Essex Faculty

1. Name and boundaries

The Faculty shall be known as the Essex Faculty. The boundaries shall be those of the administrative County of Essex.

2. Membership of the Faculty

The members and associates of the Faculty shall (subject to their wish to opt to any other Faculty) be those members and associates of the College whose registered addresses are within the area of the Faculty.

3. Rights of Faculty members and associates

A. Members of a Faculty shall be entitled to receive all notices sent out by the Faculty, to attend, speak and vote at any General Meeting, and generally to participate in the activities of the Faculty.

B. Associates of a Faculty shall be entitled to receive all general notices sent out by the Faculty, to attend any meeting of the Faculty, and generally to participate in the activities of the Faculty; but they shall not be entitled to vote at a meeting of the Faculty, except upon the election of associates to the Board of the Faculty. Associates appointed to the Board or any committee shall be entitled to vote at meetings of the Board or such committee.

4. General meetings of the Faculty

A. General meetings of the Faculty, to which all members and associates of the Faculty must be summoned, shall be (i) Annual General and (ii) Extraordinary General.

i) Annual General Meetings

These meetings shall be held each year, within three months after 31st March.

At least fourteen days' notice of the Annual General Meeting shall be given in writing to each member and associate of the Faculty. Such notice shall include the date, time and place of the meeting, and the agenda. The business at the Annual General Meeting shall be:

(a) To receive, amend if necessary, and confirm the minutes of the previous Annual General Meeting.

(b) To receive the Annual Report of the retiring Board.

(c) To receive the Annual Financial Statement of expenses and such additional financial statements as the College Council may have determined.

(d) To elect a Provost of the Faculty, who shall not hold this office for more than three years in succession.

(e) To elect the new Faculty Board.

(f) To propose amendments to the Faculty Byelaws if necessary.

(g) To transact any other business of the Faculty.

The usual method of recording votes at a meeting shall be by a show of hands. The Chairman may appoint two or more members as tellers. In the case of an equality of votes, the Chairman shall have a casting vote. In any matter of dispute the Chairman's ruling shall be final.

ii) Extraordinary General Meetings

An Extraordinary General Meeting shall be called at any time by the Honorary Secretary of the Faculty Board on the instructions of the Faculty Board, or by the Honorary Secretary within twenty-eight days of the receipt by him of a written requisition signed by not less than ten members of the Faculty, or by one-third of the Faculty membership, whichever is the less, and stating the exact terms of the resolution(s) to be proposed. At least fourteen days' notice of such a meeting shall be given to every member and associate of the Faculty, and such notice shall state the business of the meeting, and exact terms of the resolutions to be proposed. A resolution at an Extraordinary General Meeting shall be passed only if voted for by a majority of not less than three-quarters of those present and voting. No business shall be transacted by an Extraordinary General Meeting other than that which it may have been specifically called to consider.

B. The accidental omission to give notice of a meeting to any member or associate of the faculty shall not invalidate the proceedings at the meeting.

5. The Board of the Faculty

The management of the affairs of the Faculty shall be vested in a Board, composed of the following persons:

Members of the Board of the Faculty:

Ex-officio Members:

a) The Provost of the Faculty

b) Those members of the College Council and members of the Scottish Council, Irish Council or Welsh Council or an Overseas Council who are members of the Faculty.

c) The immediate Past-Chairman of the Board of the Faculty.

ii) Members:

a) Up to sixteen members of the Faculty to be elected by the members of the Faculty at the AGM. All members shall retire annually, but shall be eligible for re-election.

b) Up to four Associates to be appointed annually by the Associates of the Faculty at the AGM.

c) The Board of the Faculty may co-opt other persons for special purposes in an advisory capacity.

B. i) The Officers of the Board of the Faculty shall be a Chairman, Vice-chairman, Honorary Treasurer and Honorary Secretary.

ii) Election of Officers. The Officers shall be appointed by the Board from its members, and shall hold office until the end of the Annual General Meeting next after their appointment. The Chairman may hold office for not more than two years in succession.

iii) The Board shall appoint a representative to the Council of the College, who should not be asked to serve for more than five consecutive years.

iv) The Board shall be empowered to appoint a Faculty representative to any other body.

C. Meetings of the Board of the Faculty.

The first meeting of each Board shall be held immediately after the Annual General Meeting of the Faculty at which it is appointed. Other meetings of the Board shall be held not less frequently than once in every three months, at a time and place convenient to it. A quorum shall be one-third of the members.

D. Committees of the Board of the Faculty.

The Board shall appoint committees for Education and Research and any other committees as desired.

Each committee of the Board of the Faculty may co-opt, with the approval of the Board, members and associates of the Faculty who are not members of the Board; or other persons who are not members of the Faculty, or of the College.

No one who is not a member or associate of the College shall be entitled to vote on these committees.

E. The duties of the Board shall include:

i) The appointment of Officers

ii) The compilation of a Faculty register

iii) The appointment of committees

iv) The keeping of minutes of meetings

6. Finances of the Faculty

A. The Board of the Faculty shall be authorised to incur such expenditure as has the prior approval of the Council of the College.

B. A grant to be determined from time to time by Council will be allocated from College funds to cover Faculty expenses.

C. The Faculty shall maintain an imprest banking account in the name of the Faculty at a bank agreed by the Board.

D. The Honorary Treasurer of the Faculty shall produce an income and expenditure account to the 31st March each year. This shall be approved by the Faculty Board and signed by the Chairman or Vice-chairman for submission in April to the Honorary Treasurer of the College, to be included in the annual financial report of the College.

E. The Board of the Faculty shall be authorised to raise special funds, and expend them or any other monies received for special purposes.

7. Secretarial arrangements of the Faculty

Copies of the Minutes of all meetings of the Faculty and its Board shall be sent to the Headquarters of the College for information and filing.

The Faculty shall not authorise the general, as distinct from local, publication of any article, notice, or memorandum concerning the Faculty or its work, unless the same has first been approved by the Council of the College.

8. Faculty Byelaws

Provided that at least fourteen days' notice has been given to each member and associate of the Faculty specifying the exact words of the proposed change, alterations and additions to, and deletions from, the Byelaws may be proposed at a General Meeting of the Faculty (or by the signatories of the requisition for an Extraordinary General Meeting), and may be adopted by a majority of three-quarters of those present and voting. Always provided that no such change in the Byelaws shall become effective, or come into operation, until approved by the Council of the College.