Lothian Sea Kayak Club
CONSTITUTION – Adopted 27 March 2025
- Name
1.1 The Club name is “Lothian Sea Kayak Club” (LSKC), hereinafter referred to as
the ‘Club’.
- Affiliation
2.1 The Club is affiliated to Paddle Scotland.
- Aims and objectives
3.1 The Club will provide opportunities for members to participate and enjoy sea
kayaking at all levels.
3.2 The Club will actively promote sea kayaking activities through
- facilitating the arrangement and co-ordination of both peer and club-led sea kayaking events via the Club website and email
- facilitating opportunities for members to participate in relevant training programmes and make progress towards recognised kayaking qualifications
- supporting sea kayaking opportunities via the maintenance of a range of sea kayaking equipment which is available to members to hire
- Membership
4.1 Membership is open to anyone over the age of 18 years. Individuals may apply for membership, generally through the Club website or email to the Membership Secretary, but will only become members once their application has been accepted by the Club and the membership fee paid. The Club may require evidence of suitable experience before accepting an application or require an applicant without such experience to complete an induction course before they become a member.
4.2 It is a condition of membership that members abide by the constitution and
policies of the Club and follow the Paddle Scotland Code of Conduct.
4.3 It is a condition of membership that members accept the main form of Club
communication is via email.
4.4 All members are responsible for their personal safety. Each member is
personally responsible for making a judgement based on their skill level,
about whether or not to paddle in the conditions on the day.
4.5 LSKC does not provide member insurance beyond what is provided through
Paddle Scotland affiliation.
—— link to membership policy
- Membership fees
5.1 Membership fees will be set annually. The Committee will require a members vote
at the Annual General Meeting if the fees are to be increased.
5.2 Membership fees are paid in advance annually and are due by February 1st and
expire on January 31st.
5.3 On payment of a membership fee the member is deemed to accept the Club
constitution and policies.
5.4 The membership list will be maintained securely by the Membership Secretary.
- LSKC Committee
6.1 The primary responsibility of the Committee is to fulfil the stated aims and objectives
of the Club. The Committee is responsible for upholding the club constitution and
policies.
6.2 The Committee of the Club will be composed of a maximum of ten members. The
following roles shall be voted on at the Annual General Meeting:
- Chair
- Secretary
- Treasurer
- up to seven ordinary Committee members.
6.3 Committee members will be elected annually at the Annual General Meeting (AGM)
and are appointed for one year.
6.4 Additional members may be co-opted by the Committee during the year to serve on
the committee in the event of a committee member resigning or there being a
committee vacancy not fulfilled at the AGM. The Committee must not exceed the
maximum ten members at any given time. Co-optees are required to stand down at
the AGM.
6.5 Each Committee member will be eligible for re-election until they have served a
maximum of 4 years continuously. They must step down for a period of one year
before being again eligible for election. A member who has served for four years
continuously and who is co-opted for a further year by the Committee, may only
serve one year as a co-opted member. In this case, they must step down for one year
before standing for re-election.
6.6 The Chair may not serve beyond the four year limit. They may be co-opted back as
an ordinary committee member, but cannot remain as Chair. They will be required to
step down for one year before standing for re-election.
6.7 Six Committee members shall be the quorum for Committee meetings which shall be
held a minimum of six times a year. In the event the Chair is unable to attend a
meeting, the Committee shall nominate a Chair from those in attendance.
6.8 The Secretary will maintain records of meetings and publish them on the web site.
The Committee shall allocate roles for the ordinary Committee members by the first
meeting after the AGM.
6.9 Committee members may serve on any sub-committee which the Committee see fit
to establish. Additional members may be co-opted by a Subcommittee during the year to serve on that Subcommittee. Members of sub-committees are not required to be subject to a
members’ vote and may volunteer or be asked to volunteer for a role on the subcommittee.
Subcommittees are subject to the oversight of the Club Committee and must provide a report or minutes of a meeting back to the Club Committee after each subcommittee meeting. It is the responsibility of the Committee to ensure that the membership of any subcommittee is regularly reviewed.
——-link to Committee Policy
- Finance
7.1 The Treasurer will be responsible for the finances of the club. The financial year of
the Club will be January 1st to 31st December.
7.2 All club monies will be held in a bank account which is in the name of ‘Lothian Sea
Kayak Club’. Two signatures will be required to approve payment. Primary
signatories on the bank account shall be the Treasurer, Chair, Secretary with the
remaining Committee members on the account as secondary approval signatories.
7.3 No portion of the income and property of the Club shall be paid or transferred
directly or indirectly by way of profit to the members.
7.4 The Treasurer will present a statement of annual accounts at the AGM.
7.5 The Treasurer shall be responsible for processing expenses claims as detailed in the
Club Expenses Policy.
——-link to relevant policies – expenses and grants policy
- Annual General Meetings
8.1 The AGM must be held by the end of March of each year.
8.2 The Secretary will send notification of the time and place of the AGM to all members
28 days before the meeting. The Secretary will at the same time call for any
nominations to Committee or submission of motions to be put to the AGM. These
should be submitted via email to the Secretary no later than fourteen days before the
AGM.
8.3 Any motions put before the membership must have a proposer and a seconder.
The Secretary will send out details of nominations and motions received to members seven days before the AGM.
8.4 All current members have the right to vote at the AGM. A quorum for the AGM shall
be 10% of the current membership at the time.
8.5 All AGM business including presentation of the annual financial statement, relevant
reports and dealing with any proposals, shall be conducted before the Committee step
down.
8.6 The final item on the agenda for the AGM is the election of the new Committee. All
current Club members are eligible to stand for Committee, within the limits of 6.5
Any member standing for Committee requires a proposer and a seconder. Current
Committee members may not act as proposer or seconder.
8.7 The Secretary shall keep a record of the meeting including the results of all voting.
8.8 The Committee has the right to call Extraordinary General Meetings (EGMs) outside
the AGM. Procedures for EGMs will be the same as for the AGM.
8.9 A member may call an EGM if they have the signatures of ten percent of the
membership. The member may collect signatures in person or online.
- Amendments to the constitution
9.1 The constitution will only be changed through agreement by majority vote at an
AGM or EGM in accordance with the standard procedures set out above.
9.2 A motion for amendment must include both the arguments for the amendment and
the arguments against the amendment published in line with the procedures outlined
under AGM.
- Equality Policy
10.1 Members must comply with the Club’s Equality Policy which follows the principles of equality, diversity and inclusion required by Paddle Scotland.
10.2 In accordance with our policy, the Club does not tolerate discrimination of any form.
10.3 Members are required to abide by the Club policy as a condition of membership.
————Paddle Scotland equality policy link
- Data Protection Act 2018 Policy
11.1 By paying the annual subscription, members signify acceptance of the Club policy
regarding the management of data. This data will be shared with Paddle Scotland for Club affiliation purposes.
——— link to DPA 2018 policy
- Complaints Policy
12.1 Any individual who wishes to make a complaint must do so in accordance with the
Club Complaints Policy.
12.2 No member may be refused re-admission to the club unless they have been ejected from
the Club under the Complaints Policy.
——— link to complaints policy
- Dissolution of the Club
13.1 A resolution to dissolve the Club can only be passed at an AGM or EGM through a
super majority vote of a minimum sixty percent of the members. This may be done
online or in person.
13.2 In the event of dissolution, any assets of the Club that remain will be passed to any
other organisations with similar aims and objectives to LSKC.
13.2 It is a requirement that Paddle Scotland be informed of the Club’s dissolution and
termination of club affiliation.