The Club’s Officers of the Committee
President:- Mr Joe Halsall
Vice President:- Mr George Heavyside
Chairman:- Mr William Altham
Secretary:- Mrs Ann Rawlins
Treasurer :- Mr Steve Proctor
The General Committee
Mr Micheal Werbyckyj
Mr Kevin Humpage
Mr Kevin Altham
Our Philosophy is:- We aim to put you the members first in everything we do.
There are many of you who have asked the question, what does our committee do for me?
I will try to explain. It is important to realise that members of the committee are generally volunteers, that is they are unpaid for the work they do on behalf of the club. This realisation may enable a proper appreciation of their time, input and the work they do.
Committee members come from all walks of life. The only common factor is that they have some motivation for wanting to assist the club. Sometimes they may have little or no previous experience as committee members, or experience of formal meetings, or the type of decision-making process that takes place within the meeting. This makes for an interesting situation around the table and good communication and patience are useful skills to possess.
Your Committee members operate an open policy where applicable in its operational procedures. As the Clubs Committee is very small compared to its annual workload it reserves the right to make slight alterations to the following job descriptions as and when it sees fit, in which to conduct its business on behalf of its members while maintaining its legal obligations.
The President and Vice President brief role and responsibilities
As President and Vice President there primary purpose is to help motivate the clubs committee and its members to succeed in its Values, Vision and Mission Statements of the club.
• Sets the strategy & objectives of the club for the next couple of years.
• Co-ordinates this information with the Chairman, and may include the Clubs Secretary & Treasurer.
• The President and Vice President accepts ultimate responsibility for the Club.
The Chairman Brief role and responsibilities
The Chairman of a committee is responsible for the smooth running of meetings, allowing all members of the committee to have their say, and for guiding the committee’s work towards the aims set by the President, Vice president / Membership. This is a vital position in any club and a good chairman will do the following
At Committee meetings
- Starts the meeting by presenting his in-depth report since the last meeting on the clubs status.
- Conducts business in the order set out in the agenda for the committee meetings and AGM.
- Keeps discussions focused on the item as set by the agenda.
- Allows everyone to speak and be heard.
- Makes sure that a decision has been reached before going onto the next item of the agenda
- Makes sure a record of all decisions is kept.
Between Committee meetings
• Know of all the work that the club is doing so that he is well informed, about all matters that may arise at committee meetings.
• Keep in touch with other committee members, and how their work is coming along, which means supporting people, not ordering them about.
• Meet with the secretary to arrange and draw up the agenda to be discussed at meetings, and ensure minutes are properly drafted, and issued prior to the next meeting.
• Ensures with the President and Vice President the formulation of strategies for the committee, and implements appropriate actions to achieve the strategic goals.
• Prepares the Chairman’s report for the AGM, along with the clubs strategy for the coming 12 Months agreed with The President and Vice President, which may also include the clubs secretary and Treasurer.
Monitors members notice boards to make sure there is always an up to date copy of the minutes of meetings for the membership.
The Secretary’s brief role and responsibilities
The Secretary is the clubs contact with its members and the wider public, ( Guest / Function correspondence) in line with the direction given by the committee and its chairman. The work involves writing letters on the clubs behalf, and organising and keeping records of committee meetings.
Before Committee meetings
• Find a space for the committee meeting / AGM.
• Meet the chairman and agree an agenda for committee meetings & AGM.
• Send out a notice to committee members (And membership for AGM) of where and when the meeting will take place, and the agreed agenda.
• Prepare all papers needed for the meeting beforehand. The papers should include correspondence since the last meeting and minutes, which are a record of the last meeting.
During Committee meetings
• Take a note of the Committee present at the meeting and everyone who could not be there but has sent an apology.
• Circulate or read out the minutes of the previous meeting, take questions about the minutes and change minutes if necessary.
• Take notes of what members say when they reporting on action taken and on the decisions that are taken by the committee.
• Report to the committee any letters written by the secretary and any replies that have been received so that action can be taken on them.
After Committee meeting
• Write up formal minutes from the notes taken during the meeting in time for issue to the next committee meeting.
• Write and send off any letter that the committee has asked to be dealt with.
• To post a copy of the minutes to the President and Vice President of the club if absent.
Make’s sure a copy of the minutes is placed on the members notice boards and kept constantly up to date to keep everyone informed.
Maintain up-to-date records of
• Committee members names , addresses and telephone numbers.
• Members names and addresses.
• Meetings attended by the committee members & AGM.
• Useful contacts for the membership & Club House.
The Treasurer’s brief role and responsibilities
The Role is arguably (If we are not solvent none of us has a role to play) the greatest honour and has the greatest responsibility on any clubs committee.
The treasurer is usually appointed at the annual AGM meeting and tasked with the finances health so the club can achieve its mission.
It is vital that the club is not spending money that it does not have, and that good records are kept of its income and expenditure.
Financial administration
• Keep up-to-date records as well as an audit trail for all transactions.
• Protect the Club against fraud and theft ensuring safe custody of money, and prompt banking.
• Make sure the committee understands its financial obligations.
• Make sure the club & committee complies with Tax / VAT regulations, accountancy regulations, payroll and fringe benefits.
• Submits income and expenditure regular to the clubs committee meetings.
• Deals with payments and receipts to and from operation budgets of committee members with a budget responsibility for carrying out their duties on behalf of the club.
• Sets and controls petty cash.
• Complete regular VAT returns on behalf of the Club.
• Notifies, through the committee any forecast overspend together with (a) circumstances leading to this position and (b) proposed action plan to resolve the situation.
• Appoint and monitor internal stock takers.
• Pay all the clubs bills & expenses on time.
• Control payroll.
• Produce full end of year accounts on time for the Clubs accountants to produce full end of year report ready for the AGM.
Review all internal processes and reporting methods at least annually.
• Controls on expenditure, such as who can authorise, upper limits before committee approval is needed and who can sign cheques.
• Controls on income generation, including appropriate and inappropriate ways of raising money.
• Systems of ensuring cash and cheques books are kept securely.
Advising on Fundraising
• As Treasurer they may be asked to prepare funding proposals for one-off, grants / Loans for special projects or sponsorship.
Advising the President, Vice President, Chairman & possibly the Clubs secretary on financial strategy
• Financial accountability includes planning and budgeting. The budget will fall out of the strategic plan, so ideally a treasurer would work closely with the above to develop strategy and help set goals.
Annual General Meeting
• Reports on the clubs financial Health to the Membership.
• Clarifies any membership questions regarding the end of year accounts.
• Supports the Chairman regarding the clubs strategy statement for the coming 12 months.
(Victorian psychologist Dr John Gora says that if a club finds someone who has the ability for critical appraisal, can contribute to strategic planning and can be creative about generating funds then“ they have probably found the perfect treasurer“)
The General Committee members brief role and responsibilities
Principal Responsibilities:
To represent the membership on the Committee and carry out the various tasks and Activities delegated and agreed with him/her by the President, Vice President, Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer of the Committee (Officers of the Committee)
Key Tasks:
Representing the Membership
The Committee Member will keep in contact with the Membership. The committee Member will keep in touch with the “grass roots” of the Club and Association through his/her attendance at events and social occasions as well as through personal relations with other Members. In this way she/he will be able to bring to the Committee anecdotal evidence of how various issues are viewed (or ignored) by the membership at large. The Committee Member is the eyes and ears of the Committee. However, when an issue comes to a vote, she/he may vote as she/he thinks fit.
Serving the Committee
The Committee Member will carry out the various tasks agreed with him/her by the Officers of the Club. Committee Members will work on sub-committees or individually to examine problems, gather evidence, suggest solutions, etc. for various issues that may from time to time emerge.
The Committee Member should become fully conversant with the L.M.R.C.A. & L.R.S.S.C. Constitution. The Committee Member needs to develop a good working knowledge of the Constitution so that she/he can understand how issues for discussion might be impacted by the Association’s rules.
The Committee Member will attend Committee Meetings. It is expected that Committee Members will endeavour to attend the majority of Committee Meetings during their term of office. However, it is appreciated that family and other factors may mean that she/he will have, on occasion, to send apologies to the Secretary.
How do I raise a point of order for the committee to discuss?
This is done by a written letter or note that is handed to the chairman or club secretary, to add to either the agenda or any other business of the next meeting, unless very serious and a exceptional committee meeting needs calling. All points of order that are in writing have to be dealt with by the committee. You will receive your reply either verbally, written letter or in the minutes of the meeting put up onto the notice board depending on its nature and degree of importance to the membership. What is totally discouraged is approaching a committee member having consumed alcohol with a verbal point of order or compliant. This is totally not acceptable and would trigger a calling before the committee.
Friends / Angels of the Club
These persons are non-committee volunteers who give their free time to help other members and the committee to deliver a service to the members. Currently we would like to thank our regular Friends / Angels of the club Christine, Margaret, Lynn, Brenda, Elaine, Claire, Dave, Matt and the football king, Richard. Thank you so much, your help is very much appreciated.
What follows is a brief list of positions that the Newly Elected Officers of the committee, with the support of the general members of the committee, have to cover over the next 12 months from the conclusion of the AGM
- Wedding / Function Co-ordinator.
- Membership Secretary.
- Members Entertainment co-ordinator (Live Acts, Bingo, Compare, Social events).
- What’s on / website Co-ordinator.
- Club House Maintance Day to Day repairs co-ordinator.
- Sales, marketing, fundraising and PR Organiser (Raffles, Bonus ball & prizes etc.)
- Team Sports & TV co-ordinator.
- Fun Day co-ordinator (Events, catering, Volunteers).
- Fire, H&S, Risk Assessment and First Aid co-ordinator.
- Personnel, Employment and Training co-ordinator.
- Building & Development co-ordinator.
- Club and Members Security co-ordinator.
- Function Duty Management.
- Club Contracts Negotiator (Insurance, TV sports, Beer / Alcohol etc.)
- Club Strategy Co coordinator.
The above are Just to name a few. As you can see from the above list your committee has a busy and rewarding year ahead of them, however they are constantly looking for enthusiastic volunteer help from the Membership, so should any of the positions interest you, or you just wish to help, you will be most welcome.
How to join your Committee
Why volunteer?
People choose to volunteer for a variety of reasons. For some it offers the chance to give something back to the club and community or make a difference to the people around them. For others it provides an opportunity to develop new skills or build on existing experience and knowledge. Regardless of the motivation, what unites them all is that they find it both challenging and rewarding.
Below are some of the reasons people choose to volunteer. For some it provides an opportunity to:
Give something back to an organisation that has impacted on a person’s life, either directly or indirectly
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- Make a difference to the lives of others.
- Help the environment.
- Help others less fortunate or without a voice.
- Feel valued and part of a team.
- Spend quality time away from work or a busy lifestyle.
- Gain confidence and self-esteem.
- Uniting people from diverse backgrounds to work toward a common goal.
- Building camaraderie and teamwork.
For some, volunteering can be a route to employment, or a chance to try something new which may lead to a career change. From this perspective, volunteering can be a way of:
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- Gaining new skills, knowledge and experience.
- Developing existing skills and knowledge.
- Enhancing a CV.
- Improving one’s employment prospects.
- Gaining an accreditation.
- Using one’s professional skills and knowledge to benefit others (usually described as pro bono).
Volunteers discover hidden talents that may change your view on your self-worth
For others, volunteering appeals because of its social benefits. These include:
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- Meeting new people and making new friends.
- A chance to socialise.
- Getting to know the local community.
- Community service and volunteerism are an investment in our community and the people who live in it.
There is lots of anecdotal evidence that volunteering has a positive impact on health.
Reduces stress: Experts report that when you focus on someone other than yourself, it interrupts usual tension-producing patterns.
Makes you healthier: Moods and emotions, like optimism, joy, and control over one’s fate, strengthen the immune system.
So if you feel you wish to join the committee please approach a committee member and express your interest either that of becoming a general committee member or you would wish to train or build up your confidence with a view of taking up a certain role, then please let them know. They will gladly pass on your note of interest to the next committee meeting and then you will be advised on the next procedure. All the very best.
Annual General Meeting (AGM)
This is by far the biggest and most important night of the clubs year for its members. This is your time to raise your voices and make things happen or forever hold your peace as the saying goes. The AGM is normally called around APRIL/MAY upon completion of the clubs accounts. All Associate and General Members are welcome to attend. However ONLY VOTING General members are allowed to vote when requested, but associate members can voice an opinion or raise a question via the submission to the agenda. Firstly the Chairman calls the meeting to order and precedes through the agenda stage by stage, until he gets to the part that the voting general members are required to propose and second their new Main Committee Officers (Chairman, Club Secretary and Treasurer) for the coming 12 months (Qualification period to apply for these positions is currently under investigation), you may also be required if you wish to vote back onto the committee the previous general committee or propose and second any changes as you the voting membership sees fit.