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► Starting A New Club/Society

Creating a New Club/Society

At Bath Spa we are eager to celebrate as many cultures, faiths, sports, hobbies and interests as we can. The sky is the limit here, so however big or small your idea share it with us and we will see what we can do.

But before you decide to create a new club or society, take a look at what is in existence in the Union to make sure there isn’t any repetition. The Union will not be able to fund two clubs or societies that have the same objectives or plan to organise the same activities. E-mail Dan Jones VP Activities su-activities@bathspa.ac.uk or pop into in the Union and run your ideas past him so that feedback and advice may be given.

Once you have spoken to the Union and are sure you won’t be creating a society that already exists, then you need to work on involving students, electing a committee and writing a constitution which is all covered in this chapter.

membership

As clubs and societies are governed by law, the Union and University guidelines; minimum levels of genuine membership are needed before the Unioncan grant any money to fund that club or society. This means that if you wanted to form a Real Ale Appreciation Society you must have at least 10 people who are genuinely interested in that society before it will get past the application.

 membership fees

The membership fee is one way of ensuring that genuine levels of membership are made. The minimum membership is £2 for a society and the cost of all clubs affiliated to the Athletic Union is £20. Remember, the more you charge for students to join, the less likely you are going to have hundreds of students desperate to sign up. As the grant you receive from the Union will only cover the running costs and basic needs of the club and society, membership fees are one way of gaining extra money. 

committee

Every club or society needs to elect a President, Secretary and Treasurer as a minimum. This committee is responsible to and for its club and society members. The committee is also responsible for upholding the SU procedures, including the Equal Opportunities Policy. These three core roles should be elected at the first General Meeting (GM) you have as a society. Each year the positions should be open to re-election at the Annual General Meeting (AGM).

writing your constitution

The constitution is a formal way of setting out the aims and objectives of a club or society and producing a document that formalises how a society will operate. You will have to create a constitution before your society is recognised by the SU. The constitution should be drawn up by the society committee (Talk to the VP Activities for help).

what are the aims and objectives of the club or society?

The aim of your society should be simple and give others a brief synopsis of why they should join or participate and should set out the purpose of your society.

• Bath Spa Drama Club – producing, writing and developing existing and new performing arts
• The Spanish society provides members with the opportunity to experience the Spanish language and cultureThe objectives can also be seen as goals for the coming year and can be reviewed each year.
• The Drama Club will organise and produce one Musical Theatre production each year
• The Spanish Society will ensure all members have the opportunity to develop their Spanish language skills

The constitution is a way of focusing your society and not something to stop you successfully completing your aims and objectives.

A constitution for a club or society should include:

• The name of your club or society
• The aims and objectives of the club (which shall not be contrary to those of the Union)
• Regulations relating to membership eligibility
• Provision for the election of a Committee to include as a minimum a President, a Secretary and a Treasurer
• Provision for General Meetings (GM’s) for all members of the club or society
• Provision for an Annual General Meeting (AGM) at which an income and expenditure account shall be presented
• Provision for Union statement on equal opportunities

making your club or society official

The club or society must be organised with the committee in place. Once this has been established, re-visit the VP Activities with your completed Constitution and list of committee members. The Union will review the submitted constitution and approve affiliation of the club or society to the Union as long as the aims and objectives do not contravene that of the Union

summary

• Speak to the VP Activities giving your initial idea
• Promote the idea of the new society and elect the committee in the initial meeting
• Complete a constitution and decide on a membership fee
• Once the constitution has been approved by the Union your committee will need to attend a training session
• Recruit your minimum of 10 members and you will be officially recognised and affiliated to the Union

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