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Constitution

Worcestershire Cricket Board Constitution

  1. Title
    1. The name of the organisation shall be the Worcestershire Cricket Board (WCB). The WCB shall be the umbrella governing body for recreational cricket within the County of Worcestershire, ensuring that the ongoing interests of its entire fabric within the county are optimally served.
    2. The WCB shall be a constituent member of the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB).
  2. Objectives
    1. The WCB shall be wholly responsible for the management and promotion of all recreational cricket within Worcestershire, being the partnership of cricket clubs, constituent cricketing partners and the Worcestershire County Cricket Club (WCCC).
    2. The WCB shall undertake those duties devolved to it by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and represent Worcestershire in the formulation of regional or national policies and initiatives as defined in the ECB Recreational Assembly Memorandum of Understanding.
    3. The WCB shall:-
      1. draft a county-wide development strategy and devise detailed plans for its implementation;
      2. act as the channel for applications for funding from the Cricket Foundation, the ECB and other bodies and for subsequent distribution.
    4. The WCB shall promote the widest possible schemes for the introduction of the game of cricket, especially to schoolchildren, and encourage the highest possible standards within every facet of the sport and the maximisation of available resources.
    5. The WCB shall ensure that recreational cricket in Worcestershire is played according to current Laws of Cricket and within the Spirit of the Game.
    6. The WCB shall promote and ensure a duty of care to all who are involved in its activities by adopting and implementing the ECB 'Safe Hands - Welfare of Young People in Cricket' Policy and any future versions of the Policy.
    7. Support and promote the ECB Cricket Equity Policy and in doing so requires all its members and partners to include a similar constitutional statement of intent.
    8. Support the ECB anti-racism initiatives such as 'Clean Bowl Racism' and 'Hit racism for 6' and in doing so shall require all its members and partners to include a similare constitutional statement of intent.
      1. The WCB is committed to Drug Free Cricket and adopts the ECB Anti Doping Policy and Rules for all County Cricket Board activities.
  3. Composition and procedures
    1. The WCB Management Board (MB) shall comprise:-
      • President (ex officio)
      • Chairman
      • Treasurer
      • Cricket Development Manager
      • Strategic Support Officer
      • Chief Executive of WCCC
      • County Sports Partnership Representative(s)
      • Youth Cricket Representative
      • To ensure continuity, the Chairman, Treasurer and Youth Cricket Representative will be appointed for a period of 3 years by the MB and be subject to the approval of the following AGM or Special Meeting.
    2. The MB shall meet not less than four times in each financial year and all serving officers as identified in 3a shall receive one vote (except the President). In the event of voting equality the Chairman will have a casting vote.
    3. A quorum of 4 shall be set for MB Meetings. In the absence of its Chairman, the MB shall elect its own deputy to chair the relevant business in hand.
    4. The MB shall have the power to fill a casual vacancy on the MB as it deems fit, for that part of the post's tenure which shall remain outstanding. No person may hold more than one position on the MB.
    5. The MB shall be able to form sub-committees, partner groups and ad hoc working groups as needs emerge. The MB shall have the power to co-opt any non-voting additional member to the Board as it deems appropriate.
    6. The income and property of the WCB shall be vested in the MB, who shall be obligated to supervise the proper conduct of financial affairs within its jurisdiction and maintain accurate accounting records.
    7. The financial year of the WCB shall end on 30th September and an annual financial statement shall be subject to an independent examination by an appropriately qualified accountant.
    8. The MB shall set the elements of members' annual subscription rates, in addition to any determined by ECB, all payable via the WCB. Any member who has failed to furnish the appropriate fees by 30th April shall immediately lose all the privileges and benefits of membership and shall incur a standard penalty for the default, also fixed by the MB.
    9. The MB shall appoint delegates as required to act on its behalf.
    10. The MB shall have the right to confer the title of President, Vice President or Life Member on those individuals whom it regards have served cricket in Worcestershire with distinction. Any such appointments must be approved by the AGM or a Special Meeting.
    11. The MB shall give members four weeks prior notice of the agenda of the Annual General Meeting of the WCB, to be held each year by 31st March.
      1. The Annual General Meeting, or a Special Meeting, shall be chaired by the Chairman of the WCB or, in his absence, another Member of the MB approved by the Meeting.
      2. The MB shall present a formal report and financial statement, which shall be issued to every member.
      3. The Annual General Meeting shall also deal with any pertinent issues.
    12. At other times the MB may seek the collective opinions or decisions of its Recognized Partners in the way considered to be most appropriate.
    13. A Special Meeting can be convened by the MB directly or indirectly at the request of not less than 20 members acting in concert, who shall send with their application to the MB the precise nature of the items for eventual consideration by the entire membership on a date of the MB's choosing, which shall not be later than eight weeks after the initial lodgment. In either case four weeks advance notice of a detailed agenda shall be given in writing by the MB to the membership.
    14. A Remunerations Committee made up of the MB members (less the salaried employees of the Board) will meet every September to discuss the remuneration and benefits package for each of the Board's employees to be effective from 1 st October each year.
    15. Correspondence between the MB, its partners and members will be distributed using the most appropriate means as determined by the MB. This could include hard copy by post or the use of electronic media such as email or the WCB website.
    16. The exact interpretation of these rules, should any doubt arise, shall be determined by the MB.
  4. Membership
    1. Full membership of the WCB with voting rights shall be open to all Primary affiliated Cricket Clubs in Worcestershire. This also includes the Worcestershire County Cricket Club.
    2. The MB shall fix the fees for affiliation for:-
      1. Focus Clubs
      2. Affiliated Clubs with Junior sections
      3. Affiliated Clubs
      4. Secondary affiliated clubs (i.e. clubs from adjoining counties wishing to take advantage of particular benefits accessible in Worcestershire).
      5. Affiliated Leagues
        These groups are defined in Appendix B - Glossary.
    3. A club wishing to join the WCB shall supply the Management Board with a covering letter and copies of its existing constitution, a completed volunteer audit form (as devised and distributed by the WCB) and any other supporting material as requested before its application is considered.
    4. All members of the WCB will be subject to the regulations of its constitution and by joining will be deemed to accept these regulations.
    5. Membership of the Board and Partner groups shall be open to all, irrespective of age, gender, disability, race, ethnic origin, creed, colour, social status and sexual orientation.
  5. Partner's Forum
    1. The Partner's Forum will be made up of the recognised partners who are charged with overseeing a specific activity within recreational cricket in Worcestershire.
      Current members are listed in Appendix A.
    2. Meetings of the Partner's Forum will be chaired by the Chairman of the Board, or in his absence, an alternate Board member shall be appointed by the MB.
    3. The Partner's Forum will meet at least twice each year to discuss matters of mutual interest. The Chair of each recognised partner organisation will be asked to represent its body at these meetings. An alternate representative, approved by the Partner group, is acceptable in the case of illness or unavailability. The Cricket Development Manager, Cricket Development Administrator and the County Board Welfare Officer shall also be in attendance. Any consensus view reached by the Partners Forum will be presented to the MB by the Chair.
    4. The MB shall have the power to dissolve or amalgamate partner groups when appropriate. Clause 3e (above) allows the MB to add further partner groups when needs arise.
    5. Each recognised partner will have one full vote at the AGM.
  6. Alteration to Constitution
    Any alteration(s) to this constitution shall only be made, by majority vote, at a properly convened General Meeting and such proposed alteration(s) notified in writing as per this constitution in accordance with clauses 3k and 3m.
  7. Dissolution
    1. If at any General Meeting of the Board, a resolution is passed calling for the dissolution of the Board, the Secretary shall immediately convene a Special General Meeting of the Board to be held not less than one month thereafter to discuss and vote on the resolution.
    2. If at that Special Meeting, the resolution is carried by at least two-thirds of the Full Voting Membership present at the meeting, the Committee shall thereupon, or at such date as shall have been specified in the resolution, proceed to realise the assets of the board and discharge all debts and liabilities of the board.
    3. The Committee will then be responsible for the orderly winding up of the Board's affairs.
    4. After settling all liabilities of the Board, the Committee shall dispose of the net assets remaining to the Board's governing body for use by them for related community sports.


Appendix A

PARTNERS

The following organisations are officially Recognised Partners of the Worcestershire Cricket Board and can therefore send a representative to the Partners Forum and be eligible for funding from the WCB:-

  • Worcestershire Young Cricketers (WYC)Worcestershire Youth Development Committee (YDC)
  • Worcestershire Women's & Girls Development Group Committee
  • Worcestershire County Coaches Association (WCCA)
  • Worcestershire Association of Groundsmen (WAG)
  • Worcestershire Cricket Umpires and Scorers Association (WOA or WCUSA)
  • Worcestershire Schools Cricket Association (WCSA)
  • The Worcestershire Seniors Cricket Group (WSG)
  • Worcestershire Affiliated Leagues Representative

Partner groups 1-7 above will be represented at Partner's Forum meetings by their chair (Clause 5c). The representative of the Worcestershire Affiliated Leagues will be elected at a joint meeting of the Leagues.

Appendix B

GLOSSARY

Focus Club:

A recreational cricket c lub geographically situated within the county boundary of Worcestershire (including Dudley MBC) who have been identified (either strategically or geographically) by the WCB to be a key deliverer of the WCB Development Plan and who annually pays the appropriate affiliation fee for a Focus Club as specified by the MB. It will meet the following criteria as defined by the WCB Focus Club Memorandum of Understanding;

  • achieve and maintain ECB Clubmark Accreditation evidencing that they are a safe, child friendly and effective club,
  • be committed to maintaining and evidencing on-going development by annually completing a Focus Club - Club Development Plan (using the ECB Club Development Planning Template)
  • assist with monitoring and evaluation by annually updating all relevant data as required on the County Board Management System (CBMS).

Affiliated Club with Junior section:

A recreational cricket club geographically situated within the county boundary of Worcestershire (including Dudley MBC) with a junior section that offers the appropriate coaching and competition to cricketers under the age of 18 years old and pays the appropriate affiliation fee for an Affiliated Club with a Junior Section as specified by the MB. It will meet the following criteria as defined by the WCB Affiliated Club with a Junior Section Memorandum of Understanding;

  • achieve and maintain ECB Clubmark Accreditation evidencing that they are a safe, child friendly and effective club,
  • be committed to maintaining and evidencing on-going development by annually completing an Affiliated Club with a Junior Section - Club Development Plan (using the ECB Club Development Planning Template)
  • assist with monitoring and evaluation by annually updating all relevant data as required on the County Board Management System (CBMS).

Affiliated Club:

A recreational cricket club geographically situated within the county boundary of Worcestershire (including Dudley MBC) who does not have a junior section and pays the annual affiliation fee as advised by the Worcestershire Cricket Board.

Secondary Affiliated Club:

A recreational cricket club geographically situated outside the county boundary of Worcestershire (including Dudley MBC) who benefit through playing cricket (either senior or junior) in Worcestershire Cricket Board affiliated league structures and who annually pays the associated Secondary Affiliated Club affiliation fee as advised by the Worcestershire Cricket Board.

Affiliated League

A recreational senior cricketing league structure which operates within the County of Worcestershire (including Dudley MBC) who pays the associated affiliation fee for a Cricket League as defined by the MB.

Further details of these categories and their current benefits packages are obtainable from WCB or the Board website: www.thewcb.org.uk

County Sports Partnership:

"A County Sports Partnership is a partnership of agencies committed to providing a high quality single system for people to benefit from sport." (Sport England)

The Sports Partnership Herefordshire and Worcestershire is an alliance of the eight Herefordshire and Worcestershire local authorities, University of Worcester, Sport England, Primary Care Trusts, National Governing Bodies of Sport and other key organisations. Its major focus is on young people and participation in sport in schools and clubs.

http://www.morethansport.com/

Some Common abbreviations:

B&DPCL Birmingham and District Premier Cricket League
CBWO WCB County Board Welfare Officer
CDA Cricket Development Administrator
CDM Cricket Development Manager
CSP County Sports Partnership
WAG Worcestershire Association of Groundsmen
WASP Worcestershire All Sports Partnership
WCCA Worcestershire Cricket Coaches Association
WCL Worcestershire County League
WCU&SA Worcestershire Cricket Umpires & Scorers Association
WSCA Worcestershire Schools Cricket Association
WYC Worcestershire Young Cricketers
YDC Worcestershire Youth Development Committee