The activities of the SCRA are conducted in accordance with the formal Constitution document.
Stuart Crescent Residents Association Constitution
1) Name The name of the Association shall be “Stuart Crescent Residents Association” (hereafter referred to as ‘the Association’). The Association shall represent the interests of those members from within the 54 (fifty-four) households at Stuart Crescent, Kemnay, AB51 5RZ who have subscribed to the Association.
2) Objectives The principal objectives of the Association are to be:
a) To promote and protect the interests of residents at Stuart Crescent on matters concerning the management and maintenance of the housing estate and any environmental matters affecting the estate or in the immediate area around it
b) To provide a single point of contact for communication between the households/residents and the Contracted factoring Company
c) To promote a positive community spirit within the estate
3) Membership
a) Membership to the Association shall be open to all residents and households of Stuart Crescent, on a voluntary basis. Membership shall be established upon the receipt, by the Committee Secretary, of an application form and the annual subscription fee
b) All household residents, be they owners or tenants, are invited to apply to be members of the Association, to attend meetings and stand as committee members
c) Membership shall be considered as being limited to one (membership) per Household of the Stuart Crescent housing estate
d) For formal purposes, such as requesting an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) or voting at an EGM or Annual General Meeting (AGM), or in online polls, each member Household shall have only one vote
e) Tenants who are members of the Association shall have both requested and received the written approval of the property owner to use their Household vote at meetings
f) All members must be aged 16 or over to be considered eligible to use the Household vote
g) Membership of the Association shall cease on sale of property or at end of tenancy as appropriate. Members shall inform the Association Committee of the date of their leaving Stuart Crescent
4) Subscriptions
a) Each Household who are, or wish to become, members of the Association shall pay a nominal annual fee (or subscription) to the Association. This subscription shall cover the anticipated administration and other costs of operating the Association
b) The annual subscription will be reviewed at the scheduled AGM. Any changes shall be reviewed and, as appropriate, approved or rejected by the membership
c) There will be an option for members to contribute additional funds (through fundraising, donations etc) to the Association account which shall also be administered by the Treasurer
5) Committee
a) A Committee shall be elected to carry out the business of the Association
b) The Committee will appoint officers to manage the Association on behalf of the Residents. These positions shall be; a chairperson, a secretary and a treasurer. All those appointed to these positions shall be expected to ensure a clear and ongoing understanding of their specific role and duties towards the Association
c) There will be a maximum of eight committee members chosen from the members of the Association
d) The Committee may co-opt onto the Committee on a temporary basis those members of the community with particular skills and/or knowledge to support specific activities. Co-opted members will not have voting rights at Committee meetings
e) Members shall be elected to the Committee for a maximum of three years. Committee members will be permitted to seek re-election
f) One-third of the committee members shall retire annually to encourage participation from the wider membership
6) Committee Meetings
a) The elected (permanent) committee members will hold a meeting on a regular basis, not being less than four times in each 12-month period. Meetings may be held either in person or ‘virtually’ using a suitable online platform. All formal Committee meetings shall be minuted
b) Each committee meeting shall be based around an agenda which shall be distributed to all Committee members in advance of the meeting. Any Committee member may propose an item for the agenda
c) All decisions taken in committee shall be decided by vote and the result of each vote shall be recorded in the minutes. Where there is a tie in votes, the chairperson will be considered to retain the casting vote
d) A quorum will be considered as comprising one-third of the number of incumbent Committee members (rounded up) plus one
e) An Extraordinary committee meeting can be called at any time providing fourteen clear days ’notice’ is given and at least one-third of the Committee members request it, giving reasons
f) Minutes of Association meetings shall be taken and these issued to all Committee members for review and approval at the next Committee meeting
g) The minutes from each meeting shall be held by the Secretary
h) Copies of Minutes of Meetings shall be sent or be made available online to Association members after approval
7) Committee Powers
a) The Committee shall have overall responsibility to carry out the objectives of the Association on behalf of the Residents
b) Actions of the Committee and its members shall at all times be executed in a wholly transparent manner and in accordance with the Constitution
c) The Committee may employ personnel or organisations outside the Association as are considered necessary in the proper pursuit of the Association objectives
d) The Committee shall maintain one (or more) bank account/s to manage the Association business. Each shall maintain the appropriate authorisation to disburse Association funds
e) The Committee shall promote the raising of funds in support or to further the Association objectives. Funds raised must ONLY be used to benefit the estate residents and the immediate area, as are described in the objectives. All financial dealing (monies raised, distributed, balances etc.) must be recorded in the Treasurers Report and be suitably maintained in accordance with good accounting practices. Accounts must be made available for third-party scrutiny with reasonable cause and with appropriate notice given
f) The committee may appoint a sub-committee from amongst members of the Association in order to carry out specific activities on behalf of the Association. Any sub-committee formed shall keep accounts of their spending and a record of their Meetings in accordance with the relevant articles of the Association Constitution
8) Annual General Meetings (AGM)
a) The first AGM shall be held not later than May 2021 and once in each year thereafter
b) An AGM shall be held not more than 15 months after the preceding meeting
c) The Secretary shall notify all Households of the date of the AGM not less than 14 days before it is held, with 28 days’ notice being the norm
d) Meetings can be held either in person or using an online video platform
e) A minimum number of 15 Households from the Estate will be required to attend for the AGM to be quorate
f) The principal purposes of the Annual General Meeting will be
• to consider the annual report on the overall operation and finance of the Association
• to approve the previous year accounts
• to approve any changes to the membership subscription
• to appoint (or re-appoint) account reviewers where this is required
• to elect new committee members from within the community. (Ideally, nominations to be submitted one week prior to the meeting but household residents may self-nominate at the meeting)
• to ratify any recommended amendments to the Constitution
9) Extraordinary General Meetings (EGM)
a) An EGM can be ‘called’ by any Household who has the written support of at least ten other Households (supporting the call for an EGM)
b) This call must be formally communicated to the Association Secretary, accompanied by a written description of the proposed purpose, a draft Agenda (where necessary), and including original copies of the written support
c) An EGM must be called within 28 days of the meeting request being communicated to the Secretary
d) EGMs shall be open to all members
e) The Secretary shall formally notify all member Households of the purpose, date/time and location of the EGM not less than fourteen days before it is held
f) A minimum number of 15 Households from the estate will be required to attend for the EGM to be quorate
10) Changes to the Constitution
a) Any Association Member can propose amendments to the Constitution
b) Each proposed amendment must be presented in written form along with justification or reason for change
c) The Constitution may be amended only after the changes have been approved at an AGM
11) Dissolution of the Association
a) The Association may only be dissolved by an Extraordinary General Meeting called specifically for that purpose and advertised at least 28 days in advance of the meeting date
b) Any proposals to dissolve the Association shall take effect only if agreed by two-thirds of the Association member Households
c) All remaining funds (after debits etc have been accounted for), documents and possessions belonging, and in relation to the Association shall be properly disposed of
d) All disposals of items with more than a nominal financial value shall be recorded. These records shall be retained and be available for scrutiny for a period of seven years after the winding up process has been completed