the officer will be held at the AGM by secret ballot.

g) The other members of the committee will be elected from the membership present at the AGM.

Extraordinary Meeting (EGM):

a) The committee shall have the power to call an EGM at any time having given due notice of one month of the meeting, to the membership.

b) aThe committee must call an EGM on the receipt of a request in writing signed by ten  or more voting members citing the object of such meeting and with payment of £25 to cover costs, which may be refundable, at the discretion of the meeting.

b) Members having paid their subscription shall be entitled to the following privileges:

To receive for free perusal at the meetings, or passed on to the membership as directed by the secretary:

1. a copy of the BGS herd book, year book and monthly journals.
2. to make; entries in the Herd and Foundation books, supplementary and identification registers, transfers of ownership by application through the Hon Secretary or other authorised officer of the club at the rate charged to affiliated clubs.

Alterations to the Rules:

Any suggested alteration to a rule should be submitted in writing to the Secretary by 1^st October  for consideration by the committee who will then publicise details for a decision to be made by members at the next AGM.  

Wind Up:

The club membership may decide to close down the club due to insufficient funds or members. The decision to do this will be based on a member vote at an Emergency General Meeting (EGM). The assets of the club shall then be placed in the hands of a steering committee, nominated by the existing committee and shall be made up of not less than 3 members. The steering committee shall exist for not less than 2 years, to allow for the possible reactivation of the club. If after this period of time the club has not been reactivated, the existing main club committee can decide whether to continue with another period of time, or to dispose of the assets with items and/or proceeds to go to another organisation, maintaining the upkeep of goats.

Milk Recording:

The club may run a milk recording scheme, and according to the BGS rule is for main club members only. The members of the scheme shall hold an AGM and elect its own officer to run the scheme. The scheme shall be financed by its members. The Milk Recording Officer of the scheme shall make a full report at the club AGM.

a) a provision for postal votes is made for the nomination of the officers of the club,

b) for any other matters, the committee consider that the full participation of the membership is required at a formal meeting

c) All general communications will be sent by email unless otherwise requested by a particular member.

Meetings by Media:

In the event that government guidelines prevent face to face meetings, such as that of committee meetings or the Annual General Meeting, the officers of the committee will decide appropriate courses of action and responses so that the club continues to function effectively. The membership will be kept informed.