For season 2017-18:  (Last amendments were agreed at AGM 2013 and are shown in red):

Association: 

1. The Association shall be called The Leicestershire and Rutland Hockey Association (herein "the Association"). The Association shall be affiliated to England Hockey (herein "the EH") and the Midland Region Hockey Association (herein "the MRHA") and shall be bound by the constitution regulations and bylaws of the EH and the MRHA.
   
2. The Association shall be the local governing body for all hockey in Leicestershire and Rutland as defined in the EH's constitution from time to time (herein "the County").

Objects: 

3. The objects of the Association shall be:
   
3.1   to promote, develop and encourage hockey throughout the County for all persons regardless of age and sex by whatever means and in whatever manner the Association thinks proper
3.2   to liaise with the EH and its other affiliated associations for the same purposes
3.3   to raise and expend funds in any legitimate manner for the above purposes
3.4   to pursue these objects in a fair and lawful manner regardless of age, sex, colour or disability

Membership: 

4. Full membership by affiliation to the Association shall be open to all clubs and schools and any other clubs or persons whom the Association agrees shall become members within the County. Occasional clubs or those with no ground which have connections with the Association or the County may, with the prior consent of the Association, affiliate to the Association. Subject to the prior consent of the MRHA the Association may affiliate any club or school outside the County. "Affiliated Member" in this Constitution shall mean any body, which is affiliated to the Association and "Personal Member" shall mean any person who is a member of an Affiliated Member.
   
5. All Affiliated Members, Personal Members and other members shall abide by and be bound by this Constitution and the constitution, regulations and bylaws of the EH and the MRHA.
   
6. No Affiliated Members shall:
   6.1  be accepted as a member unless its name clearly distinguishes it from any other affiliated Member
   6.2  change its name or incorporate any sponsorship reference without the prior permission of the Association and the EH.
   
7. 7.1  The Association may elect as an Honorary Member or Life Member any individual who is giving or has given services to hockey in the County or to the Association or to any of its historical constituent bodies.
   7.2  The Association may create and confer other special categories of membership as it may see fit. The powers, duties or privileges attaching to all such classes of membership shall be such as the Association may from time to time decide.  

Fees And Finances 

8. 8.1  Each Affiliated Member, Personal Member and other classes of member shall pay such affiliation fees, subscriptions, entrance fees, levies and other payments as may be determined from time to time by the Association. If any due payment is not made on the due date, the Executive Committee (herein "the EC") may deal with such failure in such manner (including suspension and expulsion) as it shall in its discretion decide.

    

   8.2  In addition to the payments described in Rule 8.1, all members of the Association shall pay all payments properly required from them by the EH and MRHA. If any due payment is not made on the due date, the EC may deal with such failure as in Rule 8.1.

   8.3  Affiliation fees, annual subscriptions and one off levies shall be in such amounts and on such dates as are from time to time laid down by a General Meeting of the Association, but entrance fees to competitions organised by the Association shall be in such an amount and payable on such dates as determined by the EC.

   8.4  Payments of whatever nature may be calculated and charged on Affiliated Members, Personal Members or classes of members or by any combination of the same. Payments of whatever nature shall be payable to the Association or any authorized Section of the Association or any combination of the same as the EC may direct.

   8.5  The monies of the Association shall be kept under the control of the Director of Finance who shall be responsible to the EC. The Director of Finance shall make no payment exceeding a sum from time to time laid down by the EC, other than those made in the ordinary course of the Association's business or, in emergency, with the consent of any of the other Officers. 

   8.6  The Director of Finance shall keep the Association's moneys in a bank account with a bank approved from time to time by the EC and shall keep all necessary books of account. The EC shall from time to time complete the bank's usual mandate for the purpose of controlling the bank account. 

   8.7  The accounting year for the Association shall be such as is laid down from time to time by the EC. A financial scrutineer shall be elected by the Association in General Meeting to certify the accounts of the Association.

   8.8  The EC shall have the power to appoint and remove trustees in whose name it may from time to time invest any monies in other assets of the Association in such lawful manner as it thinks fit.

Officers

9. 9.1  The Officers shall be the President, 4 Section Vice Presidents, Immediate past President, President elect, Life Members, the Director of Administration, the Director of Finance, County discipline administrator, Deputy Discipline administrator, EMHUA representative and such other officers as the Association may decide from time to time. Each Section of the Association (namely the Men's, Ladies, Mixed and Schools & Youth Sections) shall be represented by the Section Vice Presidents. All such Officers shall be honorary officers unless the Association decides otherwise.

   9.2  The Officers shall be elected at an Annual General Meeting and shall hold office until the conclusion of the next following Annual General Meeting. The President may hold office for 3 consecutive years and shall then be ineligible for re-election for a year. There shall be no limit on the time for which any other Officer may serve in an office. 

   9.3  If a casual vacancy shall occur in an Office, it shall be filled by appointment by the EC and such appointee shall serve until the conclusion of the next following Annual General Meeting.

   9.4  Nominations for any Office may be made by the EC by inclusion of the nominee's name in the agenda of an Annual General Meeting. Any Affiliated Member or not less than 5 Personal Members may nominate an individual to an Office by written notice to the Director of Administration prior to the relevant Annual General Meeting which shall contain the approval of the nominee to the nomination. In the absence of any nomination for any Office, the Annual General Meeting shall refer it to the Executive Committee to fill under Rule 9.3. Any nomination for the post of Section Vice President shall specify the Section for which the nomination is made.

Executive Committee 

10. 10.1  The affairs of  the Association shall be managed by an Executive Committee which shall consist of the Officers and 4 Appointed Members.

    10.2  The EC shall have power to co-opt members. A co-opted member shall not serve beyond the termination of the AGM next following the member's co-option but may be co-opted again thereafter for a further term, unless a General Meeting resolves otherwise.

    10.3  The quorum for a meeting of the EC shall be 6 persons entitled to vote at it.

    10.4  The President shall be the Chairman of the EC but in the President's absence, the EC shall elect some other member to chair that particular meeting.

    10.5  Meetings of the EC shall be held on the dates and at the times decided by it and 14 days written notice thereof shall be given by the Director of Administration to the members with an agenda of the business to be undertaken. Any three members of the EC may by written notice to the Director of Administration require the Director of Administration to convene a meeting of the EC for the purposes, which shall be detailed in such notice. The Director of Administration shall convene such a meeting within 14 days of receipt of the notice for such business as is specified in such notice and such other business as the EC shall decide to consider.

    10.6  The EC shall have full powers to set up sub-committees and working parties with such members, responsibilities, powers, duties and terms of reference as the EC may decide. The President or some other person nominated for this purpose by the EC shall be an ex-officio member of all sub-committees.

    10.7  Other than co-opted members, each member of the EC shall have one vote and in the case of equality, the Chairman of the meeting shall have a casting vote.

    10.8  The EC may require from each Affiliated Member the name, address and telephone and fax numbers of its officers, its playing colours, the locality of its grounds and the name and addresses of its members and any other information necessary for the EC, the EH and the MRHA properly to discharge their respective functions.  

Annual General Meeting 

11. 11.1  An Annual General Meeting ("AGM") shall be held at least one week prior to the MRHA AGM  (in accordance with that constitution), each year at a time and place decided by the EC. Written notice of the AGM, together with an agenda, a copy of the Association's accounts and a list of nominees for any Office (as known at the date of the notice) shall be sent to each Officer, each member of the EC, each Affiliated Member and each person elected under Rule 7.1 at least 21 days before the date of the meeting. The Association shall not give notice of an AGM to Personal Members but they may attend the meeting.

    11.2  The business to be transacted at an AGM shall be the presentation of reports and accounts; the election of Officers and the Appointed members and the appointment of a financial scrutineer; amendments to the Constitution; the determination of affiliation fees, fines and the like and any other business of which due notice has been given. Any Affiliated Member may by written notice to the Director of Administration given no later than 28 days prior to the AGM in the year in question, require an item to be included in the agenda for consideration at the AGM.

    11.3  The incumbent President or, in the President's absence, a Section Vice-President shall be the chairman. In the absence of all of them, the meeting shall elect a member of the EC (or, if none is present, any person who is present) to chair the meeting.

    11.4  Each club shall have at least one representative at each General Meeting and if not so represented shall (in the absence of good reason acceptable to the EC) be liable for a fine of an amount determined each year by the Annual General Meeting. The following shall be entitled to vote:

        The Officers and Appointed Members;
        One representative of each affiliated team or one representative of each affiliated club voting en bloc for its affiliated teams;
        One representative of each affiliated school.

    No person shall cast more than one vote or bloc vote notwithstanding that such person may be attending the meeting in more than one capacity but the chairman shall have the casting vote.
    No voting by proxy shall be allowed.
    Persons entitled to attend the AGM but not entitled to vote may speak at the meeting.

    11.5  10 persons present and entitled to vote shall be a quorum. If a quorum is not present at the time the meeting is due to commence, the meeting shall be automatically adjourned for fourteen days to a time and place decided by the Officers, when the quorum shall be one person entitled to be present and vote. 

    11.6  All business at an AGM shall be transacted by a simple majority of those present and voting but no amendment shall be made to a Rule of the Constitution save by a resolution carried by an affirmative vote of at least two thirds of those present, entitled to vote and voting.

12. The Director of Administration shall convene a Special General Meeting ("SGM") within 14 days of an instruction from the EC to do so, or of receiving a written requisition to do so signed by duly authorised officers of at least two Affiliated Members, provided that such instruction or requisition shall clearly set out the intended business of the SGM. Rules 11.3 through 11.6 shall apply to an SGM. No business other than that set out in the notice of meeting shall be conducted at an SGM.    

Discipline

13. 13.1  The disciplinary measures laid down from time to time by the EHL and MRHA shall apply. Subject thereto, the EC may make and apply additional disciplinary measures that shall apply in the County. The EC shall appoint such persons as it thinks fit, to administer the disciplinary measures.

     

     13.2  In the first instance each member, club and section will be responsible for discipline within its own Section. All RED CARD matters should ordinarily be reported to the appointed County Discipline Officer (or Deputy) and then referred back to the appropriate Section where a determination as to further action may be made.

    If any further discipline action is taken, a member or club may appeal, in the first instance, to the EC. The appellant must deposit £50 as earnest money when making an appeal. Costs of the appeal will be taken from the earnest money. The Director of Administration will draw together a panel of three persons not involved in the first determination.  The EC shall have power (after due investigation) to affirm the first determination or further suspend, fine or expel any Affiliated Member or Personal Member who has been found by the EC to its reasonable satisfaction to have infringed the Constitution (including any regulations or bylaws made under it). In exercising these powers, the EC shall have due regard to the law and the rules of natural justice as well as any procedures laid down by the EH and the MRHA.

    The appeal tribunal may in their absolute discretion order the refund of all or part of the earnest money.

    13.3  Any offender penalised by the Association shall have a right of appeal to the President of MRHA or any person nominated by such President.

     

    13.4    Under the provisions of this Rule 13

               13.4.1    The fine for which provision is made under Rule 11.4 shall be £30

               13.4.2    Any Affiliated Member or Personal Member who fails to make to the Association any due payment on it's due date shall be fined £25

               13.4.3    Any Affiliated Member or Personal Member who owes money to the Association at the end of the accounting year may be fined £25

          The EC may vary the amount of such fines and impose fines for other breaches of these Rules at it's discretion.

          Nothing in this Rule 13 shall limit or detract from the generality of the contents of this Rule 13.

Indemnity

14. Any person serving on any committee or sub-committee of the Association or appointed by and acting on behalf of the Association shall be indemnified by the Association against any costs, claims, damages or any expenses which may arise from any action taken with the authority of the Association other than any such arising from the wilful act or default of such person. For the avoidance of doubt the EC acting on behalf of the Association may take out such insurance as it considers reasonably necessary to cover any such matters or the conduct of the same and may pay the premiums thereon out of its general funds. 

15. The EC shall determine any question on the interpretation of the Constitution and any rules, bylaws and regulations under the Constitution. The EC's decision on such matters shall be final and binding unless a General Meeting of the Association determines otherwise. 

Dissolution 

16. A resolution to dissolve the association shall be put to a General Meeting but may be passed only by the affirmative vote of at least three quarters of those present entitled to vote and voting. If the resolution is carried the EC shall realise the assets of the Association and discharge (or make provision for the discharge) of the Association's liabilities, including the costs of dissolution. Any surplus of funds shall be distributed in such manner as the resolution to dissolve shall determine. In the absence of determination by the resolution, the surplus shall be paid to the  MRHA or any other body that at the time fulfils the function of supervising hockey in the Midlands area.

This Constitution was originally adopted at the Inaugural General Meeting of the Leicestershire & Rutland Hockey Association on 11 June 2001 at Glenfield's County Council Offices.

Amended at AGM 12.5.04

Amended at AGM 9.5.07