FNF Exeter BRANCH - CONSTITUTION & STANDING FINANCIAL ORDERS (v2.4)

1. Aims

(a) To provide support and guidance for parents who are seeking to sustain or improve their relationship with their children during or after divorce or separation.
(b) To seek support from local organisations and individuals for changes in public attitudes regarding the right of children to a continuing close relationship with both parents during and after divorce or separation.
(c) To promote Families Need Fathers in the EXETER area in line with the stated aims and objectives of FNF National Council.

2. The Committee

(a) The affairs of the Branch shall be managed by a Committee of no fewer than three and no more than seven FNF members who shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting, and whose membership of the Committee will lapse should they no longer be paid-up members of the Charity. Prior authority for larger committees must be sought from National Council.
(b) The Officers of the Committee shall consist of a Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer and shall be elected by the Committee from amongst its number. A Committee member may hold no more than two of these offices at the same time.
(c) The Committee shall have the right to co-opt members to fill vacancies.
(d) The Committee, at a committee meeting, may choose to treat any committee member who fails to attend two consecutive committee meetings without offering prior apology to one of the branch officers as having resigned from the Committee.
(e) Any officer or member of the Committee who assumes office or takes part in the management of any other organisation related to family breakdown must inform the Committee as soon as practicable.
(f) No officer of the Branch may hold office in any other branch of the Society without permission of National Council.
(g) The Committee shall meet at least once every quarter. The quorum for committee meetings shall be three.
(h) Minutes of every committee meeting must be taken, provided to each committee member and made available to other branch members if requested.

3. Meetings

(a) The Annual General Meeting shall be held no sooner than ten months and no later than fifteen months after the previous Annual General Meeting. A minimum of one calendar month's notice must be given. Notice may be given by way of the national newsletter, the Charity or Branch website, the members' email forums or a combination of these.
(b) An Extraordinary General Meeting may be requested by any three members of the Committee or by any eight other eligible members or by the National Council by writing to the Branch Secretary. This meeting must then take place within one calendar month of the request being received.
(c) Note: an eligible member is a fully paid-up member of Families Need Fathers who has attended at least two of the branch meetings over the previous six months.
(d) The quorum for all General Meetings shall be six members.
(e) The Committee shall provide for regular publicised, public meetings to be held in order to address the aims expressed in paragraph 1(a) above.
(f) Registers of each public meeting, covering the data required for completion of the latest Meeting Report Form, shall be taken. Meeting Report Forms for every public meeting shall be provided to the national office within a reasonable time of each meeting.

4. Requirements for National Council

(a) The National Council, through the designated trustee, shall approve branch standing orders and may require changes to be made either immediately or at the next branch General Meeting.
(b) The Committee shall report to the National Council when required.
(c) The Branch shall not act contrary to the Society's constitution or the policies of National Council as from time to time laid down.
(d) Written communications with National Council shall be addressed to the FNF Secretary at the Society's National Office, unless responding to a specific enquiry from another officer.
(e) The Branch Treasurer shall present to the Branch Committee a written or verbal report at not more than six monthly intervals. The Committee may request an additional written or verbal report of him at any time.
(f) The Branch shall provide National Office with the names and contact details of those elected to the Branch Committee and advise of any subsequent changes within a reasonable time. The names and contact details of the Branch officers must be notified to the National Office immediately upon election or appointment.
(g) The Branch shall complete in full all the relevant details set out in the latest published version of the Branch Data Collection Sheet (BDC sheet) and send a copy to the National Office by the end of January each year.
(h) The Branch shall provide the National Office with a copy of the minutes of each Committee meeting when circulating minutes to committee members.
(i) A member who is standing for election to the Committee and who is an undischarged bankrupt must declare this if elected and must not act as a signatory to Branch accounts.
(j) A member who has a criminal conviction for any offence involving a child must declare this when their name is put forward.
(k) Branches must provide the national office with copies of all published material simultaneously with any circulation outside of the Branch Committee. National Council may notify individual branches that prior authority from National Council must be given before any publication. Branches must not submit responses to Government consultations unless specifically requested to do so by a written invitation from National Council.
(l) Branches must notify National Council of any plans to set up a branch website; shall notify it of the committee member with responsibility for the website; shall provide it with the contact details of the hosting company; and shall immediately remove or amend any content on the branch website as directed by National Council.

5. Financial Control

(a) The Branch Treasurer shall be responsible for all money collected on behalf of the Branch.
(b) The Branch shall not operate more than one account without written permission from the National Treasurer. The Branch account must have Families Need Fathers (in full, not just FNF) as part of the name of the account. Details of the account, including account number and signatories, must be notified to the National Office immediately an account is opened.
(c) The Treasurer shall arrange to receive quarterly or more frequent statements of any bank account held by the branch.
(d) The account shall be managed on a dual signatory basis. Only members of the Committee may be signatories.
(e) The Branch must operate a credit balance at all times and shall not incur debt without the written permission of the National Treasurer.
(f) The National Council can at any time call upon funds held in the Branch account to be transferred to the Society's national account, with the exception of funds donated for local purposes by outside organisations or individuals for specific purposes.
(g) The Branch Treasurer shall provide copies of any applications for grant funding to the National Treasurer prior to submitting such an application. He shall provide copy documents giving notice of successful applications and amounts to be received within 28 days of receiving such notice.
(h) The Branch Treasurer shall provide accounts for the year ending March 31st each year and forward them to the National Treasurer to reach him by May 31st. A copy of the relevant bank statement(s) evidencing the sums declared in these accounts must be provided. National Council may require Branch accounts to be audited.

6. Branch Constitution and Standing Orders

(a) The Branch Constitution and Standing Orders may be changed at a properly constituted General Meeting subject to a two thirds majority of those present and all members having received ten days notice of any proposed amendment.
(b) The Committee shall present the most up-to-date National-Council-approved version of Branch Constitution and Financial Standing Orders for adoption by the branch at each AGM should it differ from the branch's existing management document.
(c) Upon adoption of such a new Constitution, an officer shall sign a copy of the current branch Constitution and Financial Standing Orders and forward it for filing with the national office.

7. Dissolution

The Branch may be dissolved, or any of its officers removed, by National Council or; by a General Meeting of the Branch subject to the same rules as for changing Standing Orders. On dissolution any assets of the Branch shall revert to the National Council.