Association Rules

The current rules were amended at the AGM on 4 May 2024 at Swavesey to abolish the Association Peal Fee (previously payable by ringers of peals rung for the Association) from 2025.

Previous versions:

Rules of the Ely Diocesan Association of Church Bell RIngers

Issue 2024-05 - AGM 4-May-2024

1. TITLE

The Association shall be known as "The Ely Diocesan Association of Church Bell Ringers"

2. OBJECTS

a) Ringing for Divine Service, teaching and promotion of ringing, maintenance of church bells and bell installations, and maintaining a record of ringing activities within the Diocese of Ely.

b) The Association shall be affiliated to the Central Council of Church Bell Ringers.

3. MEMBERSHIP

Membership of the Association shall consist of the Patron, Ringing Members, (inclusive of Junior Ringing Members), and Honorary Members. All persons proposed for membership shall complete an application form.

a) Patron

The Lord Bishop of Ely shall be invited to be the Patron of the Association.

b) Ringing Members

Ringing Members shall normally be resident, or be regular ringers at a tower, within the Diocese of Ely and pay an annual subscription. New Ringing Members shall be elected by the members eligible to vote at a meeting within the district of their tower.

Senior Ringing Members (a membership category prior to January 2018) are Ringing Members as described above, but have no obligation to pay an annual subscription.

c) Junior Ringing Members

Junior Ringing Members are Ringing Members under the age of 21, and are entitled to pay a reduced subscription.

d) Honorary Members

Any Ringing Member who has given exceptional service and furthered the objectives of the Association may be elected as an Honorary Member. The nomination of an Honorary Member will be recommended by the General Committee. The election will take place at an Annual General Meeting of the Association and must be agreed by two thirds of the Ringing Members present.

Honorary Members shall not be obliged to pay an annual subscription.

e) Other Membership Categories.

Members elected or transferred to membership categories defined in previous editions of the Rules shall retain the privileges of those categories until they relinquish their membership.

f) Eligibility to Vote

Only Ringing Members, Junior Ringing Members and Honorary Members shall be entitled to vote at meetings of the Association.

g) Conduct of Members

i) Every Member shall comply with the terms of the Association Rules.

ii) Any conduct which, in the opinion of the General Committee, is either unworthy of a Member or otherwise injurious to the interests of the Association shall render a member liable to expulsion by the General Committee.

iii) Expulsion from the Association shall occur only after the Member has been given the opportunity, accompanied by a third party (if so required), to attend a General Committee meeting to discuss their alleged unworthy or injurious conduct. Alternatively, the Member may resign their membership.

iv) The vote on a resolution for expulsion shall be by ballot, and the resolution shall only be carried if not less than two-thirds of the General Committee present vote in favour of the resolution.

v) A person so expelled shall not be eligible for future membership except by resolution of the General Committee.

4. SUBSCRIPTIONS

a) Subscriptions are due on 1st January. Members whose subscriptions are more than twelve months in arrears shall be deemed to have resigned their membership.

b) Members elected after the Annual District Meeting will become liable for a subscription from the following 1st of January

c) Subscription rates shall be proposed by the General Committee and ratified at a General Meeting of the Association.

5. OFFICERS

The Officers of the Association shall be:

a) Chairman

b) General Secretary

c) Ringing Master

d) Recruitment & Training Officer

e) Public Relations Officer

f) Peal Secretary

g) Quarter Peal Secretary

h) Central Council Representatives (nominated by each District)

i) Treasurer (Technical Officer)

j) Bell Adviser(Technical Officer)

k) Webmaster(Technical Officer)

l) Safeguarding Officer (Technical Officer)

6. MANAGEMENT and ADMINISTRATION

a) Management of the Association shall be carried out as far as possible by sub- committees. Each sub-committee shall appoint its own secretary for recording minutes of meetings and details of its activities. Such minutes, once accepted and signed by the sub-committee Chair, shall be passed to the General Secretary and become part of the official records of the Association.

b) The Chair or representative of each sub-committee, shall attend General Committee meetings of the Association, and act as delegates of, and vote in accordance with the consensus of, their respective sub-committees.

c) Terms of reference shall be documented and maintained for each sub-committee.

Other ringing members can be co-opted to any sub-committee for a maximum period of 12 months to help with particular projects.

d) The sub-committees are as follows:

i) Recruitment and Training Sub-committee

ii) Ringing Sub-committee

iii) Bell Maintenance and Repair Sub-committee

iv) Administration Sub-committee

7. ELECTION OF OFFICERS

Definitions

Representative Office – A position requiring knowledge of ringing and Association culture and activities, which can be directly elected by ringing members.

Technical Office – A position requiring technical expertise and knowledge which is acquired through experience and/or training. For the sake of continuity, it might be desirable for a technical officer to hold office for longer than 5 + 2 years, but no longer than 10 years. For technical offices, the General Committee should normally recommend an appointment based on relevant experience.

a) The Annual General Meeting shall elect Officers as defined in Rule 5. The Officers shall take office upon election except the Peal and Quarter Peal Secretaries, who will take office from the 1st January in the following year.

b) Every five years, each District shall nominate a Ringing Member for election at the Annual General Meeting as a Trustee of the Association Bell Restoration Fund.

c) Triennially, each District shall nominate a Ringing Member for election at the Annual General Meeting to serve as a representative to the Central Council of Church Bell Ringers.

d) All Representative Officers (except Central Council Representatives) shall be elected annually for a maximum of 5 consecutive years. Nominations for office shall be made by a date decided annually by the committee in advance of the Annual General Meeting. A term-expired incumbent can only stand for their current position again if no other nominations have been received by the closing date. In this case the incumbent may serve for a further maximum of two years, elected annually. After seven years, they would not be eligible for re-election.

e) All Technical officers shall be recommended by the General Committee, for ratification annually by members at the Annual General Meeting, for a maximum term of 10 consecutive years.

f) A ringing member may hold more than one office if, in the view of the General Committee, there is no conflict of interest which jeopardizes the effective administration of the Association.

g) Duties for all officers can be found in the Regulations.

8. INDEPENDENT EXAMINER

The Annual General Meeting shall elect an Independent Examiner who will carry out an examination of the Association's accounts annually and report to the Annual General Meeting. The report shall be attached to the published accounts. The Independent Examiner may not hold office in the Association, be a member of the General Committee or be a trustee of the Bell Restoration Fund.

9. THE GENERAL COMMITTEE

a) The General Committee shall comprise:

i) Ex-officio members: the Chairman, General Secretary, Treasurer, Ringing Master, Recruitment and Training Officer, Bell Adviser, Public Relations Officer, Safeguarding Officer, each District Secretary, one of the four Central Council Representatives, and one representative elected by each District.

ii) Delegates of sub-committees as described in Rule 6b, if a sub-committee delegate is not already an ex-officio member.

iii) Co-opted members

b) The General Committee shall have the power to co-opt up to two Ringing Members, Junior Members or Honorary Members to serve until the next Annual General Meeting, and/or to invite other officers or members to a General Committee meeting as required.

c) The General Committee shall manage the business of the Association in accordance with the Rules.

d) The General Committee shall meet at least twice a year.

e) Eight members of the General Committee shall form a quorum.

10. GENERAL MEETINGS

a) The General Secretary shall convene an Annual General Meeting to:

i) Accept and approve the examined accounts of the Association.

ii) Receive reports from the officers of the Association.

iii) Receive reports from the sub-committees

iv) Ratify the election of Honorary Members.

v) Elect officers of the Association.

vi) Appoint an independent examiner.

vii) Carry out any other business that may be permitted at an Annual General Meeting.

b) The General Secretary may at the request of the General Committee, or if so required by at least twenty-five Ringing Members, convene a General Meeting. Any requisition of the Meeting must state the purpose of the Meeting.

c) Notice of an Annual General Meeting or a General Meeting shall be given as defined by Rule 14.

d) Twenty-five ringing members of the Association shall form a quorum.

e) For the purposes of these Rules, an Annual General Meeting shall be deemed to be also a General Meeting.

11. DISTRICTS

a) There shall be four district branches in the Association: Cambridge, Ely, Huntingdon and Wisbech.

b) Only Ringing Members, Junior Ringing Members and Honorary Members of each District may vote at meetings of that District.

c) Each District shall hold an Annual Meeting in January to elect the following officers:

i) President

ii) Secretary

iii) Ringing Master(s)

iv) Association General Committee Representative. Note, the District can elect a formal job share between two people but only one half of the job share can attend and vote at any General Committee meeting.

v) Bell Adviser

vi) Any other officer(s) deemed as necessary for that District.

vii) Ringing members, the number to be decided by each District, to serve on the committee.

d) A member shall be appointed by each District to be responsible to the Association Treasurer for collecting membership fees. Other monies collected shall be recorded and the accounts independently examined and presented to the Annual District Meeting.

e) The District Secretary shall convene a business meeting at least three times a year, one of which should be the Annual District Meeting, for the purposes of electing new ringing members of the Association and generally dealing with District affairs.

12. PEALS

a) All true peals, as defined by the Central Council of Church Bell Ringers (CCCBR), rung for the Association shall conform to the Rules and decisions of the CCCBR and be acceptable to the Association.

b) The conductor of the peal shall be responsible for providing the Peal Secretary with the following details: the method(s) rung, the number of changes, the composition, names of the ringers, and any other information necessary to check the validity of the peal. 

c) The Association may choose not to accept peals if the details are not received in accordance with Rule 12(a & b). The Association General Committee shall make decisions about acceptance of such peals on advice from the Ringing Sub-committee.

13. ANNUAL REPORT

a) A Report Editor shall be appointed by the General Committee to be responsible for publishing an Annual Report.

b) Each Ringing Member, Junior Member and Honorary Member of the Association shall be entitled to receive a paper copy of the report.

c) The contents of the Annual Report shall be as defined in Section 7 of the Association Regulations.

14. CHANGE OF RULES AND DUE NOTICE

a) Additions, alterations and deletions to these Rules shall only take place at a General Meeting of the Association and after due notice of not less than two months.

b) Changes to the subscription rates may only take place at a General Meeting of the Association and after due notice of not less than two months. 

c) Details of proposed changes of Rules and subscription rates should be published on the Association website and circulated to correspondents of towers at which there are Ringing Members, at least one month prior to the General Meeting.