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2009 Constitution

Royal Holloway Student Union (SURHUL) I.F.I.S.
Constitution

1. NAME AND DATE:
President: Matthew Moore
Treasurer: Daniel South
Secretary: Mohamed Ansar
Librarian: Rachel Burnett
2. MEMBERSHIP:
2.1 Membership of the Society shall be open to all members of SURHUL in accordance with the SURHUL Constitution.
2.2 The Society shall have at least 20 members who are full members of SURHUL.
2.3 All members are required to pay a membership fee for the year. The Student Activities Department will set a minimum requirement. In addition Society members will be required to pay for Student Activities Membership.
3. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES:
3.1 The aims and objectives of the Society shall be determined by the Society individually and revised and re-submitted yearly to the Vice-President of Student Activities.
4. COMMITTEE:
4.1 The Society shall have a committee consisting of the following mandatory positions:
(a)President
(b)Secretary
(c)Treasurer
And also the following non-mandatory position:
(a)Librarian
4.2 The role of the committee is to manage all aspects of the Society's administration and activity, ensuring the workload is distributed equally amongst committee members. Planning activities, buying equipment and administering other Society matters must satisfy all members of the committee on behalf of the Society. The committee will be elected at least two weeks before the end of the Spring term, and will not serve for longer than one year without re-election. The committee-elect will shadow the current committee for the duration of the Summer term. There must be a member of the Student Activities Committee or Executive Committee present at the elections, which should be held at the Society Annual General Meeting (AGM). The Student Activities Department should be notified of any elections held at least two weeks in advance of the date and all elections must be advertised across campus and to all members of the Society for a period of two weeks prior to the election date.
5. DUTIES OF COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
5.1 The President shall:
  1. Be responsible for the constitutional running of the Society.
  2. Chair the AGM and any other relevant meetings.
  3. Be responsible for the administration and co-ordination of all the Society activities and to ensure that the Society meets all SURHUL requirements.
  4. Be the point of contact between the Society and Vice-President of Student Activities.
  5. Attend committee training in person; non-attendance is only permissible under exceptional circumstances as agreed with the Vice-President of Student Activities at least 24hrs in advance.
  6. Attend all Societies' Councils in person; non-attendance is only permissible under exceptional circumstances as agreed with the Societies Federation Officer or Vice-President of Student Activities at least 24hrs in advance. If the President is unable to attend, then either the Society's Secretary or Treasurer must attend in their place.
  7. If a President misses two compulsory meetings of any type (including committee meetings) in one academic term, without adequate warning or reason given to the Secretary, Societies Federation Officer or the Vice-President of Student Activities, then they will have been assumed to have resigned from their position. If this situation arises the secretary must contact the Vice-President of Student Activities immediately to initiate the emergency election procedure.
  8. To ensure full committee presence at committee meetings, absence without apologies for more than two incidences to be reported to both Societies Federation Officer and Vice-President of Student Activities.
  9. Ensure that the Society does not contravene the SURHUL Constitution Regulations or Policy, any Regulations of the Student Activities Department or the Societies own Constitution.
  10. Ensure that relevant Students' Union news is passed onto all members effectively and efficiently.
  11. Be responsible for completing Risk Assessment forms for all the Society's activities and submitting them to the Student Activities Department.
  12. During the Summer handover the president and president elect must review the constitution and send revised copy to both Societies Federation Officer and Vice-President of Student Activities.
  13. Ensure the librarian's duties are delegated evenly among the committee if no librarian has been elected.
5.2 The Secretary shall:
  1. Keep a full list of membership and ensure that all are full members of SURHUL. This must be submitted to the Student Activities Department in the appropriate format no longer than one month after Freshers' Week of that year.
  2. Keep a record of all meetings held and minutes of these, which shall be available to all the members of the Society and the Student Activities Department if requested.
  3. Attend committee training in person; non-attendance is only permissible under exceptional circumstances as agreed with the Vice-President of Student Activities at least 24hrs in advance.
  4. If a Secretary misses two mandatory meetings of any type (including committee meetings) in one academic term without adequate warning or reason given to the President of the Society, then disciplinary action may be taken against them.
  5. Keep an up-to-date inventory owned by the Society.
  6. Keep a file of all Society correspondence for the current year and the previous two years.
  7. Be familiar with all SURHUL procedures regarding the administration of the Society.
  8. Co-ordinate the social activities of the Society.
  9. Be responsible for completing Risk Assessment forms for all the Society's activities and submitting them to the Student Activities Department by the set date.
  10. . Be responsible for regularly publicising the Society's activities and achievements through the available media outlets.
5.3 The Treasurer shall...
  1. Keep a record of and oversee all financial transactions of the Society.
  2. Submit a financial report budget application to the Vice-President of Student Activities as required annually.
  3. Present a report on the Society's finances to the AGM.
  4. Collect and pay in all Membership Fees for all members of the Society.
  5. Be responsible for submitting all claims made by Society members.
  6. Attend committee training in person; non-attendance is only permissible under exceptional circumstances as agreed with the Vice-President of Student Activities at least 24hrs in advance.
  7. If the Treasurer misses two mandatory meetings of any type in one academic term (including committee meetings) without adequate warning or reason given to the Society President, then disciplinary action may be taken against them.
5.4 The Librarian shall...
  1. Be responsible for the safety and security of the Library.
  2. Check the society website for any new book requests and discuss these with the treasurer and president at committee meetings.
  3. Be responsible for the distribution of items from the library at meetings and ensuring items are returned.
  4. Check the society website for requests for items currently in the library to be rented by members of the society.
6. FINANCE:
6.1 The Society shall follow all SURHUL financial guidelines, and shall ensure that all monies are handled through the respective SURHUL accounts.
6.2 No External bank accounts are allowed for any Society.
6.3 The incoming and outgoing Treasurers of the Society will complete an annual budget pack detailing the year's income and expenditure, and predicted income and expenditure for the following year, to be submitted by the date set by the Student Activities Department.
6.4 The Society President and Treasurer shall endeavour to secure external sponsorship for the Society, following the SURHUL Sponsorship Guidelines and with the assistance of the Finance Officers on the Student Activities Committee.
6.5 The Society shall participate in at least one event during the year, which is in aid of RAG.
7. SAFETY
7.1 The Society will follow all guidelines laid down by SURHUL, the College Health & Safety Office, and the Societies Safety Framework.
7.2 The Society President will update risk assessments annually.
7.3 The Society Committee is responsible for ensuring that the Student Activities Department is informed of all accidents and incidents.
7.4 Incident reports must be completed and submitted to the Student Activities Department by the next working day, except in exceptional circumstances.
7.5 The Society must ensure that all of its members have Student Activities Membership.
8. MEETINGS
8.1 The Committee will hold regular meetings, at least one per month. Any member of the Society is entitled to view any committee meeting, unless a closed meeting has been agreed with the Vice-President of Student Activities. Only committee members may vote at these meetings.
8.2 The Society will hold an annual AGM at least two weeks before the end of the Spring Term, during which the following will take place:
  • The Society Constitution will be approved by all members.
  • Elections for the following year's Committee will take place in accordance with SURHUL guidelines.
  • Each committee member will deliver an outgoing report of the year.
All members and the Vice-President of Student Activities must be given at least two weeks notice of this meeting. A member of the Student Activities Committee or Executive Committee must be present for the elections.
8.3 Quorum at a Society General Meeting will be at 21% of membership or 20 members whichever is the smaller.
9. DISCIPLINE:
9.1 Failure of the Society or its members to comply with SURHUL Constitution, Regulations or Policy may result in disciplinary action against the Society.
9.2 Failure of an elected representative of the Society to attend a second mandatory meeting will result in disciplinary action being taken against them by the Vice-President of Student Activities, unless they hold the position of President as in this instance they will be considered resigned.
9.3 The failure of Society committee members in fulfilling their mandated duties shall result in the Society not being eligible for Society awards.
9.4 Failure of a Society member to adhere to the Society Constitution and the SURHUL Constitution may result in the one of the following actions being taken by the committee:
  • A written caution
  • Exclusion from the Society Committee
  • SURHUL Disciplinary Action
10. GENERAL
10.1 No function or event may be held simultaneously with a General Meeting or Societies Council without seeking permission of the Executive Committee. Responsibility for all arrangements concerned with planned activities lies with the individual Society.
10.2 The Vice-President of Student Activities may request to see a general report from any Society at any point in time, failure to produce report may result in disciplinary action.
10.3 Alumni or associate members of SURHUL are permitted to join any Society. All members must purchase Student Activities Membership. It should be noted that in exceptional cases, Health & Safety or Insurance regulations may limit activities of an Associate Life Member.
11. DECLARATION:
11.1 The Society committee and all it's members shall abide by the student union (SU) Constitution, and any rules laid down by the Vice-President of Student Activities at all times
11.2 All activities conducted by the Society are a reflection upon SURHUL and consequently Royal Holloway, University of London (RHUL). The Society will not therefore conduct any activity that had not been approved by SURHUL.

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