Club Management


This page relates particularly to club management.  For information about overall management in the BB&O Area see Area Management.  You may also find it to useful to see a full list of Guidelines, Policies and Processes and Forms for more information.

This page covers the overall aspects of club management.  Role specific information is available in other parts of the Admin: section of the website.

Club Constitution   

Clubs should be run in accordance with an appropriate constitution. A simple constitution is recommended to allow flexibility for the club to adapt to changing situations and requirements.  BBandO Club Constitution Template – February 2021 is a sample club constitution which can be downloaded and adapted to suit a particular club’s needs.  It includes the main points which should be considered in a constitution.

Management Teams/Club Officers

Most clubs are managed by a conventional committee consisting of: Club Officers: Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer, plus other roles deemed to be appropriate such as Programme Secretary, Media Officer, Flower Arranger Rep etc.  With the increasing difficulty in finding volunteers to serve on a committee there is a tendency in some clubs for one person to hold more than one office, although it is not advisable for the same person to be Chairman and Treasurer.  In some clubs a role may be shared by more than one person – two heads are better than one!

Some clubs, struggling to find members willing to take on specific roles, may be run by a Management Team, usually consisting of 3-5 people with shared responsibilities, but ideally with one member being a designated Treasurer.

Some club constitutions include the role of a Club President, who will normally be knowledgeable about the club, usually having held a previous committee or management role.  A president will normally:

  • Act as a figurehead in the club
  • Advise club officers or the management team
  • Chair the AGM
  • Attend club committee or management team meetings when invited
  • Carry our ceremonial duties as appropriate

Annual General Meeting (AGM) 

The Chairman and secretary, or the Management Team should organise an AGM according to the club constitution.  Key features of an AGM:

  • As its name implies, it should be held annually, except in exceptional circumstances.
  • An Extra-Ordinary General Meeting (EGM) may be called at any time if a situation crops up which requires all members to have a say and opportunity to vote about an important club issue.
  • An AGM is normally chaired by the club president if there is one.
  • An AGM should be open to all members and visitors, but only club members should be allowed to vote.
  • An AGM notice and agenda should ideally be circulated one month in advance.
  • The main purpose of an AGM is to review the last year, but is normally immediately followed by a meeting looking forward to the coming year.
  • Reports should be presented by relevant club officers (eg Chairman, Secretary, Programme Secretary) or the management team.
  • A financial statement and audited accounts should be presented by the Treasurer and adopted by club members.
  • It may be useful to circulate reports in advance of the meeting to allow those unable to attend to be informed.
  • An auditor should be approved
  • An AGM is normally the time that members of the committee or management team step down and new members are voted in.
  • If appropriate a new constitution may be approved at an AGM, but this should have been proposed and circulated in advance, meaning only ratification is required at the AGM.
  • After a club AGM the secretary or management team should complete a Club Record Form to ensure the Area is kept up to date with all details about the club and its management structure.

Club Closure

In the sad situation that your club is in danger of closing please phone the Area Chairman or click on Area Chairman to alert us to the situation. Please do not delay doing this until closure is inevitable. as there may be ways the Area could help.  Reasons for closure may include: financial difficulties, falling membership, difficulty getting a committee, problems with the venue,  etc

In the event of club closure members should agree (usually at the AGM or an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting) how to dispose of assets.  This may include donations to charities, Area education funding or a closure event for club members. Appropriate arrangements should be made to close the bank account.  If a club closes before 30th June (affiliation fee cut-off date) then no affiliation fees are due for that year..  If it closes after 30th June then full fees for the year are due based on the number of members at the time of their last AGM.

Club Information  

Club details (name, meeting times, venue, number of members etc) plus contact details for the key Club Officers or management team are maintained by the Area Secretary on the BB&O area database.  These details are also passed to NAFAS.  Please see the Secretaries page for details of the importance and process for maintaining the area database.

Risk Management

The Chairman or Management Team should ensure risks are reviewed annually, most likely just after the AGM.  Types of risk include

  • Health and safety at the regular venue and events held elsewhere – see Risk Assessment for Venues
  • Finances
  • Legal and statutory, particularly Data Protection

For more information see Risk Management Guidelines

Data Protection

Clubs need to define their own policy and processes to demonstrate how they comply with the Data Protection Act 2018 (recently referred to as GDPR).  For more information see Data Protection

‘Run a Successful Club’ Workshops 2021/2022   

A series of ZOOM workshop was organised by Area Officers to help clubs run as successfully as possible.  Each session was one aimed at a specific role.  The following PDF presentations and notes may be downloaded and used as reminders for those who were present, and help for those who were unable to attend.  Please note these documents contain links to pages of this website as they existed at the time of the workshops – as things change some of these links may not work.


Club Officer Day 2017   

A Club Officers Day (COD) used to held approximately every three years to assist Club Officers and provide a forum for learning and discussion.

Notes from the ‘Let’s Communicate’ COD held on Thursday 16th March 2017, including the PowerPoint presentation can be found at 2017 Club Officers Day Notes.