THE
PARENT-TEACHER ASSOCIATION
(Registered Charity number 1016980)
RULES
1. Name
a) The
name of the Association shall be ‘The Woodford Green Preparatory School
Parent-Teacher Association’, hereinafter referred to as the Association.
b) Wherever
used herein the term ‘the School’ shall mean the Woodford Green Preparatory
School Limited.
2. Object
The object of the Association is to advance the
education of the pupils in the School. In furtherance of this object the
Association may:
a) Develop
more extended relationships between the staff, parents and others associated
with the School.
b) Engage
in activities which support the School and advance the education of the pupils
attending it.
c) Provide
and assist in the provision of facilities for education at the School.
3. Membership
a) Full
membership shall be open to the parents or guardians of any present pupils of
the School by paying a subscription in accordance with Rule 4.
b) All
present teaching staff of the School shall be full members of the Association.
c) All
members of the Association shall have the right to attend and vote at any
Annual General Meeting or Extraordinary General Meeting of the Association.
d) All
members shall be bound by the rules of the Association.
4. Subscriptions
a) Members
of the Association in accordance with Rule 3(a) shall pay an annual
subscription in such amount as may be decided by the Committee.
b) Subscriptions
shall relate to the academic year in which they are first paid and shall be renewable
on the first day of the School Term commencing in September.
c) Subscriptions
may be collected by the School as agent for the Association.
5. Officers
a) The
officers of the Association shall be:
i) two
Co-Chairmen
ii) Secretary
iii) Assistant
Secretary
iv) Treasurer
b) The
officers shall be elected at an Annual General Meeting to serve for a term not
exceeding three years.
c) If any
officer elected at an Annual General Meeting ceases to hold office, for
whatever reason, the Committee shall have power to elect a successor until the
next Annual General Meeting.
6. Committee
a) The
management of the Association shall be vested in the Committee, which shall be
constituted as follows:
i) The
officers of the Association
ii) The
Head of the School
iii) Not
more than twenty ‘Parent Members’
iv) Two
‘Staff Members’
b) The ‘Parent
Members’ shall be parents or guardians of present pupils at the School, and
shall be elected at an Annual General Meeting, to serve for a term not
exceeding three years. Both parents of any child may not serve concurrently.
c) The
‘Staff Members’ shall be chosen by the present teaching staff of the School
from amongst their own number to serve for a term not exceeding three years.
d) The
Committee shall have power of co-option. The maximum number of co-opted members
(other than members co-opted to replace elected members who have retired during
the course of their term) at any one time shall be fifteen. The maximum
duration for which co-opted members may serve is until the Annual General Meeting
subsequent to the date of their co-option.
e) The
Committee shall have power to invite anyone to attend any of its meetings.
f) The
Committee shall meet at least once a term.
g) The
Committee shall have power (subject to any prior resolution of the Association
at a general meeting) to deal with all matters affecting the Association and
its membership provided that the Committee shall not (without the prior
approval of the Association in general meeting) incur any liability on behalf
of the Association for an amount which exceeds the net assets of the
Association at the time that the liability is first incurred.
h) The
Committee shall have power to appoint sub-committees as and when required and
to establish their terms of reference.
i) Any
member of the Committee who is absent without apology from three consecutive
committee meetings shall be deemed to have forfeited his or her position on the
Committee unless the Committee shall otherwise resolve.
j) For
all meetings of the Committee or any sub-committee the quorum shall be one
fifth of their respective members except that the quorum shall in no instance
be less than three.
7. General
Meetings
a) There
shall be an Annual General Meeting of the Association during the months of
April or May.
b) The business
of the Annual General Meeting shall be:
i) to
receive and (if thought fit) adopt the Chairmen’s report on the work of the
Association for the year ended on the previous last day of February.
ii) to
receive and ( if thought fit) adopt the accounts of the Association for the
financial year ended on the previous last day of February, such accounts having
been subject to outside scrutiny by means of an independent examination or an
audit as required by the Charities Act 1993.
iii) to
elect the officers of the Association in accordance with Rule 5.
iv) to
elect the ‘Parent Members’ of the Committee in accordance with Rule 6.
v) to
appoint an independent examiner or an auditor as required by the Charities Act
1993.
vi) to
transact such other business as may be brought before it.
c) Notice
of the Annual General Meeting shall require nomination for officers and other
vacancies to be made not later than seven clear days before the date of the
meeting and duly seconded, provided that if no nomination for a particular office
or vacancy is so received, nominations for that office or vacancy made at the
meeting shall be valid.
d) Any
member of the Association shall be entitled to submit nominations.
e) Any
vacancy unfilled at the Annual General Meeting shall be referred to the first
meeting of the Committee thereafter which shall take such action as it deems
appropriate.
f) An
Extraordinary General Meeting of the Association may be summoned at any time by
the officers of the Association and shall be summoned by the officers if duly
requisitioned by written notice (specifying in detail the business that is to
be discussed at the meeting) signed by 100 or more members. Where a notice is
requisitioned the meeting shall be held not more than 28 days after the day on
which the notice is received by the Committee. The business of the meeting
shall be stated in the notice convening it and no other business shall be
discussed.
g) A
quorum for a General Meeting shall be 15 members present in person, provided
that if a quorum shall not be present at the time appointed for any General
Meeting other than a General Meeting requisitioned pursuant to t Paragraph (f)
of this Clause, the meeting shall be deferred for 30 minutes and may then
proceed on the basis that such number of members as are actually present
constitute a quorum.
8. Notice
for General Meetings and Committee Meetings
a) General
Meetings
i) Notice
of general meetings shall be given to every member either in writing or by
advertisement at the School or in the local press or by advertisement on the
School website.
ii) Not
less than 14 days’ notice shall be given of any general meeting.
iii) Whilst
every member of the Association is entitled to attend all general meetings, the
fact that any member of the Association has not for any reason whatsoever been
notified shall not invalidate such meeting or any resolution passed or any
election or appointment made at such a meeting.
b) Committee
Meetings
i) Notice
of any meetings of the Committee or any sub-committee shall be given in writing
or by email to every member thereof. At least seven days notice shall be given
of any such meetings and the business to be transacted thereat.
9. Voting
at Meetings
a) The
votes at all meetings (other than for the election of officers, committee
members etc) may be taken in the first instance by a show of hands, but at the
discretion of the chairman of the meeting a ballot may be taken, and shall be
taken if requested by not less than one-third of the members present.
b) The
officers and committee members shall be elected by ballot where more than one
nomination is received for any vacancy.
c) The
chairman of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote in all cases where
the voting is declared to be equal.
10. Funds
and Trustees
a) The
funds of the Association shall be under the control of the Committee and shall
be applied by the Committee in discharge of the Association’s liabilities and
for the purposes set out in these Rules.
b) The
Committee shall have power to place money with a Bank or Building Society on a
deposit or other account.
c) All
property of the Association shall be vested in the officers of the Association
as trustees.
d) The
officers of the Association shall have power to obtain outside professional
assistance in case of need.
11. Winding-up
All assets remaining on dissolution of the
Association, after the satisfaction of all its debts and liabilities, shall not
be paid to or distributed amongst members of the Association but shall be given
or transferred to the School (providing that at the time the School be an
independent school).
12. Alteration
of Rules
These Rules may be amended at a general meeting of the
Association, but any such amendment shall require the assent of not less than
two-thirds of those present and voting.
Constitution passed
Rule 7(b) amended
on
Rules 5(a) (i),
6(d), 7(b) (i), 8(a) (i), 8(b) (i) amended