(c) All amenities will be reviewed on a regular basis, and those members who no longer participate in Club activities or show a lack of interest in the Club may have their amenities withdrawn in favour of other members who are on an appropriate waiting list.
4. Management
(a) The business of the Club shall be conducted by a Committee of thirteen voting members consisting of: the Commodore, Vice-Commodore, Captain, Secretary, Treasurer and eight other members.
(b) The Commodore, Vice Commodore and Captain will be styled Flag Officers.
(c) Sub-Committees may be appointed by the Committee as required to manage sections of its duties or business. Any member may be co-opted onto a Sub-Committee.
(d) The Committee shall have power to fill any vacancy in its composition until the first Autumn General Meeting thereafter.
(e) No members of Committee shall be permitted to vote at a Committee meeting or count in a quorum of such meeting if he or she has a personal interest in the subject.
(f) The Committee shall have powers to raise or borrow, or secure the payment of money in such manner and on such terms as may seem expedient within a total of twice the total annual subscriptions of all full members in the preceding financial year. Subject, however, in the case of security over or affecting the heritable property, to the prior agreement of the Trustees.
(g) The Committee may make such byelaws, as they consider necessary. They shall also be responsible for the issuing and control of Clubhouse keys.
(h) Definition: References in the Constitution to 'written', 'in writing', 'circulated' includes electronic communication by any means, excepting where one (or more) signature(s) is/are required when it shall be on paper until the Committee decides that this too can be securely effected by electronic communication.
5. Election of Committee
The Committee shall be appointed annually at the Autumn General Meeting from a list of nominations, by secret ballot. Written notice of nomination of candidates as an officer or members of Committee, signed by a life or full members of the Club, and initialled by the nominee, as an indication of his or her willingness to serve, if elected, shall be in the hands of the Secretary not later than seven days before the Autumn General Meeting. The names of the candidates shall be posted in the Clubhouse immediately on receipt. Retiring members may be re-elected but the Commodore, Vice-Commodore and Captain shall not serve for more than three consecutive years.
6. Meetings
(a) There shall be at least two General Meetings each year, called on not less than 14 days’ written notice to all members.
(i) The Spring General Meeting shall be held in the month of April.
(ii) The Autumn General Meeting shall be held in the month of October or November.
(b) Committee meetings may be called by any member of the Committee. All members of Committee must receive seven days’ notice of each meeting unless a quorum of members of Committee agree to the waiver of such notice.
(c) The senior flag officer present shall be chairman at any meeting. In the absence of a flag officer, the members shall elect one of their number to preside.
(d) The Chairman shall in every case have a deliberative vote and a casting vote.
(e) Twenty members attending shall form a quorum at a General Meeting, and seven at a Committee meeting.
(f) An Extraordinary General Meeting may be called on not less than fourteen days’ written notice to all members and shall be called within thirty days of the receipt by the Secretary of a requisition signed by ten life or full members, stating the business of the meeting.
(g) Unless otherwise specified, a resolution or amendment put to a meeting of members shall be approved by a simple majority of members attending the meeting and voting.
7. Admission of members
(a) Each candidate for any class of membership, except temporary, shall submit to the Secretary a written nomination in the form prescribed by the Committee, proposed and seconded by a life or full member, or the Committee in the case of a prospective member who may not have established Club connections. Candidates shall, through introduction by their proposer and seconder, take every opportunity to make themselves known to members. The candidate shall be required to pay an annual subscription appropriate to the class of membership. The Committee shall have power to admit persons to membership, other than in the case of applications, for Life, Full and Honorary membership. A candidate for Full membership, until elected as hereafter provided, shall be known as an Introductory Member. The Committee shall, in their sole discretion, decide if an Introductory Member shall be put forward for ballot at the Autumn General Meeting. After two years at the Committee’s discretion, the candidate shall normally have his or her Introductory Membership terminated. Introductory Members put forward shall be elected by members voting by secret ballot. Where member numbers affect the use of Club facilities and amenities, the prospective member will be placed on a waiting list.
Life and Honorary Members and Honorary Officers shall be proposed by the Committee for election at an Autumn General Meeting. Honorary Officers will be two in number. All Honorary members shall be subject to annual election.
(b) An entrance fee shall be payable by all Introductory Members immediately following their election as provided above. Candidates for associate membership shall also be liable for an entrance fee upon acceptance. Relevant rights of membership will be granted only after payment of the fees. No other class of membership shall pay an entrance fee.
(c) An Associate Member is normally a spouse or partner of a full member.
(d) Juniors shall be aged between 16 and 21 years at the beginning of the relevant subscription year i.e. 1st April. They shall not normally pay an entrance fee upon transferring to full membership or associate membership.
(e) Cadet membership shall be aged between 8 and 15 years at the beginning of the relevant subscription year i.e. 1st April.
(f) Student Members shall be in full time education for the complete subscription year and the production of a valid matriculation card will be required. They shall not normally pay an entrance fee upon transferring to Full or Associate membership.
(g) An Outport member is a full or associate member who no longer regularly visits the Club but does not want to completely sever the connection. An Outport member will not be eligible for the use of Club Amenities or race on a regular basis. Transfer to Outport membership is at the discretion of the Committee.
(h) An Affiliate member is normally a parent or close relation of a Cadet or Junior member who does not wish to sail but wishes to support their sibling or relation in the sailing programme and assist with Club activities. Each case to be considered at the discretion of the General Committee. An Affiliate member will not be eligible for use of Club Amenities but will receive a gate key.
(i) Duckling members shall be aged up to 7 years at the beginning of the relevant subscription year i.e. 1st April
(j) Temporary members. Members of recognised Sailing Clubs may, at the discretion of the Committee, be admitted for a limited period as temporary members. They will be required to sign an appropriate form, eg, an Open Weekend Entry Form, or a club Application for Membership form.
Visiting friends or relations of members (other than temporary) must be registered as temporary members by recording names in the club visitors’ book, together with the name and signature of the sponsoring member (who must be at least 16 years old).
Temporary members may be required by the Committee to pay an appropriate fee. They will also be subject to such conditions as laid down in the Club bye-laws.
The visitors’ book will be located in the clubhouse vestibule.
8. Withdrawal of members
Any member shall withdraw from the Club if requested to do so by the Committee who shall give their reason if requested. The notice of the meeting of Committee for the purpose of considering a resolution to require a member to withdraw shall specify the business and shall require to be approved by two-thirds of those attending and voting.
Any member requested to withdraw as provided above shall immediately do so but shall have the right to offer an explanation of his or her conduct, verbally or in writing to a General Meeting. Notice of the intention to make such representations must be intimated to the Secretary at least seven days before the date of the meeting at which it is intended to make the representations. Any resolution to overturn the decision of the Committee shall require to be passed by two-thirds of members voting by secret ballot.
9. Subscriptions and charges
(a) The subscription of Full Members shall be fixed at a General Meeting; an alteration shall be regarded as an amendment to the Constitution and is subject to Clause 18.
(b) A Full and Associate Member who has paid a subscription for not less than 30 years shall become a life member and entitled to remain as such without the payment of further subscriptions. Life Membership will, therefore, be conferred on members entering their 31st year of Full Membership. If a Full member transfers to Associate membership, the number of years served as a Full member will count towards 30 years qualification for Life Associate membership.
(c) Where a Full or Associate member has transferred to Outport membership, the years served as a Full or Associate member will count towards the 30 year qualification for Life Outport membership.
(d) The subscription levied on other than Full members shall be in the following proportions to the rate of full members:
Affiliate one fifth
Associate one half
Cadet one fifth
Duckling none
Honorary none
Introductory one
Junior one half
Student one half
Outport one fifth
(e) All the above subscriptions rates shall be rounded up to the nearest 50p.
(f) The entrance fees for full and associate membership shall be equal to the annual subscription for each category of membership. The entrance fee for members aged 21-24 years, inclusive, shall be calculated on a pro rata basis (20% at 21 years, 40% at 22 years, etc.)
(g) Charges may be levied by the Committee on members for use of Club facilities. Such charges shall be at rates to be determined by the Committee.
(h) The Emergency Fund established in terms of Clause 13c shall have contributions levied on all ordinary and associate members at an amount to be fixed at a General Meeting. An alteration to the contribution shall be regarded as an amendment to the Constitution and is subject to clause 17.
(i) Any member who has not paid their subscription and charges three days before the date of the Spring General Meeting will be liable to a surcharge to be fixed at the Annual General Meeting.
10. Arrears
Any member whose fees and charges are unpaid at the end of the financial year shall be regarded as having resigned. Should a person wish to rejoin the Club, the provisions of clause 7 shall apply, except that no entrance fee shall be payable. No application will be accepted unless accompanied by a remittance in settlement of the arrears of fees and charges.
11. Burgee and Badge
The burgee and badge of the Club shall carry a device in white and gold, depicting a yacht within a gold circle on a dark blue ground, and bearing the capital letters LLSC in white. The design is depicted in the Appendix. The ordinary burgee shall be pennants, but those of the officers shall be flags. The flags of the Commodore, the Vice Commodore, Captain and shall carry, in addition to the device, one, two white discs respectively.
12. Accounts
(a) The financial year of the Club shall end on August 31st. Each year a duly audited statement of accounts shall be circulated to all life and full members, with the notice convening the Autumn General Meeting and shall be considered by those members at that Meeting.
(b) In the event of auditors being Club members, there will be two in number who will be appointed at the Autumn General Meeting. No member of the General Committee shall be eligible as an auditor. In the event of a professional account being appointed as the auditor, they will be appointed annually by direct proposal at the Autumn General Meeting.
13. Property
(a) All heritable property belonging to the Club shall be held on behalf of full members of the Club in the names of ‘Trustees’ who shall ensure its continued availability for use as a private sailing club.
There shall be not more than six, nor fewer than three Trustees. They shall be selected by the Committee from the Commodore and past Commodores or, failing sufficient persons available from that class of persons who have been full members of the Club for not less than fifteen years. Individuals thus ascertained shall signify in writing their willingness to accept office. Their appointment shall be subject to approval at a General Meeting of the Club. They shall continue in office until they shall intimate their resignation in writing or until removed at a General Meeting of the Club.
The Trustees shall not intromit with the heritable property unless authorised by a resolution passed at a General Meeting of the Club.
For the purpose of removing a Trustee or intromitting with the heritable property, a General Meeting shall be convened on not less than twenty-one clear days’ written notice which shall specify the exact nature of the business, and the resolution shall only be adopted if approved by nine-tenths of those attending and voting, excluding the Trustees.
For the purpose of this clause, the majority required by clause 13 is nine-tenths instead of two-thirds.
The following are the Trustees of the Club for the purpose of this clause:
W D B Cameron
R Hancock
I M Todd
I N Cosgrove
D Moss
D Smith
(b) All other property of the Club shall be held by the Committee on behalf of the full members.
(c) A fund to be managed by the Trustees and styled the ‘Emergency Fund’ shall be established to provide monies for the reinstatement of Club assets which have been damaged or destroyed, and, in particular, where it has proved impossible to cover the risk of such catastrophe by insurance. All withdrawals from the Fund shall be managed under the control of the Trustees who shall be responsible for ensuring that the monies in the Fund are invested separately from the general Club funds.
14. Financial Assets
(a) All surplus income or profits will be re-invested in the Club. No surpluses or assets will be distributed to members.
(b) Upon dissolution of the Club, any remaining assets shall be transferred to another registered Community Amateur Sports Club, a registered charity or the sport’s governing body.
15. Arrears of fees
If, at any time, any mooring, storage or other fees payable to the Club by any member or former member shall be three months or more in arrears:
(a) The committee shall be entitled to move his or her boat or other property to any other part of the premises without being liable for any loss of, or damage to, the boat or property howsoever caused.
(b) The committee shall be entitled, upon giving one month’s notice in writing to the member or former member at his or her last known address shown in the register of members, to sell the boat or other property and to deduct any monies due to the Club (whether by way of arrears of subscriptions or mooring fees or otherwise) from the net proceeds of sale before accounting for the balance (if any) to the member or former member.
(c) Alternatively, any boat or property, which in the opinion of the committee cannot be sold, may, upon such notice as aforementioned, be disposed of in any manner the committee may think fit and the expenses recovered from the member or former member. Any arrears as aforesaid shall be deemed to be a debt owing to the Club by the member or former member.
(d) Further the Club shall, at all times, have a lien over members’ or former members’ boat or other property parked or moored on the Club’s premises or Club moorings, in respect of all monies due to the Club, whether in respect or arrears of mooring fees or subscriptions or otherwise.
16. Disclaimer and limitation of liability
(a) The Club cannot provide direct parental supervision over children and the Club cannot be held responsible for their actions, or injury or damage caused to or by them when on the Club premises or sailing on Loch Lomond (with or without other members present). It is understood that children come on to the Club premises and take part in Club activities at their own risk and with full parental consent. A child for this purpose is a person under 16 years of age.
(b) Members, their guests and visitors are bound by the following rule which shall also be exhibited in a prominent place within the Club premises:
Members of the Club, their guests or visitors use the Club premises, and any other facilities of the Club, entirely at their own risk and implicitly accept that
(i) The Club will not accept any liability for any damage to, or loss of, property belonging to members, their guests or visitors to the Club.
(ii) The Club will not accept any liability for personal injury arising out of the use of the Club premises and any other facilities of the Club, either sustained by members, their guests or visitors or caused by the said members, guests or visitors whether or not such damage or injury could have been attributed to, or was occasioned by, the neglect, default or negligence of any of them, the officers, Committee or servants of the Club.
(c) The Committee or any person or sub-committee delegated by the Committee to act as agent for the Club or its members, shall enter into contracts only so far as expressly authorised, or authorised by implication, by the members. No one shall, without the express authority of the membership in General Meeting, pledge the credit of Club.
17. Equal opportunities statement
The Club supports equal opportunities for all, irrespective of age, colour, disability, ethnic or national origin, marital status, nationality, race, religion, sex or other considerations not justified in law.
It is the Club’s objective to support its policy of ensuring equality of opportunity for all existing and potential members.
18. Amendment to Constitution
(a) The Constitution may be only amended at a General Meeting. Notice of any proposed resolutions and proposed amendments to them must be circulated with the notice convening the meeting. Such a resolution or amendment must be approved by a two thirds majority of those attending and voting, except in the case of Clause 13 and Clause 18(a) which require a nine tenths majority of those attending and voting.
(b) Notice of proposed resolutions covered by clause 18(a) will be circulated to members not less than forty two days in advance of the General Meeting, except in the case of proposals covered by clause 9(a), where proposals will be circulated to members not less than fourteen days in advance of a General Meeting.
Notice of proposed amendments to such resolutions, except those covered by clause 9(a) must be submitted in writing to the Secretary not less than twenty-eight days in advance of a General Meeting.
