Group Constitution.

 The Northants Ringing Group

 

Constitution

 

1.             Name

 

1.1       The name of the monitoring group shall be The Northants Ringing Group, hereinafter referred to as NRG.

 

2.             Objectives

 

2.1          The objectives of the NRG shall be:

 

• To study bird populations and migration.

·         To carry out bird ringing and other appropriate techniques to provide data on local bird communities.

• To improve the public awareness and importance of bird ringing for the BTO.
• To analyse and publish the results.
• To make available the data and results to the BTO and any other interested parties upon request.
• To liaise with other ringers, naturalists, and bird watchers.
• To provide educational demonstrations and training opportunities.
• To record other fauna and flora when the opportunity arises.

 

 

3.             Officers of the NRG

3.1       The Officers of the NRG shall be Chair, Secretary and Treasurer.  Officers shall be elected/re-elected at the Annual General Meeting by a majority of votes of members in attendance.

3.2       The duties of the Chair (A ringer or above) shall be to;

·         Call and conduct the Group’s meetings.

·         Coordinate the activities of the Group.

·         In the event of tied voting the Chair shall have the casting vote.

3.3          The duties of the secretary shall be to;

·         Prepare and circulate the agenda for meetings (in consultation with the Chair).

·         Take and keep the minutes of all meetings, these to be approved for accuracy at the start of the next meeting.

·         Hold the Group’s address to conduct the correspondence of the Group and to collect and distribute information on all matters affecting the Group.

·         Keep up to date membership details, liaise with the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) on matters relating to training and general housekeeping for example data submission queries, ring purchases and other relevant document information.

·         Ensuring that all Group rings are correctly allocated to a Group member, or showing as NRG stock, on DemOn.

·         Collate and finalise year-end reports.

·         Ensure any social media is updated regularly and complies with current BTO guidelines.

3.4          The duties of the Treasurer shall be to;

·         Manage the financial dealings of the Group and to provide a statement of accounts at meetings.

·         Ensure that proper accounts are kept with regards to monies received and paid out by the Group.

 

4.             Meetings

 

4.1       The Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held in the first quarter of each year.  Formal notice of the meeting will be sent to members, together with the agenda, 14 clear days in advance of the meeting.

 

4.2          General meetings of the group will be held during the year on an ad-hoc basis.

 

4.3       An Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) shall be convened within 28 days of being called either by an officer of the NRG or at the request of at least 50% of Members.  Notice of the meeting, together with the agenda, shall be sent to members 14 clear days in advance of the meeting.

 

4.4       Decisions shall be made by a simple majority of those present at a meeting. In the event of an equality of votes, the Chair of the Meeting shall have a casting vote.

 

5.           Finances

 

5.1         The financial year of the NRG shall be from 1st January each year.   

 

5.2         The funds of the group will be under the control of the elected officers.

 

5.3      The bank account of the NRG will be Lloyds Bank, Account name Northants Ringing Group, and all transactions will be made through the account. 

 

5.4      The Treasurer shall produce an annual income and expenditure   account for approval at each AGM.

 

5.5    The group can apply for grants and request donations for giving talks. All money received will be paid into the NRG bank account, or, at the request of the ringer, donated to the organisation that requested the demonstration or talk.

 

6.           Dissolution

 

6.1      The NRG may be dissolved by means of a resolution passed by a majority vote at an EGM called for that purpose or at any AGM.  In the event of such dissolution, such sum as remains after the liquidation of the assets of the NRG and the discharge of all its liabilities shall be given or transferred to such other charitable organisation or organisations having objects similar to the objectives to the NRG, as the NRG may decide.

 

7.           Alterations

 

7.1      Alteration to this constitution shall receive the approval of 50% of Full or Training members present and voting at an AGM. 

 

8.           Conduct of members

 

8.1      All members shall comply with the instructions in the current Ringers Manual.  They shall also abide by any codes of practice, which may be issued by the BTO.

 

8.2     All members shall keep appropriate records in the manner prescribed by the BTO.

 

9.           Ringing

 

9.1    Each ringing site used by the NRG shall be under the administration of a nominated, suitably qualified member who will be responsible for all rings used on such site and records of ringing activities on that site.

 

9.2     Group rings must be used for all personal ringing activities within the NRG area. Each ringer will be responsible for entering their own data on DemOn and setting it for review by Record Controllers. If IPMR is still used then the ringer is responsible for ensuring that a data file is sent to the Secretary for inclusion in the group database and submission to BTO.

 

9.3    Any ringing is subject to the permit status and experience. Ringing with NRG rings can only be carried out or supervised by a qualified BTO ringer.

 

 

 

 

 

10.          Social Media.

 

10.1     All post to social media, whether private or to BTO sites, must conform to the guidelines set out by BTO.

·         Only post information you are happy for everyone to see.

·         Keep comments or messages on-topic.

·         Do not post offensive, indecent or obscene language.

·         Be respectful towards others (defamatory or embarrassing is not acceptable).

·         Do not incite hatred (we respect the rights of individuals to hold different views and beliefs but will not allow these differences to be manifested in a way that is hostile or degrading to others).

·         Do not post personal or confidential information such as addresses, phone numbers etc.

·         Do not post links or direct others to sites containing viruses, corrupted files, or anything that may cause damage to or interfere with computer hardware or software.

·         Do not break the law including libel, condoning illegal activity or breaking copyright.

·         Do not spam or use the page to solicit business or promote campaigns.

·         Do not post with a name or avatar which includes abusive or obscene words or images.

·         Do not post images of people holding birds inappropriately.

 

11.          Adoption of the constitution.

 

This constitution was adopted by NRG on the date written below by the people who have signed the document.