What is it, and why Polldubh?

It's a climbing club for the Fort William and Lochaber area, founded on 15 April 2009 to promote all aspects of climbing in and around the area.

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The Polldubh Club Constitution (last revised 17 November 2009)

1. Name

The Club shall be called The Polldubh Club (hereinafter referred to as the Club).

2. Objects

The Objects of the Club shall be to promote all aspects of climbing in the Lochaber area and beyond, including (but not limited to) arranging Club Meets at a variety of venues and helping to conserve the Polldubh Crags as an accessible and attractive climbing area.

The Club endorses the Participation Statement agreed by the Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme (UIAA):

'The Polldubh Club recognises that climbing and mountaineering are activities with a danger of personal injury or death. Participants in these activities should be aware of and accept these risks and be responsible for their own actions and involvement.'

3. Membership

1. The membership shall consist of the following categories:
   1. Full Membership
   2. Concessionary Membership (available to students, the unwaged and OAPs, but otherwise equivalent to Full Membership)
   3. Honorary Membership (to be awarded for life at the discretion of the Committee, and bestowing all the rights of the Club except voting)
2. Membership fees shall be agreed by each Annual General Meeting.
3. All members joining the Club shall be deemed to accept the terms of this Constitution and any Bylaws published from time to time by the Club.

4. Management

1. The affairs of the Club shall be conducted by a Committee which shall consist of the Officers of the Club plus two to four other members.
2. The Officers of the Club shall consist of the Chairman, Treasurer, Secretary and Meets Secretary who shall be elected annually at the Annual General Meeting. If the post of any Officer or other Committee member should fall vacant after such an election, the Committee shall have the power to fill the vacancy.
3. All Committee members shall be members of the Club.

5. General Meetings

1. Annual General Meeting

   The Club shall hold an Annual General Meeting in the month of November to:

   1. Approve the minutes of the previous year's AGM.
   2. Receive reports from the Chairman, Secretary and Meets Secretary.
   3. Receive a report from the Treasurer and approve the Annual Accounts.
   4. Receive a report from the Auditors.
   5. Set Membership Fees for the following year.
   6. Elect the Committee.
   7. Consider changes to the Constitution.
   8. Appoint Auditors for the Club's Accounts.
   9. Deal with other relevant business.

2. Extraordinary General meeting

   An Extraordinary General Meeting shall be called by an application in writing to the Secretary supported by at least 25% of the membership. The Committee shall also have the power to call an Extraordinary General Meeting by decision of a simple majority of its members.

3. Notices

   At least 21 days notice shall be given to all voting members of any General Meeting.

4. Voting

   1. With the exception of changes to the Constitution decisions put to a vote shall be resolved by simple majority at General Meetings.
   2. The Chairman of the Club shall hold a deliberative as well as a casting vote.

5. Quora

   The quorum at General Meetings shall be 25% of the membership and the quorum for Committee Meetings shall be more than half of the Committee members.

6. Changes to the Constitution

   1. Any change to the Constitution shall require a two-thirds majority of those present and eligible to vote at a General Meeting.
   2. Notice shall be given to all voting members of any General Meeting as specified in 5.3 and then any proposal to change the Constitution shall be submitted in writing to the Secretary at least 7 days prior to the meeting.
   3. All proposals for changes to the Constitution shall be signed by two members eligible to vote at a General Meeting.

6. Finance and Accounts

1. The financial year shall run from 1 April to 31 March each year.
2. The Treasurer shall be responsible for the preparation of Annual Accounts of the Club.
3. The Accounts shall be audited by an independent person elected by the Annual General meeting.
4. All cheques drawn against the Club's funds shall be signed by the Treasurer and one other Officer.
5. All members of the Club shall be considered to be jointly responsible for the financial liabilities of the Club.

7. Bylaws

The Committee shall have the power to publish and enforce such Bylaws as the membership feels necessary to govern the activities of the Club.

8. Expulsion of Members

The Committee shall operate a fair system for deciding upon the expulsion of a Member as laid down by the 'Law of Natural Justice'.

9. Dissolution

In the event of the dissolution of the Club, any assets thereof shall not be distributed amongst the members of the Club in any way whatsoever.

[Hide Constitution]

While our members climb in many different locations and we expect to do the same as a Club, we've taken our name from our much-loved local crags of Glen Nevis, which have proved to be amongst Scotland's finest and most popular cragging venues over many years since their first known exploration in the 1940s.

What's happening?

Regular club nights on alternating Tuesdays and Wednesdays (see Calendar for dates), meeting at the Nevis Bank Woollen Mill car park for some cragging or, if wet (we've been pretty lucky so far!), maybe indoor climbing or pub night.

Our website is still (at June 2009) very much under development, but has been given the Polldubh 'look' (no prizes for identifying the classic climb of the page background!) and currently incorporates Forum, Links and Contact sections.

To join or request further information, please see the Contact page. Please note also that, while one board of the Forum is publicly readable and you can register (after passing our anti-spamming controls by answering some simple questions) to post there without becoming a Club Member, much of its content and most of its enhanced features are scheduled to become 'Club Members only' from 1 August 2009. That said, if you're a member or friend of The Polldubh Club, it's your forum, so please use it!