Images (L to R) by Jan Wilson-Chalon, William Furse and Gwynant Pierce

NORTH WALES PHOTOGRAPHIC ASSOCIATION (Affiliated to the Photographic Alliance of Great Britain)

CYMDEITHAS FFOTOGRAFFIG GOGLEDD CYMRU

RULES & CONSTITUTION (December 2017)

1 NAME The Association shall be known as the North Wales Photographic Association. All previous constitutions are superseded. In the rest of this document it shall be referred to as ‘the Association’.

2 OBJECTIVES The objectives of the Association shall be to promote all aspects of photography in whatever form. In pursuance of this the NWPA shall:
a) Be a Federation of the Photographic Alliance of Great Britain
b) Organise an exhibition of the club members’ work and lectures, competitions, etc.
as shall be decided by the Executive Committee to help members achieve higher standards.

3 MEMBERSHIP Membership of the Association shall be open to all appropriate photographic clubs and societies in the counties of Anglesey, Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Gwynedd and Wrexham. Additionally, membership shall be open to individual clubs from neighbouring federations. Applications for membership shall be decided by a majority vote at a meeting of the Executive Committee.

3.1 The NWPA operates an equal opportunities code and conforms to the Equality Act 2010 and shall ensure that all members of the Association and affiliated camera clubs, both actual and potential, are treated equally and as individuals.

3.2 The subscription to the Association shall be decided at the Annual General Meeting. Any club or society three months in arrears shall be notified in writing by the Treasurer and be suspended from membership and privileges of the Association until the subscription has been paid.

3.3 Any club or society which does not conform to the standards of the NWPA shall be suspended.

3.4 Each club or society shall appoint a delegate as its representative on the Executive Committee and at General Meetings of the Association. In their absence the club or society may nominate a deputy to attend in their place, having first advised the General Secretary.
3.5 Any member of a club or society may attend and speak at Annual or extraordinary General Meetings of the Association. Voting can only be from a club’s appointed representative and officers or post holders.

3.6 Special interest groups, which are of benefit to the federation as a whole and whose members are all members of club in the federation, shall be granted the right to pay a nominal affiliation fee to the NWPA.

3.7 Any Complaint shall be notified to the Secretary in accordance with the agreed Complaints Procedure.

4 GENERAL MEETINGS General Meetings of the Association shall be convened not less than fourteen and not more than twenty-eight days notice, in writing, stating the business to be conducted, to the Secretary and Delegate of each member society and club.

4.1 The Annual General Meetings shall be held in December of each year and the business of the meeting shall be:

a) To receive a report from the President
b) To receive a statement of income and expenditure (audited if requested) from the Treasurer
in respect of the financial year ending on the 30th September
c) To receive reports from the officers and other post-holders as required
d) To elect officers and any other post-holders as required
e) To ratify the Constitution.
f) Any other business

4.2 A quorum for General Meetings shall consist of 10 delegates.
4.3 Extraordinary General Meetings shall be called by not less than 3 Delegates/Officers/Post-holders, by
written notice to the General Secretary, stating the business of the meeting. The Secretary shall then advise all member clubs and societies and delegates of the business to be considered not less than 21 day in advance of the meeting.
4.4 Any eligible member wishing to have a matter included in either a General or an Extraordinary Meeting is required to have this item recorded with the General Secretary with a minimum of 21 days notice prior to such meeting.
4.5 All normal business considered at General Meetings shall be decided by a simple majority of votes cast by the Officers, Post-holders and Delegates present. Matters involving changes to the Rules and Constitution
shall only be made at an Annual General Meeting or an Extraordinary Meeting and shall require a two-thirds majority of the votes.

5 ADMINISTRATION Subject to decisions taken at the AGM, the affairs of the Association shall be conducted by the Executive Committee, which shall consist of the officers of the Association, Post-holders and the delegates.
5.1 The Officers shall consist of the President, Vice-President, Past President, General Secretary and
Treasurer. Other Post-holders include Exhibition Secretary, PAGB Delegate, Competition Secretary, Lecturers/Judges Organiser, PAGB Awards Officer, Newsletter Editor, Publicity Officer, Seminar Organiser,
Webmaster or others as deemed necessary by the Executive Committee.
5.2 The Officers & Post-holders shall be nominated from members of the clubs and societies within the Association. Nominations, proposed and seconded by members of the Association shall be sent to the Secretary to arrive not less than 21 days before the AGM and be accompanied by a statement from the nominee that they are willing to stand. If no nomination(s) are received for any officer of the Association by
the due 21 days, nominations can be accepted from among those present at the AGM duly proposed and seconded.
5.3 Each member club or society of the Association shall be entitled to one vote to be cast by the respective delegate or nominated deputy in their absence. Officers & Post-holders are also eligible to vote.
In the event of a tie, the President shall have the casting vote.
5.4 The President shall not hold office for more than two consecutive years.
5.5 The President shall take the chair at all General and Executive meetings of the Association. In their
absence, the chair shall be taken by the Vice-President, if available, or the Past-President. If none of them is present within 15 minutes of the advertised start of the meeting, those present shall elect a Chairman from among the delegates present.
5.6 The Executive Committee shall meet not less than four times in each calendar year to conduct business and receive reports from the officers on the affairs of the Association. If any officer is absent from more than three consecutive meetings,they shall be asked by the president to account for their absence in
writing,
5.7 The President, in consultation with the Officers, shall be empowered to authorise any action requiring urgent attention on behalf of the Association.
5.8 The Executive Committee shall have the power to appoint and co-opt individuals or sub-committees as required.
5.9 A bank account shall be kept in the name of the Association into which all monies shall be paid as soon as possible after receipt by the Treasurer. Withdrawals and payments from the account shall be made on the signature of two of the three signatories appointed by the Executive Committee.
5.10 Proposed expenditure or potential financial liability exceeding £100 on any item shall be approved in
advance by the Treasurer or, in his absence, by the President, Vice-President or General Secretary. Any of these shall have power of veto over any expenditure.

5.11 If at any time a majority of the Executive decides that it is advisable to dissolve the Association, an EGM shall be called for which not less than 21 days’ notice shall be given. If a simple majority of those present and voting at such a meeting shall confirm such a decision, then the assets shall be sold and debts repaid upon authority of the President and any funds or debts remaining shall be distributed to or paid by the member clubs and societies on a basis pro rata to their membership numbers as recorded at their last annual NWPA subscription.

5.12 A record of ALL proceedings and voting shall be kept for future reference.

5.13 Neither the General Secretary nor the Executive can be held responsible for a member not receiving any notice sent out from the NWPA to any of its members.

6 ADOPTION OF CONSTITUTION This Constitution was adopted on December 2018 And approved by Andy Polokowski

RESPONSIBILITIES
President -- shall represent the Association at various events, such as competitions, exhibitions, etc. And shall chair Executive Committee meetings and Annual General Meetings
General Secretary -- shall keep records of attendance at meetings, minutes of meetings, deal with correspondence and keep a register of all member clubs and societies and their addresses which shall be available for inspection by any member society on application.
Treasurer -- shall receive and pay all monies on behalf of the Association, including subscriptions and insurance premiums, keep an accurate record of all income and expenditure for each account and prepare a statement of income and expenditure (audited if requested by the Executive Committee) for presentation to the AGM.
PAGB Delegate - shall represent the Association as a member of the PAGB Executive and report to the Executive Committee actions and decisions of the PAGB, shall also raise any matters of concern with the PAGB Executive.
Exhibition Secretary -- shall organise the exhibition on behalf of and as directed by the Executive Committee and co-ordinate the work of the exhibition committee.
Competition Secretary -- shall arrange collection, selection and return of NWPA entries for the PAGB Inter-Federation Exhibitions and Competitions and any other events as may be required by the Executive Committee.
PAGB Awards Officer -- shall promote the PAGB Awards, such as the Awards for Photographic Merit and the Award for Meritorious Service and any other awards that may arise. Shall also give guidance and ensure that all candidates meet the appropriate requirements to be considered for these awards.
Lecturers & Judges Organiser -- shall prepare and distribute lists of NWPA lecturers and judges to clubs and societies and send this information to the PAGB for the Handbook as required and shall send this list annually to all NWPA judges and lecturers for amendments as required. Shall also ensure that up-to-date lists are available on the NWPA website.
Website Editor -- shall maintain the NWPA website as necessary.
Newsletter Editor -- shall prepare newsletters for distribution electronically. The Executive Committee may co-opt members for other posts as required.

The following documents are held by the Secretary: Complaints Procedure Risk Assessment -Health & Safety Policy Discrimination & Equality Policy In case of emergency PAT testing.