WADHURST HISTORY SOCIETY
Draft Rules

1. Purpose
      1.1. The Society has been established to advance the public's education in the local history of Wadhurst and nearby Parishes in East Sussex and Kent by the collection, collation and dissemination to the public of relevant information and by the conduct of meetings, lectures and visits to places of historical interest. The Society is established as a Charity [no xxxxxxxxxxxxxx], administered by Trustees in accordance with the constitution of the Charity, which shall take precedence over any other rule of the Society.
2. Means
      2.1. The Society will offer its members a programme of meetings, each normally with one speaker.
      2.2. There will be a regular newsletter setting out the future programme and containing articles on matters of local history submitted by members, questions – and answers – submitted by members on matters of interest, correspondence and other features. The Society may issue other publications to support the purposes set out above. Copyright in all material so produced will remain with the Society.
      2.3. The Society may organise visits to locations of interest to Society members, social functions and fundraising events.
      2.4. The Society may also support research groups in relevant areas of work, as deemed useful by the Committee.
      2.5. The Trustees of the Charity have delegated the day to day running of the Society to a Management Committee [the Committee] elected at an Annual General Meeting.
3. Membership
      3.1. Membership shall be open to anyone without restriction and all members in any particular category shall have the same rights and obligations.
      3.2. The benefits of Individual membership will include:
            3.2.1. the right to attend all meetings of the Society
            3.2.2. the right to stand for, and to vote in any elections for, the Committee of the Society
            3.2.3. the receipt of one copy of every newsletter
      3.3. Junior membership will be available to anyone under the age of 18 at the time of joining the Society: benefits of junior members will include all the benefits of individual members, except the right to vote in elections.
      3.4. Family membership will be available to members of a family all living at the same address. Benefits will include:
            3.4.1. the right for all members of the family to attend all meetings of the Society
            3.4.2. the right for one member of the family to stand for, and to vote in any elections for, the Committee of the Society
            3.4.3. the receipt of one copy of every newsletter
            3.4.4. the right to purchase one copy of any publication of the Society at cost.
      3.5. People who cannot attend meetings – by reason of their location - may be offered a postal membership. Benefits will be limited to:
            3.5.1. the receipt of one copy of every newsletter
      3.6. The Committee may offer honorary membership to individuals who have shown by their commitment to the aims of the Society that they merit such recognition. Honorary members will have the same rights as individual members.
      3.7. Regular meetings of the Society shall normally be open to visitors and guests of members, on payment of an amount determined by the Committee.
      3.8. Membership information will be kept on computer by a member of the Society and will only be used for purposes connected with the running of the Society, in accordance with Data Protection legislation.
4. Subscriptions
      4.1. An annual subscription will be determined by the Committee and will cover membership for the calendar year. Payment will be due before the first meeting of the year and members in arrears will not be entitled to any of the benefits due to them.
      4.2. Members joining after July 1 in any year shall pay only half the annual subscription. They will receive a copy of any newsletter issued during the second half of the year and may purchase back issues at cost.
5. The Committee
      5.1. A Committee to run the daily business of the Society will be elected by the membership at the Annual General Meeting. The Committee will consist of not more than 10 elected members and those elected will serve for a period of three years; after that period they may stand for re-election.
      5.2. Trustees of the Charity will be ex officio members of the Committee.
      5.3. Any member interested in serving on the Committee shall notify the Chairman or Secretary at least two weeks before the Annual General Meeting.
      5.4. If there are more than 10 candidates willing to serve on the Committee, an election will be held at the Annual General Meeting by means of a secret ballot, supervised by two existing members of the Committee and two other members of the Society not standing for election.
      5.5. A Committee member may hold more than one such office and the names of all office holders will be notified to the membership in the first newsletter of the year and at the next regular meeting.
      5.6. Should a vacancy occur during the course of the year, the Committee may co-opt a replacement and will notify the next regular meeting of that fact.
6. Annual General Meeting
      6.1. An Annual General Meeting will be held, usually in December, at the last meeting in each calendar year. The Meeting may be combined with a regular meeting with a speaker to follow or may be a separate meeting as the Committee determines.
      6.2. Notice of the meeting shall be given in the newsletter preceding the date of the Annual General Meeting and by advertising in the local press,or by other communication with members of the Society at least two weeks before the date of the Meeting.
      6.3. At the Annual General Meeting, the Chairman shall review the past year’s activity and the Treasurer shall report on the financial affairs of the Society. The Treasurer will also propose any change to the annual membership fees.
      6.4. The Annual General Meeting will confirm the Rules of the Society and will vote on the acceptability of any changes to such Rules; such changes are to be submitted to the Chairman in writing at least two weeks before the Meeting and their text will be made available to members at least one week before the Meeting.
7. Special General Meeting
      7.1. A Special General meeting may be called by the Committee to discuss with members of the Society matters of significant importance to the running of the Society.
      7.2. A minimum of twenty members may notify the Chairman in writing that they have concerns about the running of the Society. A Special General Meeting shall be called within thirty days of the date of such notification to discuss those concerns and seek a resolution of the issues raised
8. Records of Meetings
      8.1. Minutes will be written up for all Committee, Annual General and Special general Meetings. They will be considered for approval and, subject to any necessary amendment, approved by those attending the next appropriate meeting, and then signed as a true record by the Chairman of the meeting.
9. Winding Up
      9.1. If the level of membership of the Society or the state of the Society’s finances prove – in the opinion of the Committee - unable to support the continued operation of the Society, a Special General Meeting will be called to determine the way ahead.
      9.2. Any decision about the Society’s future should be determined by a simple majority vote of those present.
      9.3. If the Special General Meeting decides that the Society should cease to exist, the Trustees, after meeting any outstanding debts, will apply any remaining property or money:
            9.3.1. directly for the Objects of the Charity
            9.3.2. by transfer to any charity or charities for purposes the same as or similar to the Charity
            9.3.3. in such other manner as the Charity Commissioners for England and Wales ("the Commission") may approve in writing in advance.