THE OLD LYONIAN ASSOCIATION

PROPOSED REVISED RULES
to be put to the AGM on 22 November

1. NAME AND DEFINITIONS

 1.1 The name of the Association shall be The Old Lyonian Association.

 1.2 In these Rules, “The Association” means the Old Lyonian Association (OLA).

 1.3 “The School” means The John Lyon School, Harrow, formerly known as The Lower School of John Lyon.

 1.4 “Old Lyonian” means a former pupil of the School.

 1.5 “In writing” shall include a message sent by email, but an acknowledgement of receipt is required for good delivery.
 
 1.6 In the ensuing text, the masculine gender is used throughout, but should be read to include the feminine where this is appropriate.

2. OBJECTIVES

 2.1 The Old Lyonian Association is an association for former pupils of the John Lyon School,Harrow, but also includes Masters, parents of former and current pupils, and other friends and associates of the School as invited by the Board of Management (See 6 below).
 
 2.2 The Association stands as the focus and means by which all Old Lyonians can maintain their links with each other and with the School.
 
 2.3 The Association exists to support both the School and all Lyonians past and present.
 
 2.4 The Association works together with the Governors, the Headmaster and the Development Trust (the School’s fundraising organisation), to ensure the continuing success and prosperity of the School.

3. MEMBERSHIP AND SUBSCRIPTIONS

 3.1 The following are Full Members of the Association:
  (i) former pupils of the School who left the School before September 2006.
  (ii) former pupils of the School who left the School after September 2006, provided that they have paid the instalments of their life subscription for each term that they were pupils at the School.
  (iii) all Presidents and Vice Presidents of the OLA

 3.2 The following are Associate Members of the Association, without payment of subscription:
  (i) all Governors and former Governors of the School;
  (ii) the Headmaster, Bursar and all Masters of the School;
  (iii) all former Masters of the School, provided that they have spent not less than three years on the staff;
  (iv) all parents of pupils currently at the School, provided that all the instalments of their son’s life subscription for each term that he has been a pupil at the School, have been paid.

 3.3 Subscription
 The life subscription is payable in termly instalments at a rate to be determined, from time to time,by the Board in conjunction with the Governors and the Headmaster. Upon leaving the School, a pupil, all of whose termly instalments have been paid, shall be deemed to be a full member of the Association. A former pupil may, after leaving the School, become a member by paying the life subscription pertaining at the time.

 3.4 Voting
 Only Full Members of the Association may vote at General Meetings

6. THE BOARD

 6.1 The affairs of the Association shall be managed by a Chairman and Board of Management. The Board shall have the power to conduct and make regulations for the general management of the Association, and to alter such regulations from time to time.

 6.2 The Board shall have the power to determine the interpretation of these rules and to provide for any matter not provided for therein.

 6.3 The Chairman shall be elected by the Board of Management to serve for a period of five years.

 6.4 There shall be no fewer than five and no more than nine members of the Board of Management, each serving for a period of three years in the first instance.

 6.5 One of the Members (usually a Master) shall be nominated by the Headmaster

 6.6 The Chairman and Members may be elected for subsequent terms.

 6.7 The Board may co-opt Masters or others at their discretion.

 6.8 The School Bursar and The Chairman of The Old Lyonian Athletic Club Limited shall be members of the Board.
 

7. THE PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENTS

 7.1 The President shall be elected for a term of five years. The President is a person whom, by his devoted service to the Association or other distinction, the Board wishes to honour.
 
 7.2 Vice Presidents shall be elected for life. They are persons, whose service to the Association the Board wishes to recognise in this way.

 7.3 Any Vice President, who is not a member of the Association, shall be granted honorary life membership on election.
 
 7.4 A former President, if not already a Vice President, shall become a Vice President at the conclusion of the presidency.

8. ELECTIONS

 8.1 Elections of officers shall be conducted at the Annual General Meeting.

 8.2 Nominations for each vacant position, duly seconded, shall be submitted in writing to the Chairman at least seven days before the meeting.

 8.3 In the case of a contest for a position, the nominees shall be subject to a vote. Each full member (excluding the nominees themselves) shall have one vote and the nominee receiving the greatest number of votes shall be elected. In the case of an equal number of votes being cast for two or more nominees, the Chairman shall have the casting vote.

 8.4 Voting shall be conducted by secret ballot.

 8.5 If there is a contest in which the Chairman himself is a nominee, he shall stand down from the Chair, which will be temporarily be taken by the senior (i.e of longest standing) Vice President present. As in 8.3 above, in the case of a tie, the acting Chairman shall have the casting vote.

 8.6 In the case of a vacancy either by death or resignation, the Board may appoint any person to fill the vacancy until the next Annual General Meeting of the Association or, at its discretion, may convene an Extraordinary General Meeting with the sole purpose of filling the vacancy.

9. GENERAL MEETINGS

 9.1 The Annual General Meeting of the Association shall be held not later than 30 November each year.

 9.2 The date, time and place for each meeting shall be decided at the previous meeting, and shall be posted on the Association website forthwith.

 9.3 The purpose of the AGM is:
  (i) to receive and adopt the audited accounts of the Association for the financial year, ending the previous 31 August;
  (ii) to receive and adopt the report of the Chairman;
  (iii) to elect the President, Vice Presidents, Chairman and Directors in accordance with Rules 6, 7 and 8 above as appropriate;
  (iv) to appoint an auditor;
  (v) to transact such other business as the Chairman of Board has placed on the agenda or as has been submitted in writing to the Chairman no fewer than seven days before the meeting.

 9.4 The Agenda for the AGM shall be posted on the website at least five days before the meeting.

 9.5 No business shall be conducted at a General Meeting other than that specified on the agenda..

 9.6 An Extraordinary General Meeting of the Association may be called at any time at the discretion of the Board. Notification to members shall be made by posting the date, time and place of the meeting on the Association website at least twenty-one days before the meeting.

 9.7 An Extraordinary General Meeting of the Association shall be held upon the receipt by the Chairman of a written request signed by no fewer than twenty Full Members. Notification shall be  as in 9.4 above.

 9.8 No business shall be conducted at an Extraordinary General Meeting other than that specified in the Notice convening it.

 9.9 The Chairman of the Board shall chair all general meetings. If he is unable to attend, the Board shall appoint some other member present (usually a Vice President) to take the Chair.

 9.10 The voting at all general meetings, with the exception of elections as in Rule 8 above, shall be by a show of hands.

10. BOARD MEETINGS

 10.1 Meetings of the Board shall be held no fewer than four times a year, at dates, times and places specified no fewer than twenty-one days in advance. In the event of an unavoidable last minute change in arrangements, members will be notified by email. The change will also be posted on the Association website.

 10.2 The Chairman and Members of the Board shall be elected according to Rules 6 and 8 above.

 10.3 Should any member of the Board fail to attend two or more meetings in any calendar year, he will be deemed to have resigned from the Board.

 10.4 The agenda for each Board meeting shall be sent by email to each Board member at least seven days before each meeting.

 10.5 At any meeting of the Board, the presence of at least four Members, including the Chairman, shall be required to constitute a quorum.

 10.6 The Minutes of each Board meeting shall be sent to each member within seven days following the meeting.

 10.7 It is the responsibility of each Board member to ensure that he receives and opens emails from the Association Office.

11.  DISCIPLINE AND EXPULSION OF MEMBERS

 11.1 If any member wilfully breaches any rule of the Association or regulation made by the Board under Rule 6 above or, if the conduct of any member within or without the Association  premises shall in the opinion of the Board be injurious to the interests of the Association or the School, the Board may resolve to require such member to resign his membership of the Association provided that:
  (i) the member shall have been furnished with full particulars of the matters alleged against him and given the opportunity to appear in person before the Board to answer such allegations.
  (ii) not less than two-thirds of the members of the Board present shall have concurred in the resolution.

 11.2 A member who has been required to resign his membership under Rule 11.1 may, within seven  days of the resolution being communicated to him in writing, lodge an appeal and the Board shall thereupon convene an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Association for the purpose of hearing and determining the appeal.

 11.3 If a member who has been required to resign his membership under Rule11.1, fails to resign within seven days of the resolution being communicated to him in writing or, if he has appealed, of the appeal being dismissed, the Board may resolve to expel him from the association without further notice and without repayment of any subscription.

 11.4 Any member expelled from the Association or required to resign his membership, shall not be re-admitted to membership of the association without leave of the Board.

12. AMENDMENT OF RULES

 12.1 These Rules may be amended, added to or rescinded by a General Meeting of the Association, provided that:
  (i) notice of the proposed amendment, addition or rescission shall have been notified to the  Chairman of the Board in writing not less than 28 days before the meeting at which it is to be considered, and shall have been incorporated in the notice convening the meeting.
  (ii) not less than three-fourths of the members present at the meeting (excluding the Chairman of the meeting) vote in favour of making the amendment, addition or rescission.

 12.2 Any amendment or addition to, or rescission of, these Rules, approved in accordance with Rule 12.1 above, shall take effect 28 days after the day on which it has been approved.

JDC Vargas
Association Director