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Constitution

(Adopted 21 April 2004)

1. NAME
The name of the charity is "The Winton Community Forum" ( hereinafter called "the Forum").

2. AIMS
The aim of the Forum is to:
Promote the benefit of the inhabitants of the Winton area, ( hereinafter called the area of benefit) by associating together in a Forum, combining statutory, voluntary agencies and residents in a common effort to protect, preserve, and enhance the amenities of the area of benefit, and through encouraging active community participation to improve the conditions of life of the said inhabitants.

3. TERMS OF REFERENCE
a) The Forum will provide a link between the local people, the Bournemouth Partnership and Bournemouth Borough Council by providing the opportunity to influence decision-making at a local level.
b) The Forum will ensure local people are made part of the consultation process and allowed access to policies made by the Council.
c) The Forum will give the local community the opportunity through the Forum to air their views and be empowered to put forward their proposals.
d) The Forum will aim to influence and monitor services and resources delivered by the Council and members of the Bournemouth Partnership that effect the area.
e) The Forum will aim to create a strong partnership between local residents, services and organisations, working closely with other Forums within the Borough.
f) The Forum will enable local communities to review and scrutinise Council decisions and the actions of members of the Bournemouth Partnership that effect the local area.
g) The Forum will meet at least four times a year.
h) The Forum shall be non-party in politics and non-sectarian in religion.

4. MEMBERSHIP
Membership shall be open, irrespective of sex, age, sexual orientation, race, nationality, or political, religious or other opinion to all:
(a) Who live within the local area of benefit, who shall be known as Full members.
(b) Who live outside the local area of benefit, who shall be known as Associate members, and who may attend as observers but who shall not have the right to vote at General Meetings of the Forum, PROVIDED THAT they shall have power to elect ..... of their number to represent them and vote on their behalf at General Meetings and at meetings of the General Committee.
(c) Associations and organisations, whether corporate or unincorporated, ( and including branches of national or international organisations ) which operate solely or in part within the local area, are voluntary or non profit distributing and which wish to support the aims of the Forum, which shall be known as Affiliated Groups.
Each Affiliate Group established shall \ can appoint one individual person being a member thereof to represent it and vote on its behalf at meetings of the General Committee and at General Meetings of the Forum, and may appoint an alternate, being a member thereof to replace its appointed representative as an observer at such meetings if the appointed representative is unable to attend. In the event of such individual person resigning or leaving an Affiliated Group he or she shall forthwith cease to be a representative thereof. The Affiliated Group concerned shall have the right to appoint a new representative, informing the Secretary in writing.
(d) Members of the Bournemouth Partnership - especially the Statutory Authorities in whose administrative area the local area lies
(e) Individual members admitted, or elected as voting representatives, and representatives appointed, shall hereafter be referred to as "members with power to vote."

5. SUBSCRIPTIONS
All individual members and Affiliated Groups shall pay such subscriptions as the General Committee may from time to time determine.

6. RESIGNATION AND TERMINATION OF MEMBERSHIP
(a) Any member of the Forum may resign his/her membership and any representative of an Affiliated Group may resign such position, by giving to the Secretary of the Forum written notice to that effect.
(b) The General Committee may, by resolution passed at a meeting thereof, terminate or suspend the membership of any member, if in its opinion, his/her conduct is prejudicial to the interests and aims of the Forum, PROVIDED THAT the individual member or representative of the Affiliated Group (as the case may be) shall have the right to be heard by the General Committee before the final decision is made. There shall be a right of appeal to an independent arbitrator appointed by mutual agreement.

7. GENERAL MEETINGS OF THE FORUM
(a) Annual General Meetings:
Once in each calendar year, an Annual General Meeting of the Forum shall be held at such time and place as the General Committee shall determine, being not more than fifteen months after the adoption of this constitution and thereafter the holding of the preceding Annual General Meeting. At least 21 clear days' notice shall be posted in a conspicuous place or places in the local area and / or advertised in a newspaper circulating in the local area.
The business of each Annual General Meeting shall be:

i. to receive the Annual Report of the General Committee, which shall incorporate the accounts of the Forum referred to below, and give an account of the work of the Forum and its activities during the preceding year;
ii. to receive the accounts of the Forum for the preceding financial year;
iii. to elect the Honorary Officers of the Forum.
iv. to elect representatives of Full members to serve on the General Committee.
v. to appoint one or more qualified auditors or independent examiners for the coming year to audit or examine the accounts of the Forum in accordance with the Charities Act 1993 (or any statutory modification or re-enactment of that Act);
vi. to consider and vote on any proposals to alter this constitution.
vii. to consider any other business of which due notice has to be given.

8. HONORARY OFFICERS
(a) Any members of the Forum shall be eligible to serve as Honorary Officers.
(b) The members with power to vote, present at the Annual General Meeting, shall elect the Treasurer and Secretary of the Forum, and such other Honorary Officers as the Forum may from time to time decide who shall serve in their respective capacities as Honorary Officers of the General Committee. Such Honorary Officers may be appointed as members of any sub-committee that is formed.
(c) At its first meeting after the Annual General Meeting the General Committee shall elect from among its members a Chair and Vice-Chair. Such Honorary Officers may be appointed as members of any sub-committee established.
(d) An Honorary Officer shall cease to hold office if he/she notifies the Secretary of the Forum in writing of his/her resignation.
(e) If a vacancy occurs by death, resignation or disqualification among the Honorary Officers of the Forum or of the General Committee, the General Committee shall have the power to fill it from among its members.
(f) All Honorary Officers shall hold office until the conclusion of the next Annual General Meeting of the Forum and shall be eligible for re-election.

9. THE GENERAL COMMITTEE
Subject to the provisions of Clause 5 hereof the policy and general management of the affairs of the Forum shall be directed by a General Committee which shall meet not less than 6 times a year. As the charity trustees, the General Committee shall have power to enter into contracts for the purposes of the Forum on behalf of all members.

(a) The General Committee shall consist of:
i the Honorary Officers elected.
ii a maximum number of 20 general committee members.
(b) All members of the General Committee shall retire from office together at the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting next after the date on which they came into office but they may be re-elected or re-appointed.
(c) If casual vacancies occur among the elected members of the General Committee it shall have power to fill these from among the members of the Forum.
(d) The proceedings of the General Committee shall not be invalidated by any failure to elect or any defect in the election, appointment, co-option or qualification of any member.
(e) A member of the General Committee shall cease to hold office if he or she -

i is disqualified from holding such office by virtue of section 72 of the Charities Act 1993 (or any statutory modification or re-enactment of that provision), or
ii becomes incapable by reason of mental disorder, illness or injury of managing his or her own affairs, or
iii is absent without the permission of the General Committee from all its meetings held within a period of six months and the General Committee resolves that he/she shall cease to hold office, or
iv notifies the General Committee in writing of his or her resignation (PROVIDED THAT at least three members of the General Committee will remain in office when the notice of resignation is to take effect).

(f) Each member of the General Committee shall upon election or appointment to the committee receive a copy of the Forum's constitution. No person shall be entitled to act as a member of the General Committee, following election or re-election or appointment or re-appointment, until they have signed in the minute book of the General Committee a declaration of acceptance and willingness to act as a managing charity trustee of the Forum.

10. SUB-COMMITTEES
The General Committee may appoint one or more sub-committees for supervising or performing any activity or service.
In each such case:-
(a) the General Committee shall define the terms of reference of the sub-committee and may also determine its composition and the duration of its activities;
(b) all acts and proceedings of the sub-committee shall be reported as soon as possible to the General Committee.

11. GENERAL AND SUB COMMITTEE MEMBERS NOT TO BE PERSONALLY INTERESTED
(a) no member of the General Committee (otherwise than as a trustee for the Forum) or of the Sub Committee shall acquire any interest in property belonging to the Forum;
(b) no member of the General Committee (otherwise than as a member of the General Committee) shall be interested in any contract entered into by the General Committee;
(c) no member of the General Committee and no member of the Sub Committee shall receive remuneration.

12. RULES OF PROCEDURE AT ALL MEETINGS
(a) Voting
Subject to the provisions of Clause 16, any question arising at a meeting of the Forum or one of its committees shall be decided by a simple majority of those present and voting. No member shall exercise more than one vote notwithstanding that he or she may have been appointed to represent two or more interests, but in case of an equality of votes the Chair shall have a second or casting vote.
(b) Quorum

i Committee Meetings: one third of the members with power to vote shall form a quorum at meetings of the General Committee and all other committees and sub-committees of the Forum.
ii General Meetings: one third of the members with power to vote, shall form a quorum at General Meetings of the Forum.
In the event that no quorum is present at an Annual General Meeting of the Forum, or the meeting has to be abandoned the meeting shall stand adjourned and be reconvened 14 days later, and those members with power to vote present at that meeting shall be deemed to form a quorum.

(c) Minutes:
Minute books shall be kept by the Forum and all its committees and the respective secretary shall enter therein a record of all proceedings and resolutions.

13. FINANCE
(a) All money raised by or on behalf of the Forum shall be applied to further the aims of the Forum and for no other purpose.
(b) An account shall be opened in the name of 'The Winton Community Forum" with the ............ branch of the ................ ....... ., or with such other financial institution as the General Committee may from time to time decide. The General Committee shall authorise in writing the Treasurer, the Secretary of the Forum and two members of the General Committee to sign cheques on behalf of the Forum. All cheques must be signed by not less than two of the four authorised signatories.
(c) The Forum's financial year shall be from ............ to ........

14. ACCOUNTS
The General Committee shall comply with its obligations under the Charities Act 1993 (or any statutory modification or re-enactment of that Act) with respect to:
(a) the keeping of accounting records for the Forum;
(b) the preparation of annual statements of the accounts for the Forum;
(c) the auditing or independent examination of the statements of account of the Forum;
(d) the transmission of the statements of account to the Charity Commission for England and Wales.

15. ANNUAL REPORT AND ANNUAL RETURN
The General Committee shall comply with its obligations under the Charities Act 1993 (or any statutory modification or re-enactment of that Act) with respect to the preparation of an annual report and an annual return and their transmission to the Charity Commissioners for England and Wales.

16. INDEMNITY
In the execution of the trusts hereof no member of the General Committee shall be liable:

i) for any loss to the property of the Forum by reason of any improper investment made in good faith (so long as he/she shall have sought professional advice before making such investment); or
ii) for the negligence or fraud of any agent employed by him/her or by any other member of the General Committee in good faith (provided reasonable supervision shall have been exercised);
and no member of the General Committee or the Sub Committee shall be liable by reason of any mistake or omission made in good faith by any member of the General Committee or the Sub Committee other than wilful and individual fraud, wrongdoing or wrongful omission on the part of the member who is sought to be made liable.

17. DISSOLUTION
If the General Committee, by a simple majority decides at any time that on the grounds of expense, or otherwise, it is necessary or advisable to dissolve the Forum, it shall call a meeting of all members with power to vote, and of the inhabitants of the local area of which meeting not less than 21 days' clear notice (stating the terms of the resolution to be proposed thereat) shall be posted in a conspicuous place or places in the local area, and advertised in a newspaper circulating in the local area, and given in writing to the Charity Commissioners for England and Wales, and the National Director of the National Federation of Community Organisations (Community Matters). If such decision shall be confirmed by a simple majority of those present and voting at such meeting, the General Committee shall have power to dispose of any assets held by or in the name of the Forum. Any assets remaining after the satisfaction of any proper debts and liabilities shall be applied towards such charitable purposes for the benefit of the inhabitants of the local area as the General Committee shall decide subject to the prior approval in writing of the Charity Commissioners for England and Wales, or other authority having charitable jurisdiction.

18. ALTERATIONS TO THE CONSTITUTION
Any proposal to alter this constitution must be delivered in writing to the Secretary of the Forum not less than 28 days before the date of the meeting at which it is first to be considered. Any alteration will require the approval of both:
(a) a simple majority of members of the General Committee present and voting at a General Committee meeting;
(b) a two-thirds majority of members with power to vote present and voting at a General Meeting.
At least 14 clear days' notice shall be posted in a conspicuous place in the local area and advertised in a newspaper circulating in the local area stating the wording of the proposed alteration.
No alteration shall be made to this constitution which would cause the Forum to cease to be a charity at law.