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Overview

Standing Committees are dealt with under Section 7 of the Constitution.

A Standing Committee is set up by an Annual General Meeting which shall specify its terms of reference.

BCA currently has 5 Standing Committees:

Standing Committees are open to a representative from each of BCA's Constituent Bodies and Regional Councils. In addition they are free to co-opt such experts as they see fit. However, as with BCA Council, these co-opted people do not hold a formal vote.

Within the constraints of the standard operating procedures laid out below, each Standing Committee is free to regulate its own business.


The purpose of these Standing Orders is to allow all Standing Committees working as part of BCA to regulate much of their own business whilst also ensuring BCA's interests are safeguarded.

Notice of any meeting of a Standing Committee should be sent to each committee member and members of National Council at least two weeks before the meeting. The Agenda, including the date, time and venue, together with details of all items to be discussed and any relevant supporting papers should also be circulated at least one week before.

As a general rule, an Agenda should contain sections for reports from convenors or others with specific duties, specific headings for items of importance and the arrangements for the next meeting as well as items concerning apologies for absence, previous minutes and any other business.

Templates for an Agenda and Minutes are available to assist Standing Committee convenors.

Meetings should be arranged by general agreement of members of the committee at a mutually convenient venue suitable for the purpose of the committee. The Doodle website may be useful for arranging a convenient date.

Committees may meet as business demands but this shall generally be at least once a year.

Where possible, it is suggested that the dates of meetings be agreed for a twelve month period in advance.

Meetings shall be timed to allow the distribution of papers for consideration by National Council such that all members of the National Council receive the papers at least one week before a National Council Meeting. In practice this probably means aiming to meet about one month before a Council Meeting.

As well as the Standing Committee Convenor, who shall hold the casting vote at Standing Committees, each Constituent Body and Regional Council is entitled to a seat, and a vote, at a Standing Committee. The Constituent Body and Regional Council Representatives shall be confirmed by their Body annually.

In addition other Committee members may be co-opted by the Standing Committee, either to fulfill specific roles, or because they bring special skills. However these co-opted members are appointed in an advisory capacity and, although encouraged to take part in all discussions, they do not hold a formal vote.

Minutes of meetings should include:

  • details of those present
  • apologies for absence
  • any matters raised from previous minutes
  • reports to the Committee (which should be attached to the minutes)
  • details of discussions on specific issues, points raised and decisions taken including, where appropriate, records of votes for and votes against.
  • a means of indicating actions to be taken outside of the meeting, such as an “Action Log”.

Minutes and other papers should be distributed as soon as practical after meetings. In the interests of effective communication within BCA, it is considered good practice to distribute Draft Minutes, before they are accepted by the next meeting, rather than waiting for Approved Minutes. However Draft Minutes should be agreed by at least two other members of the Committee, and at least one of Executive prior to publication.

Once checked, Draft Minutes should be sent to:

  • all members of the Committee
  • any other interested parties agreed by the Standing Committee
  • anybody who is listed as an attendee, but who would not otherwise receive a copy
  • the BCA Secretary (who will then distribute them to all National Council Members)
  • any other person or organisation the Secretary or Standing Committee Chairman feels may have an interest.

A copy of all Draft Minutes should also be added to the relevant section of the BCA website, ensuring that any Draft Minutes are clearly marked as such, both in the document itself and on the website.

Only in the event of significant changes being made at the following Meeting, should approved Minutes also be distributed, although they should always be updated on the BCA Website.

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