THE BREVET CLUB (CANTERBURY) INCORPORATED

GENERAL

1. The name of the Club shall be “The Brevet Club (Canterbury) Incorporated” and shall consist of all persons whose names are at present on the books of the Club and all other persons who shall from time to time be elected in the manner hereafter provided for.

2. The word “Brevet” shall mean a distinctive aircrew badge or emblem authorised by any branch of the Armed Forces.


OBJECTS

3. The objects for which the Club are formed are:

(a) To promote and maintain fellowship and esprit de corps among persons who are or who have been qualified to wear a brevet in the service of their country.
(b) To keep all such persons in touch with one another and with matters of aeronautical interest including financial encouragement to young persons in furtherance of their aeronautical ambitions.
(c) Maintain clubrooms for the use of members of the Club and to arrange regular functions of a social nature.
(d) To affiliate at the discretion of the Club in general meeting with any other Brevet Club, or with any other Club(s) which under another name have similar objectives and policy, where it is considered in the best interest of all concerned to affiliate.
(e) To invest surplus Club funds in authorised accounts as the Executive Committee may decide.
(f) To do any such things as are incidental or conducive to the attainment of the above objects.


MEMBERSHIP

4. Full membership of the Club shall be restricted to those persons who are qualified to wear a brevet as defined in Rule 2 in any of the Forces of the British Commonwealth of Nations, persons of countries allied thereto at the close of the 1939 –1945 World War, and who being qualified as defined in Rule 2 are eligible for membership subject to Rules 5 and 6. A register of all members shall be kept.

5. Applicants for membership shall produce evidence of their service or authority to wear a brevet.

6. Admission to membership shall be in the hands of the Club Committee who may refuse to admit to membership any person deemed not in the best interest of the Club to be so admitted, and the Club Committee shall not be called upon to give any reasons for such refusal.

7. Any member who in the opinion of the Club Committee is making use of their membership for sectarian purposes or acting in a way contrary to Rule 13 may be called upon to show good cause why they should not be suspended and/or deprived of their membership at the sole discretion of the Club Committee.

8. Any Club member or Honorary member who contravenes any of the Club Rules, causes a nuisance or creates a disturbance to the detriment of the good name of the Club or to the displeasure of other members of the Club, may be suspended immediately by any two members of the Club Executive present at the time. The suspended member may lodge an appeal within fourteen days to the Club Committee, which shall have the power at its sole discretion to reinstate the member, to extend the suspension for a further period, or to deprive the member of Club membership.

9 The annual subscription shall be fixed by members at the Annual General Meeting and shall become due and payable by 31 August of each calendar year. Any member who has not paid the annual subscription by 30 November of that year shall be sent a reminder notice to the member’s last known postal or email address, with a penalty payment of 100% of the annual subscription. In the event that the annual subscription remains unpaid at 31 December of that year, the member shall have been deemed to have forfeited Club membership and shall only be readmitted to membership with the approval of the Club Committee and after all arrears of subscriptions have been paid.

10 No Club member reaching the age of 90 years by 31 March of the current calendar year shall be required to pay an annual subscription to retain membership of the Club.

11 A member may resign Club membership by giving the secretary written notice to that effect and such notice shall be deemed to take effect upon acceptance by the Club Committee.

12 (a) Any member may on the nomination of the Executive Committee be elected a Life Member at the Annual General Meeting by a resolution passed by a three-fourths majority of those members present and voting. Life Members shall enjoy all the privileges of Full Club Members, including the right to vote but will not be required to pay an annual subscription.

(b) Any person may on the nomination of the Executive Committee be elected an Honorary Member at the Annual General Meeting by a resolution passed by a three-fourths majority of those members present. Honorary Members shall enjoy all the privileges of Full Club Members, without having voting rights and will not be required to pay an annual subscription. The privilege of Honorary Membership shall be reviewed for each Honorary Member at two yearly intervals.


POLICY

13 The Club is a permanent body, which is non-sectarian and non-political in the strictest sense. In no circumstances will it take sides as a body in any political or industrial dispute, members being left entirely free as far as they themselves are concerned, to act as their individual consciences may dictate. Apart from this it is in accordance with the spirit of the Club that its members should, irrespective of politics, at all times do their best to uphold Her/His Majesty’s Government in power for the time being in respect of any call made on them with the object of maintaining the good order and well being of the community.

14 The various spheres of activity of existing Public and Benevolent Societies and Ex-Service Associations shall not be encroached upon and Welfare efforts of the Club will be directed only to supplementing their services.

15 The Club will not make direct financial grants to any of its members but should it at any time be in a position to spend sums of money for Welfare purposes such money may be spent at the discretion of the Club Committee.


MANAGEMENT

16. (a) The Club Executive shall be

The Club President
The Club Vice-President
The Club Secretary
The Club Treasurer

(b) The Club Committee shall be

The Club President
The Club Vice-President
The Club Secretary
The Club Treasurer
The Immediate Past President
Between three and five Club Members

(c) With the exception of the Immediate Past President, the Club Committee members shall accept nomination and shall be proposed, seconded and elected at each Annual General Meeting when they shall retire but shall be eligible for re-election from year to year.

17 The Club in general Meeting may appoint a Patron.

18 A member may be nominated for the Club Committee although unable to be present at the Annual Meeting provided that such member shall have agreed in writing to be nominated and agreed to accept if elected.

19 The entire management of the Club shall be invested in the Club Committee and conducted within the Club Rules in force.

20 Four members of the Club Committee personally present at a Club Committee Meeting shall constitute a quorum.

21 At all Club Committee Meetings the Club President shall be the Chairman, or failing him, the Vice-President.

22. The Club Executive shall have power to select any full member of the club to fill any vacant position on the Club Committee and such member shall hold the position until the next Annual General Meeting of the Club.

23 The Club Committee shall have the power to appoint any member of the Club as a sub-committee for any specified purpose they may deem necessary. No sub-committee shall have any control over the expenditure of Club monies. The Club Committee shall have the power to revoke appointments to a sub-committee.

24 The Club Committee shall have the power to consider all matters of difference between members that are referred to it in writing. Any Club Committee decision made shall be final.

25 The Club Committee shall transact the routine business of the Club, control its finances and investments, supervise the collection of all revenue and authorise payment of accounts.

26 A Current Bank Account shall be opened at the bank appointed by the Club Committee into which shall be paid all receipts and from which all payments made. All remittances are to be authorised by two of the signatories appointed and authorised by the Club Committee.

27 The Committee shall provide a common seal for the Society and may from time to time replace it with a new one.

The Secretary shall have custody of the common seal, which shall only be used by the authority of the Committee. Every document to which the common seal is affixed shall be signed by the President and countersigned by the Secretary or a member of the Committee.

28 The Club financial year shall commence on the first day of April and shall end on the last day of March.

29 The Club Committee shall have the authority to reduce or waive a member’s subscription at their discretion.


GENERAL MEETINGS

30 The Annual General Meeting of the Club shall be held in each June on a date to be fixed by the Club Committee and fourteen clear days notice of such meeting shall be given by circular or such other means as may be directed by the Club Committee. The President’s Annual Report shall be circulated with the Notice of Meeting.

31 The business to be transacted at each Annual General Meeting shall be:

(a) The receipt and adoption of the President’s Report.
(b) The receipt and adoption of the Treasurer’s Report and Accounts
(c) The election of the Club Committee.
(d) The fixing of the annual subscription for the ensuing year.
(e) The consideration of any motion that has been properly submitted.
(f) Any member’s suggestions to be considered by the Club Committee.
(g) The transaction of any general business of the Club.

32 Any member who desires to move any motion at the Annual General Meeting affecting the Club constitution and rules of the Club shall give written notice and details of the motion to the Secretary no later than 30 April in any year.

33 The Club Committee may at any time call a Special General Meeting for any special purpose. It shall do so within twenty-one days after receipt of the requisition in writing from any ten financial members of the Club provided that the requisition must set out the purpose for which the meeting is required. The Notice calling such Special General Meeting shall specify the business to be discussed at the meeting.

34 At all General Meetings of the Club the President or, failing him, the Vice-President, shall take the Chair, and if both are absent a Committee member selected by the meeting shall take the Chair. Every financial member present shall have one vote and in the case of an equality of votes the Chairman shall have a second or casting vote. The quorum for all general meetings shall be twenty percent of the membership. If a quorum is not reached, the meeting must be adjourned until the same day two weeks later and the reconvened meeting must be held at the same time and place. The reconvened meeting must proceed whether a quorum exists or not.

35 Voting at General Meetings shall normally be done by show of hands but may be by a ballot if required by at least seven members. Proxy votes are not permitted.

36 Minutes recording the proceedings at General Meetings and at Club Committee meetings shall be kept, along with member attendance records.


PREMISES

37 The Clubrooms shall be administered in accordance with the Memorandum of Understanding in force between the RNZAF Museum Trust Board and the Club.


CLUB FUNDS AND WINDING UP

38 The funds and property of the Club shall be devoted solely to the objects in Rule 3 and no pecuniary gain shall be derivable by any member from the operations or property of the Club.

39 The Club may be wound up voluntarily if the Club at a General Meeting of members passes a resolution requiring the Club to be wound up, and such resolution is confirmed at a subsequent General Meeting called together for that purpose and held not earlier than thirty days after the date on which the resolution to be confirmed was passed. If in the event of such winding up there remains after the satisfaction of all its debts, any funds, these shall be distributed to a charitable organisation with similar objects and if there be no such organisation then the funds shall be distributed amongst such entities as may be determined by a vote receiving two thirds of the majority of financial members and carried out by postal ballot.


ALTERATION TO RULES

40 No alterations, addition or rescission of these rules shall be made except at the Annual General Meeting or at a Special General Meeting called for that purpose. At least fourteen days notice by circular or letter shall be given to each Club member together with a copy of the proposed alterations, additions or rescissions.

41 The decision of the Club Executive on the construction or interpretation of any rule shall be conclusive and binding on all members of the Club.

42 All resolutions passed at a General Meeting of the Club or the Club Committee shall be conclusive and binding on all Club members whether they were present or not, provided always that such meeting had been held and such resolution passed in conformity with these Club Rules.



These Rules were adopted at the Annual/Special General Meeting held on 6th July 2021.