Free Template for a Friends’ Forum Constitution

Our Town Green Space Forum

Constitution

Adopted on 1 December 2010
Amended March 2019
Accepted November 2019

A Name

The name of the association is Our Town Green Space Forum, a not for profit organisation working to charitable objectives.

B Aims

1. To promote effective care, maintenance, improvement, provision and development of green space within the boundaries of Our Town.
2. Central co-ordination and identification of funding opportunities.
3. To establish an adequate information gathering and dissemination system.
4. To allow other groups to benefit from shared experiences and knowledge.
5. To act as a group to influence decision making in relation to green space.
6. To improve communications between all member groups.
7. To raise the profile of Our Town’s green spaces.

C Powers

In furtherance of the objects but not otherwise, the Executive Committee exercise the following powers:-

1. To raise funds, receive contributions and make grant applications.
2. To co-operate with other charities, voluntary bodies and statutory authorities operating in the furtherance of the objectives or similar purposes and exchange information and advice with them.
3. To appoint and constitute such committees as the executive committee may think fit.
4. To employ such staff as are necessary for the proper pursuit of the objectives.
5. To establish or support any associations or institutions formed for all or any of the objectives.
6. To make, repeal, or amend such rules as the executive committee may from time to time consider necessary for the well being of the forum. However, no ule may be made which is inconsistent with this constitution.
7. To do all such other lawful things as are necessary for the achievement of the objectives.
8. Delete as necessary.
   Landfill Community Fund – Our Town Green Space Forum will not apply any Landfill Tax contributions to the benefit of any contributor to the association either as a landfill operator or a third party contributor, unless they are part of a wider general group of beneficiaries who all benefit in the same way. Our Town Green Space Forum shall promote and undertake work through Landfill Community Fund that has previously been approved by ENTRUST as a ‘Registered project’.

D Executive Comittee

The Executive Committee shall have: a chair, a vice chair, a treasurer, a secretary and a committee of no fewer than six and no more than ten members. A member of any green space group can join the committee at any time during the year.

Office bearers shall be elected by the Committee at the first committee meeting after the AGM.

Committee members will be elected on a three year rotation. After three years they can continue or stand down.

E Membership

1. Membership will be open to all groups operating within the Our Town Metropolitan Borough interested in and concerned with green space whether this be directed at a particular site and habitat or conservation in general.
2. Each member group, association or society can appoint a representative to attend and vote at the regular general meetings of the Forum. Each member organisation will have one vote. Voting will be on an individual basis and not representative of that individual’s organisation as a whole.
3. The executive committee may for good reason terminate the membership of any individual body. Any individual of the body shall have the right to be heard by the Executive Committee before a final decision is made.
4. Members of the Executive Committee should declare any conflict of interests when the matter is raised at a committee meeting.
5. Delete as necessary. The Executive Committee may appoint and remove members as it sees fit and shall notify ENTRUST and any other financial body that requires notification of such changes. These changes to be notified within 14 days of such change. These changes, include the names and addresses of any new members.

F General and Executive Meetings

1. Annual General Meeting
   1. The Annual General Meeting will be held during the 4th quarter of each calendar year.
   2. Members will be notified not less than twenty-eight days before, of the date and place of the meeting.
   3. Notices of motion, duly proposed and seconded should be submitted to the secretary at least fourteen days before the meeting.
   4. The secretary will notify members of the agenda at least fourteen days before the meeting.
2. General meetings of the Forum
   1. At least two general meetings (including the AGM) will be held in each calendar year (one in each half).
3. Extraordinary General Meetings
   1. An extraordinary general meeting may be called by the Executive Committee giving at least twenty-eight days notice to the membership.
4. Executive Committee
   1. The Executive Committee will meet at least four times a year. Should the chairperson or vice chairperson be absent, the committee will nominate a member to assume the chairperson’s role.
5. Quora
   1. General meetings: A general meeting will be considered quorate if 25% or fifteen member organisations are represented.
   2. Executive Committee meetings: An executive committee meeting will be considered quorate if one officer and three other elected members are present.
6. In the event of a tie the Chair will have a casting vote.
7. Record of Meetings: The secretary shall take a record of all meetings of the Forum and its Executive Committee and produce minutes for confirmation. The minutes are to be proposed and seconded as a true record at next meeting and recorded as such in the minutes.

G Finance

1. The Forum will be financed by a grant from the council intended to cover administrative costs.
2. Additional monies may be raised by other grants, gifts and donations and by placing a levy/fee to grants applied for by the Forum on behalf of any member group.
3. The Forum may, from time to time, seek monies from grant awarding authorities or bodies or from private sponsors to fund specific projects.
4. The Forum will open a bank account in the form of “Our Town Green Space Forum”. All cheques must be signed by two Committee members.
5. The treasurer shall ensure that proper records are kept of the Forum’s financial activities and shall in each financial year, prepare a financial statement which will be presented to the AGM.
6. The accounts shall be inspected by an independent auditor each year and shall be presented at the AGM.
7. The group shall not distribute profits and shall apply all of its income to the furtherance of the objectives set out above.
8. Delete as necessary. Yearly accounts of landfill projects shall be submitted to ENTRUST within fourteen days of their year end showing all income and expenditure of Landfill Tax monies including interest.
9. The association shall maintain accounts and keep full records that shall identify all its income and expenditure and shall separately identify in these accounts, the receipt and application of all contributions received under the Landfill Community Fund.

H Amending the constitution

1. The constitution can only be amended at the Annual General Meeting or at the Extraordinary General Meeting called specifically for the purpose. Notice of motion to amend the constitution must be received at least twenty-eight days before the date of the meeting and members must be informed of any proposed change at least fourteen days before.
2. Any proposed change to the constitution must receive the support of two thirds of those members present and voting at the meeting.

I Dissolution clause

The Forum may be wound up by a two thirds majority decision of those present and voting at a general meeting. After payment of the Forum’s debts and liabilities any monies remaining shall be donated to a group with similar aims, of which none of the executive committee are members, to be nominated at the ‘winding up’ meeting.

Signed on behalf of the Our Town Green Space Forum:

Name
Position
Address

Name
Position
Address

Amended March 2019
Accepted November 2019

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