For anyone who doesn’t have Eric Philp’s New Atlas of the Kent Flora (2010), the Kent Field Club plans to produce a reprint. Note that this will not be a new print run of the hardback original. It has a soft-back binding and a plain cover, but is in colour and includes all that is in the original. In order to minimise the price of each copy, it will be useful to gauge interest. If you think you might like a copy, please let us know via the website.
The provision of a means of communication between fellow naturalists within Kent by means of formal and field meetings, publications and any other appropriate means.
1. AIMS The aims of the Kent Field Club (‘the Club’) shall be:
a) the study and recording, for the benefit of the public, of the distribution and ecology of the fauna and flora of Kent.
b) the promotion of Nature Conservation in Kent, in association with the relevant bodies.
c) the provision of a means of communication between fellow naturalists within Kent by means of formal and field meetings, publications and any other appropriate means.
2. MEMBERSHIPThe Club shall consist of Honorary, Ordinary, Family, Junior and Organisation Members.
3. OFFICERS The officers of the Club shall be: the President, two Hon. Joint Secretaries, the Hon. Meetings Secretary, the Hon. Treasurer, the Hon. Editor, the Hon. Assistant Editor and the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Executive Committee. Officers shall be elected in accordance with Section 9, provided that no Member shall serve as President or as Chairman or Vice-Chairman of the Executive Committee for more than two consecutive years in the same office.
4. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE The business of the Club shall be conducted by an Executive Committee. The Executive Committee:
a) shall be elected at each Annual General Meeting (A.G.M.) from among the Club members in accordance with Section 9;
b) shall consist of a Chairman, a Vice-Chairman, the other officers of the Club and six Ordinary Members. The Ordinary Members shall serve for a maximum of three years and shall then be ineligible for election as Ordinary Members for one year. Members of the Executive Committee must not be disqualified from acting as a trustee of a charitable organisation and all new members of the Executive Committee must sign a declaration of compliance with this requirement;
c) shall have the power to:
(i) co-opt a maximum of four additional members;
(ii) appoint Recorders who shall be responsible for the maintenance of records, identification of material and advice, if required, in their own specialist fields;
(iii) organise Groups to cater either for local or for specialist interests within the Club as the need may arise;
(iv) appoint Sub-Committees, provided that all acts and proceedings of any such Sub-Committee shall be fully reported back to the Executive Committee as soon as possible;
d) shall meet at least once a year and meetings shall be called by the Hon. Joint Secretaries as appointed by the Executive Committee or on receipt of a written request for such a meeting signed by not fewer than five members of the Executive Committee or on receipt of a written request by the President or Chairman. At least 10 days' notice shall be given to committee members, but failure on the part of any member to receive such a notice shall not vitiate any proceedings of the meeting. The quorum for a meeting of the Executive Committee shall be five members.
5. DUTIES OF OFFICERS
a) The officers of the Club shall be its trustees.
b) The President shall take the Chair at the A.G.M. and Extraordinary General Meetings.
c) The Chairman of the Executive Committee shall take the Chair at meetings of the Executive Committee, and shall deputise for the President should the need arise.
d) The Vice-Chairman of the Executive Committee shall deputise for the Chairman should the need arise. In the event of the absence of both Chairman and Vice-Chairman, another member of the Executive Committee may be elected by those attending to deputise for the duration of that meeting.
e) The Hon. Joint Secretaries shall keep a list of the Members of the Club, shall take minutes at all formal meetings of the Club and shall conduct the other business of the Club under the direction of the Executive Committee.
f) The Hon. Treasurer shall receive all monies due to the Club and shall pay out all monies due by the Club, shall keep the books of the Club and shall submit an independently examined account to the A.G.M. The Club's invested funds shall be held in the names of the Chairman and the Hon. Treasurer for the time being. The Club's banking account shall be held in the name of the Club and shall be operated by the Hon. Treasurer and two nominated members of the Executive Committee.
g) The Hon. Editor, assisted by the Hon. Assistant Editor, shall be responsible for the production of the publications of the Club.
6. ELECTION OF MEMBERS
a) HONORARY MEMBERS shall be nominated by the Executive Committee and their names submitted for election to the next formal meeting of the Club.
b) ORDINARY MEMBERS Persons aged 18 or over who are interested in the study of Natural History can apply for Ordinary Membership by completing the application form. Forms must be sent to the Hon. Joint Secretaries for submission to the Executive Committee for approval. If approved, the membership of the candidate shall be considered to have commenced on the date of receipt of application.
c) FAMILY MEMBERS Family membership shall consist of one Ordinary Member plus other members of the subscriber’s family residing at the same address, admitted by the same means as an Ordinary Member. There shall be a limit of two adults aged 18 or over including the Ordinary Member plus any number of children under the age of 18.
d) JUNIOR MEMBERS Any person under the age of 18 years shall be admitted as a Junior Member by the same means as an Ordinary Member. His or her Junior Membership shall automatically become Ordinary Membership on the first day of January occurring on or after the date when he or she has reached the age of 18.
e) ORGANISATION MEMBERS Any organisation may join the Club as an Organisation Member, by the same means as an Ordinary Member.
f) EXPULSIONS The Executive Committee shall recommend to the Club that the expulsion of any Club Member be considered should the occasion arise. This recommendation shall be made via the A.G.M. or an Extraordinary General Meeting at which, in order for the expulsion to be effective, a resolution is passed that it is in the best interests of the Club that the relevant membership is terminated. Notice to Members of the A.G.M. or Extraordinary General Meeting, as the case may be, shall include a copy of the proposed resolution and the reasons for it, and the relevant Member shall be offered an opportunity of making representations to the meeting, in person or (at the option of the Member) by a representative, who need not be a Club Member.
g) RESIGNATIONS Any Member wishing to resign may do so by giving notice to the Hon. Joint Secretaries.
7. SUBSCRIPTIONS. Subscriptions shall be due on the first day of January of the year to which they refer. The first annual subscription of Members joining after the first day of October in any year will be held to cover the period till the end of the next year following. Ordinary Members and Organisation Members shall pay the individual subscription rate. A family rate of subscription will also be available, and shall be a minimum of 25% higher than the individual subscription rate. Payment of the family subscription rate shall entitle the subscriber to Ordinary Membership and entitle other members of the subscriber’s family residing at the same address to Family Membership, up to a limit of two adults aged 18 or over including the Ordinary Member plus any number of children under the age of 18. Junior Members shall pay a minimum of half the individual subscription rate. Life membership shall be available to any Ordinary Member at a rate of no less than twenty times the current individual subscription rate. Any Member whose subscription is in arrears by more than four months shall cease to be a Member. The individual, family, junior and life subscription rates shall be fixed by approval of the A.G.M.
8. PRIVILEGES OF MEMBERS
Members’ privileges are as follows:
a) Honorary and Ordinary Members shall enjoy all the amenities of the Club. They shall be entitled to attend and vote at all meetings of the Club, to receive copies of the Transactions and Bulletin of the Club, and to benefit from the services of the Recorders of the Club.
b) Junior Members shall enjoy all the privileges of Ordinary Members except for voting and as provided in Section 4.
c) Adult Family Members shall enjoy all the privileges of Ordinary Members except the receipt of the Club's Transactions and Bulletin. Their vote at a meeting of the Club must be exercised in person and cannot be exercised on their behalf by any other member of the relevant family.
d) Family Members below the age of 18 shall enjoy all the privileges of Junior Members except for the receipt of the Club's Transactions and Bulletin.
e) Organisation Members shall not be entitled to vote at a meeting of the Club, but shall otherwise enjoy the privileges of one Ordinary Member insofar as receipt of publications is concerned, and all their own members will be allowed to attend any meetings of the Club, and to benefit from the services of the Recorders.
9. MEETINGS
a) Formal and field meetings shall be arranged at the discretion of the Executive Committee.
b) The A.G.M. shall be held in March or April in each year when a report shall be presented by the Executive Committee and the election of the officers and the Ordinary Members of the Executive Committee shall take place. At least 10 days’ notice shall be given to Members but failure on the part of any Member to receive such notice shall not vitiate the proceedings of the meeting.
c) An Extraordinary General Meeting shall be called by the Hon. Joint Secretaries at the request of the Executive Committee or on receipt of a written request for such a meeting signed by not fewer than ten members of the Club and giving their reason for requiring such a meeting to be called. Such a meeting shall be held within four weeks of the receipt of the request by the Hon. Joint Secretaries. At least 10 days' notice shall be given to Members with an agenda indicating the purpose for which the meeting is being called, but failure on the part of any Member to receive such notice shall not vitiate the proceedings of the meeting. Only matters on the circulated agenda may be discussed at the meeting.
d) The quorum for a General Meeting of the Club shall be ten Members.
e) The Chairman shall have a casting vote at all meetings.
10. PUBLICATIONS The main publication of the Club shall be called the Transactions of the Kent Field Club. In addition an account of the Club's activities shall appear in the Bulletin of the Kent Field Club. A copy of these two publications shall be sent to all Honorary, Ordinary, Organisation and Junior Members.
11. AFFILIATIONS The Club shall be affiliated to such bodies as the Executive Committee shall determine. Such affiliations must receive the approval of the Members at the next A.G.M.
12. CHANGES TO THE CONSTITUTIONThe Constitution of the Club shall be changed only at the A.G.M. or an Extraordinary General Meeting. Proposed changes to the Constitution must be made in writing to the Hon. Joint Secretaries and circulated to the Membership in a Newsletter at least four weeks before the A.G.M. or Extraordinary General Meeting. The proposed changes shall have one proposer and one seconder from the Membership and shall be put to that General Meeting and deemed to be effective if passed by two thirds of those Members present and voting, provided that no amendment shall be made to sections 1, 13, 14 and this present section 12 without the written consent of the Charity Commission and no amendment shall be made which would cause the Club to cease to be a charity in law.
13. FINANCES
a) The funds of the Club shall be applied only to its stated aims.
b) The Members shall not receive payment either direct or indirect for their services or for anything except legitimate expenses incurred in the work of the Club, as previously approved by the Executive Committee.
14. DISSOLUTION
a) In the event of the dissolution of the Club any funds remaining after discharge of all liabilities shall be devoted to charitable objects similar to those of the Club.
b) Insofar as effect cannot be given to subparagraph (a) above such funds shall be devoted to some other charitable purpose.
c) A motion to dissolve the Club may only be made at an Annual General Meeting or an Extraordinary General Meeting in respect of which an agenda has been circulated to Members which includes a statement of the reasons for advocating dissolution and such dissolution may not be effected without approval of a two-thirds majority of Members present and voting at the meeting.
d) Upon dissolution of the Club, the Executive Committee must inform the Charity Commission promptly and, if they are obliged to send the Club’s accounts to the Charity Commission for the accounting period which ended before its dissolution, they must send the Club’s final accounts as well.
