Forum topic: Residents' association looking to rewrite its constitution

The committee of Fox Lane & District Residents' Association (FLDRA) has called an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on 26th January, starting at 8pm, with the aim of agreeing an overhauled version of the Association's constitution and introducing a new code of conduct for members.

The committee has also announced a date for the FLDRA's annual general meeting - 30th March. Both meetings will be held in one of the halls in Burford Gardens adjacent to Palmers Green United Reformed Church.

In an email to members, FLDRA secretary Christian Ignatiou reminds them that in order to avoid any confusion around eligibility to attend, vote or stand for election at the AGM, they need to be up-to-date with their membership subscription (this presumably also applies to attending and voting at the EGM). Subs can be paid by bank transfer, cheque or in cash.

To be eligible to join you need to live within the area bordered by The Bourne, Bourne Hill, Green Lanes, Aldermans Hill, Cannon Hill and High Street.

There is a form for joining on the FLDRA website.

A new constitution with some unusual provisions

The proposed new constitution introduces some new membership categories: in addition to Full Members, there would be Partial Members, Business Members and Special Members - the last named category offering membership to people living outside the strictly defined area who are "individuals in the community that the committee feel the Association would benefit from engaging with".

A feature of the draft constitution which differentiates it from the current constitution and those of comparable associations (eg Winchmore Hill RA) is the introduction of some new (and, some might say, rather onerous) procedures that members will have to go through to join the committee:

On top of this, there are further unusually complicated rules about the process used to elect people to the committee. No-one will be able to be elected without receiving "a min 50% validation vote of members present or by proxy" (proxy votes presumably being cast by the chair or secretary).

An obvious danger with such demanding requirements is that they may put off people who are less confident about verbal or written presentation or nervous about voicing views which might not be universally shared, while in the less stressful environment of a smaller committee meeting they might be able to play a valuable role. This is a pity, because joining committees of associations and societies of various types is an important way in which people lacking experience or confidence can build up valuable work and life skills and providing such opportunities is one of the benefits of the "civic sector".

For an example of a constitution that goes out of its way to welcome diversity we don't need to go very far from Fox Lane. The constitution of BHORA (Broomfield Home-owners' and Residents' Association) includes a section on equal opportunities designed to encourage the widest possible involvement: