Branch Organisation Overview

Introduction

For most members, branch activities represent one of the main benefits they gain from belonging to the Institute. Good organization and planning, therefore, can make a significant contribution to the efficacy of the branch and members’ attendance and support.

The branch is controlled by its honorary officers:

 

    • The Chairman (whose term of office may be one year or two) leads the branch and its committee.
                                     
    • The Deputy Chairman and
     
    • The Honorary Secretary who handles the day-to-day administration and maintains branch records (he/she may also serve as the honorary treasurer).
 

 The above Honorary Officers must be elected by the Annual General Meeting under the Bye-Laws of The Institute.

 

Other members of the branch committee may be elected to assist the secretary in his/her duties and may have responsibility for finances and preparation of accounts; programme planning and/or printing; social activities; recruitment; public relations and report writing.

 

The branch representative on Council, who may also be elected, is the link between the branch and the corporate body.

Activities

Evening technical meetings are the mainstay of branch activity, and are held at monthly intervals especially during the autumn, winter and spring months.

The selection of speakers for the branch programme can be assisted by consulting the database of speakers maintained by Nottingham staff (click here for a list of Potential Branch Speakers). This consists of a record of speakers known to have contributed to branches and to the Institute’s national events in recent years.

In recognition of the importance of local branch meetings, funds have now been made available to assist Branches to attract good speakers to address technical meetings.  The primary purpose of the fund is to pay the travelling and accommodation expenses of a speaker(s) and, under exceptional circumstances where the speaker commands an especially high reputation, a fee may also be paid.  Branch Committees are invited to consult with the Nottingham Office and apply to the Educational Development and Benevolent Fund through the Education Committee.

 

Social and sporting activities such as quiz nights and golf competitions may also have a part to play in developing fellowship and attracting potential members.

Annual events include the branch dinner and dance, the main social function of the year to which guests are invited and at which significant sums of money can be raised by tombolas raffles, and the annual general meeting.

Business Procedure

The rules governing branch organization are laid down in the Institute’s Bye-Laws but the following guidance may be helpful:

The branch committee

The membership of the committee should comprise the honorary officers, any deputies and possibly the Immediate Past Chairman, plus others with particular responsibilities. The total complement should ideally be 9 or 12, so that the retirement/ re-election rule can be readily applied (Bye-Law 13D).

The committee may meet at regular intervals and this may conveniently precede an ordinary evening meeting. Special meetings of the committee (or of a sub-committee) may be advisable before major events such as the annual dinner-dance and the annual general meeting.

Meeting procedure

Although the chairman or secretary may choose to introduce a degree of informality, it is helpful if meeting procedure includes the proper introduction of and thanks to the speaker, and a controlled discussion session. In addition it is helpful to maintain a record of attendance, notes or minutes of the meeting (both committee and branch meetings). A report of the meeting should also be prepared for publication in Quarry Management.

In the case of the annual general meeting, the calling notice should include a nomination form and should be in the hands of members three weeks ahead of the meeting.

The annual general meeting gives the members of the branch the opportunity to elect the honorary officers and the committee and to approve the accounts of the branch which will have been prepared and approved by an elected ‘auditor’. The meeting also offers the Council representative the opportunity to give his report on national affairs and the Chairman and Secretary the chance to review their year of office and to indicate their plans for the future.

Liaison with Nottingham Office

The Bye-Laws of the Institute are available here. These set out certain procedural requirements associated with the operation of the branch. When difficulties arise, however, or when information is required, branch officers are encouraged to consult the Nottingham office. Contact details for the office are available on the Contact Us page.

Information relating to branch membership, including an analysis by age group/grade, may be obtained from the Secretary, Lyn Bryden, on request.