Constitution

The organisation shall be called The South-East Shires Cricket League (SESCL).

The three main objectives of the league shall be:

• To promote competitive cricket, amongst its members via a league system and knockout competitions.

• To form a league representative side from the league clubs, which will represent the SESCL in various competitions and other fixtures, arranged by a representative team manager.

• To raise funds, sponsorship, donation, and contribution from any person or persons by way of subscription donation.

The League shall be governed and administered by an elected Committee consisting of the following:

Chairman: The chair shall be the administrative head of SESCL. The chair shall direct Secretary General to convene general and league committee meetings as and when necessary. The Chairman shall be chair of the General meeting and league committee meetings and shall In the absence of the chairman, the power of the chairman shall vest in the Vice Chair on all other occasions; he shall assist the chairman as and when necessary and have powers to ensure orderly proceedings in the meetings.

Vice-Chairman: same as above and help out with the league proceeding when required.

Secretary: The Sec General shall keep all records of the SESCL and deal with all correspondence and record minutes of all the meetings. He shall maintain and update regularly the register of members and perform all such duties connected with the SESCL affairs. He may delegate any of the above to other committee members.

Results & Fixtures Secretary: to attend all the meetings where possible. Create and manage league yearly fixtures. Oversee and update the league tables. Manage ID card approvals. Manage the league website and its contents.

Minutes & Media Secretary: to attend all the meetings where possible. Draft and publish the league’s clubs and committee meeting minutes. Manage the league’s social media accounts and league website and its contents.

Treasurer: The Treasurer shall be responsible for all financial matters and transactions of the SESCL. Maintain records and submit such records to the committee from time to time and deposit all the money with the SESCL bankers. He shall keep account of all receipts, payments and maintain proper books of accounts and furnish them to the committee. He shall be responsible for all the funds collected and subs from members. He must present at the AGM, the income/expenditure account and balance sheet from the date of the last accounts up to and the end of the calendar month not exceeding 30 days prior notice to the date of such AGM. He may delegate any of the above to other committee members.

Umpiring Coordinator: To attend all meetings where possible. Responsible for administrating and managing the umpiring allocations. He shall assist the Treasurer as and when necessary.

Honorary President: will be elected by the league committee for one committee term only and cannot be elected for the second consecutive term.

Representative Team Manager: Not a member of the voting committee but will need to attend meetings when required. To liaise and arrange suitable fixtures and practice matches. To arrange nets and other training facilities. To assist the committee in team selection for the arranged matches. To assist in attaining sponsorship for the rep side.

Each member of the Committee shall have one vote. No club shall have more than 2 members serving on the Committee. No more than two committee members residing in the same town can be voted into the committee. The chairman must have served on the committee for two years to be elected. The Committee shall have the power to co-opt additional members as it sees fit. The elected Committee shall hold power for three years only, after which elections will be conducted. Upon being relieved from a committee position, it is the parting member’s responsibility to carry out an appropriate handover to the new appointee. This includes the transfer of information and assets if any.

Nominations for the committee positions must be forwarded to the president prior to the AGM. Nominations forwarded on the day of the AGM cannot be accepted.

The League will admit to membership any bonafide club, whose entry is approved by the League Committee. Applications for membership will only be considered if they are accompanied by:

•  A letter of recommendation from an existing member club.

•  A non-refundable application fee of £10.

•  Details of their club structure i.e. Secretary, Captain, and Senior Players etc.

•  Details of the clubs ground facilities with recent playing history.

•  Proposed season of entry.

•  A complete list of your squad

The League Secretary must receive all applications no later than the 1st of November of the year before the proposed season of entry. However, the League Committee shall reserve the decision to accept any late entries, if deemed necessary. The League Secretary shall send to each member club an intent to play form, at the end of each playing season, which must be completed and returned to him by the AGM of that year. This shall determine the clubs intention for membership for the following season. Member Clubs are not transferable to another town or club.

The League Committee shall meet at least once a month during the playing season and as often as deemed necessary outside the playing season. The Committee shall be responsible for the administration of the League within the agreed rules and shall have the discretion to decide on any matter not provided for in the Constitution or the Rules of Play. No League Committee Meeting shall be conducted without at least 5 of the 7 voting members being present, unless extreme circumstances require doing so.

The League Committee shall be responsible for arranging a minimum of 2 general meetings of the League Membership every year.

Annual General Meeting (AGM)

This will be held on a date and a venue to be decided by the League Committee in, at the end of every playing season, to discuss all the League affairs of the preceding season and to discuss any proposals put forward to change the Constitution or Rules of Play. Proposals for altering the League Constitution or Rules of Play for the following season must be given in writing to the League Secretary before the AGM. The League Committee will be elected, if necessary, at these meetings.

Pre-season General Meeting 

This will be held in the month of April before the beginning of the new playing season. This meeting shall be used to:

• Discuss any matters of importance with regards to the playing season.

• Distribute the League cricket balls, League stationary and any other related material.

• Collect any outstanding fees due to the League.

Notice of any General Meeting shall be given to each member club not less than 14 days before the meeting.   All teams must send a representative to every General Meeting, even if teams are under the umbrella of one club. Otherwise the League Committee shall impose the fixed penalty fine mentioned in the appendix at the end.

Each member club shall have one vote on every proposal discussed at every General Meeting. Voting shall be by a show of hands unless otherwise agreed by the League Committee. Any proposals to change the Constitution or Rules of Play shall require a 2/3rds majority of those present and eligible to vote, to be passed. All other proposals shall only require a simple majority to be passed. Voting for Committee positions shall always be by secret ballot.

An EGM may be convened upon at the discretion of the League Committee or on receipt by the League Secretary, of a signed request by at least 75% of the member clubs, to discuss any or change any important matters which cannot wait until the AGM. Appropriate notice shall be given.

The League Committee shall determine the rates of subscription and other charges applicable to all member clubs of the League for every new season. The subscription fees and other charges due to the League shall consist of the following:

• Annual League Subscription
• Application fee (new members non-refundable)
• Security deposit (refundable upon cancelling your membership)
• Charges for League magazines
• Charges for League cricket balls
• Entry fee for knockout competitions
• Charges towards insurance
• Charges for additional ID cards
• Any other charges or fines as determined by the League Committee

All subscriptions and fees must be paid, at the latest by the April General meeting before the start of the season. Otherwise the League Committee will fine the offending club/s £15.00 per month from the time of the April meeting, until the following July, after which the League Committee will consider taking further action. The rates of subscription, fines and any other charges shall be detailed in an appendix to these regulations.

The League Committee shall have the power to fine any member club on grounds it sees fit and these fines shall be detailed in an appendix to these regulations.

The League Committee shall have the power to expel any member club, if in any serious breach of the Constitution or Rules of Play. The motion for expulsion must be supported by 2/3rds of the members present at a League Committee meeting.

Any club lodging a protest or laying an objection must write to the League Secretary (separate from the match report) by the Friday following the incident, in the case of a Sunday match, or within 7 days in other circumstances. The matter shall be taken up at the next League Committee meeting. Correspondence from the League Secretary regarding complaints must be replied to within 10 days. In no instance will the League release the original letters of complaint to the accused parties.

Any club wishing to resign from the League must fill a resignation form and send it to the League Secretary by the date of the AGM. Clubs wishing to withdraw at any other time of the year shall be required to fulfil fixtures and financial obligations and shall forfeit the refundable security deposit.

The League shall affiliate with any organisations as seen fit by the League Committee.

The Treasurer shall maintain an account or accounts, in the name of the League, at a bank or building society as approved by the League Committee. All cheque payments shall require any two signatures from four designated League Committee members. The Treasurer shall maintain the financial accounts of the League and the financial year-end shall be the 31st October of each year. The Treasurer shall present the said financial accounts to the member clubs, at the AGM, after approval by the League Committee. All members of the League Committee shall be indemnified for all legitimate costs and expenses incurred whilst performing their League duties.

All clubs are encouraged to take out insurance to cover their players in all home and away fixtures and to cover the opposition when playing at home. The league will take out a basic insurance on behalf of all the member clubs to cover them against indemnity and any injuries incurred by players on the pitch in all League matches and tournaments.

In the event of the League being dissolved, a final statement of account shall be prepared and agreed upon by the League Committee. If these accounts reveal a deficiency, every member club at the date of closure shall contribute equally to clear the deficiency. If a surplus is revealed, it shall be given to a charitable organisation, which shall be determined by the League Committee at such a time.