Kent County Athletic Association Handbook - Section A

Last amended at 5 October 2002

Section A

Introduction
Constitution
County Events
Guide to Club Constitution
Area of Association
Development Plan 2001
Action Plan for the Future
League rules
Guide for Road Race Organisers
History
Guidance on Child Protection Policy for clubs

INTRODUCTION

PLEASE READ THIS PAGE WHATEVER ELSE YOU SKIP

Enclosed please find the latest amendments of the Kent County Athletic Association Handbook. We would be grateful if you would insert them as appropriate in your copy of the handbook. If for some reason you were missed when this was originally issued please telephone me on 01322 271553 and I will get a copy to you as soon as possible.

We asked, on first issuing the handbook, that it was placed in every secondary school library, every college and university library in the County of Kent and the London Boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich and Lewisham. If you have come into existence since that time do please ask, on 01322 271553, for a copy of the full handbook.

The Executive Committee believe that this handbook will be a convenient source of information, particularly for Club secretaries, but also for many individuals and so it is also hopefully appearing in libraries and schools in Kent and the London Boroughs that we cover.

Once again I apologise in the late publication of amendments, and our main problem with this is keeping the data contained up to date. Most of Section B is replaced annually. The other sections include our 2001 Development Plan, but otherwise only have odd sheets have been replaced. Where only minor amendments necessary a list of "corrections" have been sent to add to the end of the relevant section. This means the holder of each handbook will need to replace some pages; please do it on receipt or confusions will arise! This will continue each year.

If you have any thoughts to make the handbook more informative please let someone in the KCAA know.

As we have previously informed you we do carry the complete handbook, along with much other information in our web site. The address of this has changed from the original one and is now on http://www.kcaa.org.uk

In future the web-site is to be kept more up to date than previously so that you may well find when pages are sent through the post you already have the information. I realise that may cause some problem to you but I am confident you will cope. Certainly your readers will get more up to date information.

If you are a school or college librarian please inform your Head of P.E., and any other staff, of the availability of this handbook, and indeed the web-site.

If you are a librarian in any library and your local athletic club asks that the club may insert pages at the back of the handbook please agree, we are very happy if they do advertise themselves in this way.

If you are a club secretary we hope you have read the last sentence and if you have not already done so will act on it now! We suggest you use white paper for anything you add.

Thank you for taking the time to read this page. We hope you do find this book helpful and that you can possibly make it available to others who are likely to find it useful.

JUNE 2002

				KENT COUNTY ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION

				     CONSTITUTION & RULES

				 November 1996 (as amended 1999)

1.	TITLE.
	The name of the Association shall be the "Kent County Athletic Association" and it
	is the successor of the Kent County Women's Amateur Athletic Association and the
	Kent County Amateur Athletic Association.

2.	DEFINITION.
(a)	The words "Kent County" (hereinafter referred to as the "County" shall be taken broadly
	speaking as the Ancient and Geographical County of Kent prior to the formation of the
	County of London. The precise definition of the boundary will be as accepted from time
	to time by the governing bodies of British athletics and will be included as an
	appendix to this Constitution.
(b)	The Kent County Athletic Association is referred to hereinafter as the "Association".
(c)	The words "Executive Committee" (hereinafter referred to as the) relate to the management
	committee of the Kent County Athletic Association as elected at the Annual General
	Meeting.

3.	OBJECTS.
	The objects of the Association shall be:-
(a)	The encouragement, development, promotion and control of Athletics throughout the county
	in accordance with the Laws of the Governing Bodies of British Athletics.
(b)	To organise County Championships annually and other competitions as may be decided.
(c)	To advocate, encourage and assist in the organisation and staging of Inter-County
	Athletic Competitions and to select representative teams.

4.	MEMBERSHIP. 
	The Association shall consist of :-
(a)	Any club or association, acceptable to the governing bodies of British Athletics and
	that conforms to object 3 (a) above, on payment of the annual affiliation fee. Normally
	it is anticipated such bodies shall have headquarters in the County, but others may be
	admitted as the Executive shall decide.
(b)	Honorary Members who may be invited by the Executive.
(c)	President and Past Presidents of the Association.
(d)	Life Vice Presidents; these are persons who have been elected at the Annual General
	Meeting, following proposal by the Executive.
(e)	Vice Presidents as elected or re-elected annually at the Annual Meeting, following
	proposal by the Executive.

5.	OFFICERS OF THE ASSOCIATION.
(a)	The Officers of the Association are President, President Elect, Chairman, Vice-
	Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer.
(b)	The President shall be elected for one year and shall not be available for immediate
	re-election.
(c)	Subject to the approval of the Executive the President shall nominate a successor to the
	President Elect for consideration and approval of the Annual General Meeting.
(d)	The other Officers shall be elected annually at the Annual General Meeting.
 
6.	ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING.
(a)	The Financial Year will end on 30th September. An Annual General Meeting shall be held
	within two months. Written notice shall be given, by the Secretary, to all members at
	least 63 days before the meeting and shall include the proposals of Vice Presidents and
	any new Life Vice Presidents for election at the meeting and a request for nominees for
	elections to the Executive. Agendas, including details of properly proposed nominations,
	shall be circulated by the Secretary to all members not less than 14 days before the
	meeting.
(b)	The business of the meeting shall be:
  i)	To receive and approve the minutes of the previous Annual General Meeting and those of
	any Extraordinary General Meeting not already approved.
  ii)	To receive the Secretary's annual report.
  iii)	To receive and approve the Accounts, Balance Sheet and Auditors' Report.
  iv) 	To present the President and President Elect.
  v)	To elect Vice Presidents and when appropriate Life Vice Presidents as proposed by the
	Executive.
  vi)	To elect the Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer as proposed by Members.
  vii)	To elect Minute Secretary as proposed by members.
  viii)	To elect Secretaries of Sub-Committees as proposed by the Executive.
  ix)	To elect Vice Presidents to serve on the Executive as proposed by members.
  x)	To elect others to serve on the Executive as proposed by members, as in Rule 9 vii) and
	viii).
  xi)	To appoint Auditors as proposed by the Executive.
  xii)	To consider and elect the Sub-Committees of the Executive as outlined at Rule 10 (f)
	and (g).
  xiii)	To consider properly placed motions as stated in the agenda.
(c)	Nominations for all elections and any motion to be proposed shall
	be received by the Secretary not less than 28 days before the meeting. When the 
	submission is by a club or association it shall be signed by the Secretary or Chairman
	of that body and a second, supporting, signature is not required.  Where the submission
	is by an individual member a second, supporting, signature is required.
(d)	In the event that not all posts have a nomination 28 days before the meeting, the
	Executive shall make every endeavour to remedy the situation.
	
7.	EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING.
(a)	An Extraordinary General Meeting of the Association shall be either called by the
	Executive or within 49 days of receipt by the Secretary of a written requisition from
	three or more members of the Association, such request shall state the reason for
	calling the meeting. In the case of a club or association the secretary of that body
	must sign the request on behalf of that body.
(b)	No business other than that for which the meeting is called may be discussed.
(c)	The Secretary shall give written notice, including the motions proposed, to all members
	not less than 35 days before the meeting.
	
8.	PROCEDURE AT GENERAL MEETINGS.
(a)	Each affiliated club and association shall be entitled to be represented by two of their
	current members, each with ONE VOTE, at all General Meetings. Each representative may
	only vote on behalf of one Club or Association and only cast one vote on each motion or
	proposition.
(b)	The President, President Elect, Past Presidents, Life Vice-Presidents, Vice Presidents
	and Officers of the Association each shall be entitled to ONE VOTE provided such person
	is not a nominated representative of a club or association.
(c) 	At the discretion of the Chairman of the meeting any other person may attend and speak
	but shall not be entitled to vote.
(d)	No business shall be transacted unless a quorum is present at least one of whom shall be
	an Officer of the Association. The quorum for all purposes shall be TEN persons. Voting
	shall be by simple majority of those present and in the event of a tie the Chairman
	shall have the casting vote, the exercise of which shall be mandatory.

9.	MANAGEMENT OF THE ASSOCIATION.
(a)	The management of the Association shall be vested in the Executive Committee of the
	Association elected annually as detailed in Rule 6 and which shall consist of the
	following:
  i)	The Officers of the Association.
  ii)	The Past Presidents of the Association.
  iii)	The Secretary, or in his absence another representative, of each of the sub-committees
	specified in 10 (f), any other formal sub-committee and of the Trustees.
  iv)	The Secretary for each of categories outlined in Rule 10 (g) and others as the
	Executive may require.
  v)	A representative of any County Education Association, of the Police Association and
	Tug of War Association that is affiliated.
  vi)	A maximum of six persons from the list of Life Vice-Presidents and Vice Presidents, not
	already on the Executive.
  vii)	A maximum of six other members, not already on the Executive.
  viii)	The Minute Secretary.
(b)	Except for matters herein reserved specifically for members in a General Meeting all
	powers of the Association express or implied shall be exercised by the Executive.
(c)	The Executive shall meet a minimum of eight times each year with seven members to form a
	quorum.
(d)	At the first meeting after the Annual General Meeting each year the Executive shall
	appoint a Vice Chairman from its members.
(e)	The Executive shall ensure that proper minutes of the meetings are maintained and that
	one copy is forwarded to the South of England Athletic Association.
(f)	The Executive shall have the power to:
  i)	Fill any vacancy in its membership that may occur during the year.
  ii)	Co-opt additional members with or without voting rights.

10.	SUB-COMMITTEES.
(a)	The Officers of the Association shall be ex officio members of all sub-committees.
(b)	The Executive may delegate powers to the sub-committees sufficient to allow each to take
	such action as is felt appropriate for the efficient execution of the Association's
	business. Whenever possible the Executive shall receive notice of proposed actions, but
	when this is not feasible the Executive shall receive a report at the earliest
	opportunity. If action is required without prior Executive knowledge the Chairman, or if
	unavailable then the Vice-Chairman, of the Association shall be advised in advance.
(c)	The Secretary of each sub-committee shall ensure that a brief written report or minutes,
	or "no report", is presented at each Executive meeting. The written report should have
	been agreed by the relevant sub-committee (prior circulation is sufficient).
(d)	The Secretary of each sub-committee shall ensure properly constituted and minuted
	meetings (at least one each year) are held.
(e)	Membership of sub-committees shall be as widely distributed as possible with
	nominations sought annually from member clubs and associations. The executive shall
	ensure that each sub-committee has sufficient members to be effective. Any sub-committee
	may have members who are not members of the Executive.
(f)	The standing sub-committees shall be:
  i)	Cross Country.  Responsible for all matters relating to County organised Cross Country
	events including when appropriate hosting of Inter-County events. (e.g. date, venue,
	fees, rules, entries, results, officials, trophies & medals, publicity and accounting -
	responsible in ensuring all matters are covered.)
  ii)	Track and Field.  Responsible, as described in i) above, for Track and Field.
  iii)	Road Running.  Responsible, as described in i) above, for Road Running.
  iv)	Walking.  Responsible, as described in i) above, for Walks events.
  v)	Team Selection & Management.  Responsible for selection, notification, transporting,
	and managing County teams. To ensure Inter-County competition and consulting with other
	appropriate sub-committees as to the feasibility of "home" events.
  vi) 	Officials.  Responsible for maintaining a list of officials and ensuring training and
	promotion opportunities for County officials. To allocate officials for County events
	and when required Inter-County events.
  vii)	Development.  Responsible for the promotion of the objects of the Association.  To
	initiate communication with, and respond to, other bodies to pursue these objects.
(g)	Without the need for a Sub-Committee each of the following posts should ideally have a
	Secretary and an assistant (particularly as an attempt to ensure continuity) appointed
	as if a sub-committee.
  i)	Coaching.  To liaise with Southern Coaching body to ensure the full involvement of the
	County in the Southern coaching programme.
  ii) 	Medals & Trophies.  To endeavour to have medals and trophies available for appropriate
	presentation as advised by the relevant sub-committee. 
  iii)	Press & Publicity.  To endeavour to publicise the activities of the Association as
	advised by relevant sub-committees. To ensure that a County Fixture List is maintained
	and to publicise the dates.
(h)	The Executive may form further sub-committees for specific purposes.

11.	RULES OF COMPETITION.
(a)	All competitions shall be held within the laws and rules of the governing bodies of
	Athletics and such local rules as the Executive shall determine.
(b)	All individuals competing in County Championships and all selections to represent the
	County shall be "county qualified" as defined in the Rules of the British Governing Body.
(c)	All team County Championships shall consist of "county qualified" individuals. All teams
	affiliated to the Association or an affiliated association or a service unit are
	eligible to compete.
(d)	Fees for competitions and closing dates for entry shall be determined by the Executive.
(e)	All other local rules shall be included as Appendix A to this document. Appropriate
	extracts of this Appendix shall be included with entry forms and in programmes published
	on behalf of the Executive.
	
12.	ANNUAL AFFILIATION FEE.
(a)	The affiliation fees shall be an amount determined by a General Meeting of the
	Association.
(b)	No representative of a club or association whose fees are in arrears shall be entitled
	to vote at any General Meeting of the Association.
(c)	The Executive shall have the power to suspend the membership of or to expel from the
	Association any member whose affiliation fee is in arrears, or who is under any other
	liability to the Association provided ONE MONTH notice in writing of the intention to do
	so shall have been sent by the Secretary, using Recorded Delivery, to the last known
	address of that member or in the case of a club, association or other body the secretary
	of that body.
(d)	Affiliation fees shall become due with the proposal to affiliate to the Association and
	thereafter on Ist January each year at the rate accepted by the immediately preceding 
	General Meeting.
(e)	The Executive may reduce the fee required of a specific club when special circumstances
	pertain.
	
13.	AUDIT.
(a)	There shall be an Audit of the Association's Accounts at the end of each financial year,
	in time for presentation at the Annual General Meeting.
(b)	There shall be two Auditors appointed by the Annual General Meeting to carry out the
	next Audit.
	
14.	RESIGNATION.
	Resignation from membership of the Association shall be in writing to the Secretary. Any
	member not having sent such notice on or before the end of the financial year shall be
	liable for the ensuing annual subscription as applicable.

15.	PROPERTY OF THE ASSOCIATION.
(a)	All trophies of the Association are its absolute property. The awarding of them and the
	terms thereof shall be a matter for the discretion of the Executive. A register of
	trophies and holders shall be kept.
(b)	The Association may own such equipment as the Executive decides and this may be held by
	individuals on behalf of the Executive. A register of such items and the holder shall be
	kept.

16.	ALTERATION TO THE RULES.
	No rule of the Association shall be altered nor new rule passed except when TWO THIRDS
	of the persons attending and entitled to vote at an Annual General Meeting or
	Extraordinary General Meeting called for that purpose vote in favour of the action. 

17.	TRUSTEES.
(a)	The property and financial affairs of the Association shall be vested in four Trustees
	who shall hold the same for the Association under a Trust Deed.
(b)	The Executive shall have the power of appointing and removing the Trustees.
(c)	If at a General Meeting a resolution for the dissolution of the Association is passed
	that General meeting shall further resolve a direction to the Trustees as to the
	disposal of the property and money of the Association.

18.	INTERPRETATION.
(a)	The Executive shall be responsible for any matter not directly covered by this
	Constitution and Rules and have the power to take appropriate action.
(b)	The Secretary shall send a copy of these Rules to every new member and subsequently any
	amendment to the Rules. Every member shall be deemed to have received these Rules and
	shall be bound by them.

					APPENDIX A

				K.C.A.A.  COMPETITIONS

All competitions shall be held under the rules of the appropriate governing body and such
local rules or guidelines as the Executive Committee of the Kent County Athletic
Association determine.  Championships are open to Kent qualified persons as defined by the
governing bodies.

Veteran ages are taken as on day of competition but for all others ages are as at midnight
31st August/1st September following event and additionally an u13 shall be past their tenth
birthday. 

K.C.A.A. OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPS are held annually for:
		
		Men					Women
	Sen u20 u17 u15 u13 o40 o50		Sen u20 u17 u15 u13 o35 o45
100m	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 80  Y	 Y		 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 80  Y	 Y 
200m	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	150  Y	 Y		 Y   Y	 Y   Y	150  Y	 Y
400m	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	300  Y	 Y		 Y   Y	300	     Y	 Y
800m	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	600  Y	 Y		 Y   Y	 Y   Y	600  Y	 Y
1500m	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y		 Y   Y	 Y   Y	1KM  Y	 Y
5000m	 Y  3KM	3KM	     Y	 Y		 Y  3KM		     Y	 Y
10000m	 Y   Y		     Y	 Y		 Y		     Y	 Y

Hurdle	110 110	100  80	 75 110	100		100 100	 80  75	 70  80	 80
Hurdle	400 400	400  	    400	300		400	300	    400	300
S`Chase	3km 2km	1.5k	    2km			1.5k	1.5k	    1.5k
3kmWalk  Y   Y	 Y   Y	2.5k Y			 Y   Y	 Y  2.5k2.5k2km 2km
10kmWalk Y

High JumpY   Y	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y		 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y
Long JumpY   Y	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y		 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y
Triple J Y   Y	 Y   Y	     Y	 Y		 Y   Y	 Y   Y	     Y	 Y
Pole V`ltY   Y	 Y   Y	     Y	 Y		 Y   Y	 Y   Y	     Y	 Y
Shot PuttY   Y	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y		 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y
Discus	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y		 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y
Javelin	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y		 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y
Hammer	 Y   Y	 Y   Y	     Y	 Y		 Y   Y	 Y	     Y	 Y
Combined
Events	Dec Dec	Oct Pen	Min			Hep	Hep	Pen Min 

Relays
4 x 100m Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y			 Y       Y   Y	 Y
4 x 200m					 Y	 Y   Y
4 x 400m Y   Y	 Y   Y	 Y			 Y
3 x 800m						 Y   Y	 Y
Medley	 Y

In the above events competitors may only take part in the correct age group except Veterans
and u20 may compete in Senior competition, as may u17 men of high standard.


INDOOR TRACK & FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPS are held annually for individuals:

Men and Women in categories Senior, u20, u17, u15 at:
		60m, 60mH, Long Jump, High Jump, Pole Vault, Shot Putt and Triple Jump.
In the above events competitors may only take part in age groups as for Outdoor
Championships.


ROAD CHAMPIONSHIPS are held annually for individuals and teams (multiple teams allowed),
for Senior Men and Women, Veteran o40, o50, o60 Men and Veteran o35, o45, o55 Women at:
		10km, 10mile, Half Marathon, 20mile, Marathon, 10kmW, 20kmW;
and for relay teams of 	Senior Men and Senior Women at 4 or 6 X 3000-6000m, 
			o40, o50 Men, o35 Women at 4 X 3000-6000m,
			u17, u15, u13 each sex at 3 X 2500-4000m.

Teams will be scored on the positions of the first three persons to finish and eligible to
score for the particular team; the position to be used is that of the individual relative
to those in the same category, unless a veteran is declared for a younger age group when
individual place will be different to team scoring place.

The Championships may be held in conjunction with a properly registered open event which
may additionally be hosting other championships. Locations usually vary from year to year.

While these Championships are held under B.A.F. laws the county has prepared "Guidelines
for Road Race Organisers" and any organiser (including clubs) considering making
application to include a Kent Championship should obtain a copy of the Guidelines from the
Secretary of the Road Running Sub-committee. Ideally championships are committed at least
twelve months in advance but bids up to two years ahead are welcome.


CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS are held annually for individuals and teams with unlimited
entry:
Senior Men		about 12000m			Team:	6 to score and	12 to score
Senior Women		about  6000m				3 score and	 6 score
u20 Men			about 10000m				3 score
u20 Women		about  6000m				3 score
u17 Men			about  6000m				4 score
u17 Women		about  4500m				3 score
u15 Men			about  4500m				4 score
u15 Women		about  3500m				3 score
u13 Men			about  2500m				4 score
u13 Women		about  2500m				3 score
o40 Vet Men		about 10000m				4 score
o35 Vet Women		about  6000m				3 score
o50 Vet Men		about 10000m				3 score
o45 Vet Women		about  6000m				3 score
o60 Vet Men		about 10000m				no team race
Clubmans		about 10000m				4 score

In the above events competitors may only take part in the correct age group, except Veteran
competitors may score in Senior events and Veteran events.

Entry to the Clubmans Championship is restricted to senior and over 17 Kent qualified men
who have not ever placed in the first fifteen of any County Championship nor been the
winner of either the North Kent or the Clubmans Championship. Guest runners are not allowed
but individual Club runners may run.


SPORTS HALL ATHLETIC CHAMPIONSHIPS are currently held annually for under 15 and under 13
groups of both sexes.  The actual ages and events are likely to vary slightly from year to
year depending on the venue and the equipment available.


OUTDOOR TRACK & FIELD LEAGUE is held, in two divisions at the same venue, for teams of
Women at all age groups.  Precise details and rules are issued to participating clubs each
year.  Events are normally similar to those in which championships are competed.


CROSS COUNTRY LEAGUES are held, precise details and rules sent to participating clubs each
year, but generally are:-

Senior Men	4 races at 5-6 miles age o17.  6 to run 4 to score also 12 scoring match
		scored.  Guest runners may be allowed.  Second claim members allowed to run
		and score but with some restrictions. Clubs may run more than one team
		without restrictions.

And at one venue:
Senior Women	4 races at 4000m, age o17.  Any to run, 3 to score but if full team does
		not finish dummy points awarded to score team race.  Guest runners may be
		allowed.
u20 Men		4 races at 3 miles, 6 to run 4 to score, over 6 runners counted as B-team
		etc. and provided 2 finish in team dummy points awarded to score in team
		race.
u17 Men		4 races at 3 miles as u20 Men
u17 Women	4 races at 3000m as Senior Women
u15 Men		4 races at 3 miles as u20 Men
u15 Women	4 races at 2000m as Senior Women
u13 Men		4 races at 2.5 miles as u20 Men
u13 Women	4 races at 2000m as Senior Women

APPENDIX B

GUIDELINE CLUB CONSTITUTION

The rules of the British Governing Body for Athletics demand that clubs are affiliated, in the case of Kent clubs, to the South of England Athletic Association. Those rules require a club to be "properly constituted" with "democratic management by means of a management committee" and an "annual general meeting of all its members". There are also references to election to, and cessation of, membership of clubs as well as the more obvious rules of competition.

A club needs a formal constitution to protect the members and the officers and to give a structure to the administration of the Club. These guidelines assume a club concerned solely with Athletic matters and maybe the odd supporting social event. All clubs should be aware of government legislation that relates to clubs of all sorts in wider matters such as having one or more employees, selling food or alcohol, organising a lottery or certain forms of entertainment, and of the restrictions applicable to computer use under the Data Protection Act.

The constitution should include the name of the Club and the objects it has been formed to achieve. The name should distinguish it from any other and shorter names are more likely to be used in full than more cumbersome ones. The objects will presumably include: "to provide athletic competition" and/or "the promotion of athletics" and should be qualified with "in accordance with the Laws of the" British governing body.

Membership should be categorised "males, females, ordinary, honorary, Vice Presidents, over 11 years" as intended. Method of election and resignation procedure for striking off or expelling should be included as should the manner of setting subscription rates and other fees. Normally it would be expected that new members are elected by a management committee and that resignations are only accepted from currently fully paid-up members; only fully paid-up members may compete for a club and an appropriate rule should be included. A letter to the last known address of a member is usually recognised as an appropriate rule to cover striking off because subscriptions have not been renewed nor resignation received. The British Athletics Federation gave advice to clubs relating to other expulsions:

a) If it appears to the Club Committee that an irregularity or breach of the Constitution or other matter of concern may have occurred it may appoint an Individual (a Club member or not) or a Committee to investigate with such terms of reference as the Club Committee wish.

b) If it appears evidence of such matters exists then the Honorary Secretary shall write to the person concerned setting out the alleged details and inviting comment in writing by a specified date normally not less than 14 days after the letter is sent.

c) The Club Committee shall consider any response at its next convenient meeting and if it believes the concern remains then shall refer the matter to a Disciplinary Committee appointed by it which shall consist of not less than three nor more than five people none of whom shall be interested in the matter otherwise than as members of the Club. The Disciplinary Committee shall make such further enquiries as it thinks fit and shall afford the person concerned a reasonable opportunity to appear before it to state his/her case and answer the allegations brought against him/her and the committee shall hear such witnesses as are reasonably produced and shall allow him/her the right to be accompanied and/or be represented by a friend. The committee shall make such just and efficient procedural provisions as are necessary for the just and efficient disposal of the case remitted to it.

d) If satisfied that the matter did occur the Disciplinary Committee may recommend to the Club Committee one or more of the following: 

i) resolve to note the offence but take no further action; 
ii) warn the person as to future conduct with no further action; 
iii) suspend or disqualify the person from Athletics competition, coaching and/or administration for any period whether fixed or indefinite; 
iv) recommend to the Regional Association that the person concerned shall be disqualified from any involvement in athletics for any period whether fixed or indefinite; 
v) such other penalty as the Disciplinary Committee consider appropriate.

e) The Disciplinary Committee shall report the recommendation to the Club Committee in writing within seven working days and the Club Committee shall determine its decision as soon as practicable thereafter.

f) A term of suspension starts from the time it is pronounced by the Club Committee unless otherwise stipulated and does not expire until the close of the day named in the decision. g) Every person suspended, expelled, disqualified or otherwise dealt with shall be notified in writing by hand or recorded delivery post within seven working days of the decision.

h) The Club Committee shall as it sees fit transfer any of its duties under the provision of its Constitution to such Disciplinary Committee as from time to time is appointed.

i) Any person so dealt with may appeal against such decision as defined in by the Rules of the Governing Body for Athletics.

The Committee to manage the affairs of the club should be described and responsibilities to the club indicated. The election arrangements for club officers and committee members should be given; normally it would be expected that such elections be by the members of the club at a general meeting, normally the Annual General Meeting. The Management Committee while being responsible for the proper running of the Club within the Constitution is normally authorised to act as it feels fit on matters not specifically included there; many clubs find it useful to formally allow the Management Committee to form sub-committees which may then be delegated such authority as is felt desirable from time to time. There is usually formal opportunity for the Management Committee to co-opt others. The Management Committee must be charged with the control of all Club matters either directly or by delegation. Conditions of General Meetings should be given with an indication of notice necessary, normally two to four weeks given to all members by the Club Secretary on behalf of the Management Committee. Details of how many members are necessary to request a General Meeting and the time for the Management Committee to announce a date, usually one or two weeks. There should be an Annual General Meeting normally held within a set period, six or eight weeks say, of the end of the financial year of the Club. In addition to the elections of all Club officers the audited accounts should be approved at the AGM.

Quorums for committees and general meetings should be stated.

Auditors, normally two, should be elected annually by members; normally members who have some financial background are considered appropriate.

A rule specifying Club colours and the use of the Club name and logo is a useful precaution.

All members must be required to abide by the Club rules. The method of changing rules should be specified, including the method of approval by the members in general.

APPENDIX C

AREA of ADMINISTRATION

The area of Athletic Administration shall be:

• the Local Government area administered by the Kent County Council, together with any Unitary Bodies originally within this Council area;
• the Local Government areas administered by the London Boroughs of Bexley, Bromley and broadly speaking Greenwich and Lewisham but there precisely defined to fit the ancient county of Kent, namely the London Postal areas of South East London numbered 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 18, 20, 23, 26 and 28.

Further to the above the part of SE19 that is the Crystal Palace Park shall be jointly administered with the Surrey County Athletic Association.

NOTE: Should there be any problem of detail relating to this the County Secretary has a list of streets etc. at the boundary, including (in ten cases) those house numbers in the area.

Kent County Athletic Association Development Plan 2001

This plan has been produced in order to clarify and publicise the development objectives of the Kent County Athletic Association (KCAA) and to determine means of progressing towards those objectives over a five-year period by utilising its resources to best effect. Also, it should be a starting point for demonstrating to external funding and sponsoring agencies that support will be used in furtherance of their aims.

UK:Athletics (UKA) and the Amateur Athletic Association of England (AAAE) have published important plans for the development of athletics which will have a considerable impact at all levels of the sport, including county and club. KCAA needs to be prepared to take full advantage.

CURRENT SITUATION The present structure and activities of the KCAA are outlined below, as a starting point for considering future developments,

Territory and membership: The area within the ambit of the KCAA includes the administrative county of Kent, the Medway Unitary authority and the London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich and Lewishain. There are 48 affiliated clubs, of which just 17 are Kent-based open clubs which include track and field athletics in their activities, the remainder being road-running clubs, clubs based outside the county or closed organisations such as schools.

Administration: An executive committee comprises a president, president-elect, chairman, secretary, treasurer, minutes secretary, 8 past presidents, 6 of the 14 vice presidents, a Kent School AA representative, 6 other committee members and the secretaries of 11 subcommittees. There are subcommittees for cross country, track and field, road running, walking, team management and selection, officials, development, coaching, medals and trophies, press and publicity, and sports hall athletics. There are also auditors and trustees. The county is represented at meetings of the AAAE, the South of England Athletic Association (SEAA) and the Kent Schools Athletic Association (KSAA).

The executive committee meets 10 times a year while the subcommittees meet as necessary but less frequently than the executive committee.

In 1997 a county handbook was published in a loose-leaf format, including information on all aspects of the association's constitution and operations. The handbook is in all public libraries, secondary school libraries, further education libraries and all local sports development offices as well as with the secretary of all affiliated clubs. Amendments are sent out annually.

A "Kent County Athletic News" is published three or four times a year in co-operation with the Kent Sports Development Unit (KSDU) and circulated to club secretaries, coaches, officials, committee members, secondary schools, local libraries, local authorities and Sport England. A web site is maintained (web.ukonline.co.uk/kcaa), providing more up-to-date information than is possible with a newsletter, including entry forms and details for KCAA promotions.

Lists of active officials and coaches are maintained (1 54 and 195 respectively).

From January 1996 until March 2000 a part-time Athletics Development Officer (ADO) was employed by the Association, supported by funding from the SEAA, Sports Council and KSDU. The post ceased through insufficient funds when only the KSDU still provided financial support. The KSDU has continued to provide funding for approved development work and the ex-ADO is still involved in KCAA activities as a volunteer and so, with strengthened development and coaching subcommittees and a newly created sports hall athletics subcommittee, much of the development work initiated while the ADO was in post is being maintained. The AAAE has appointed Regional Development Coordinators (RDC's) who took up their posts in September 2000. They will be well placed to take development forward in the county, especially as they are part of a national team, working to a national development plan.

Competition: County championships are held for all age groups from under-13 to veteran age groups, male and female, in track and field, cross country, road running and walking. Sports hall athletics championships were held for the first time in 2001 for U11, U13 and U15 age groups. Teams represent the county in all these disciplines although occasionally an age group/discipline has had no inter-county competitive opportunity in a particular year.

Separate from the KCAA but involving many of the same young athletes, coaches and officials, the Kent Schools AA hold county championships and send teams to ESAA events in all disciplines for U15, U17 and U19 age groups.

Tug of war is also run under the Association name but is run entirely as a separate entity.

The Association promotes a track and field league for women (U13, U15, U17 and senior) and a similar league for boys (U13 and U15). Cross-country leagues are also promoted; senior men compete at one set of fixtures while all other boys/men age groups and all girls/women age groups compete at a separate set of fixtures.

An inter-school trophy competition in track and field is promoted alongside one of the county championships, in conjunction with the KSAA. A series of sports hall athletics meetings is held during the winter.

Coaching: Following the transfer process to the new UKA scheme during the winter of 2000/2001, plus two new level 1 courses, there are an estimated 195 coaches registered in Kent. A series of winter clinics has been offered in most events, open to both athletes and coaches. The response so far has been patchy and the format of the programme is being reconsidered. The South East coaching day for invited county schools athletes has been better supported.

Kent has played a full part in the SE region coach education programme, providing some of the venues and also a number of the tutors. Kent will continue to be involved with the entirely new coach qualification and education system currently being introduced by UK Athletics.

Sports Science support has been available to a selected group of endurance athletes from the county at Christchurch University College Canterbury for a number of years. This programme is supported by KSDU and is evolving to provide further generic workshops to support coaches and performers.

Teacher Education: One or two courses in athletics teaching are offered each year for both primary and secondary teachers through the Coaching for Teachers programme. Assistance with the athletics content of teachers' courses at Christchurch University College Canterbury has been provided in recent years.

Facilities: There are synthetic tracks at:

• Crystal Palace: 8 lanes, National Sports Centre. A major international stadium that has been allowed to become dilapidated. Underused at club and county level because of the excessive hire charges. There is a limited indoor facility suitable for training and competition.
• Norman Park (Bromley): 6 lanes; very limited cover. Long throws from one end only.
• Sutcliffe Park (Greenwich): 6 lanes; virtually no spectator cover.
• Dartford: 6 lanes; club house but no spectator cover. Long jump, triple jump and pole vault are located inside home and back straights, resulting in timetabling restrictions.
• Deangate ridge (Rochester): 6 lanes; limited spectator cover.
• Tonbridge School: 6 lanes; very limited spectator cover; pole vault inside back straight (timetabling restrictions). Owned by school and limited access to others.
• Ladywell (Lewisham): 6 lanes; very limited spectator cover; very limited space for spectators and officials outside home straight. No 13m triple jump board.
• Erith (Bexley): 6 lanes; stand but no spectator cover.
• Julie Rose Stadium (Ashford): 8 lanes; major stadium with good spectator cover. Limited indoor area suitable for training but not competition.
• Sevenoaks School: 6 lanes; not suitable for most competitions as track does not meet specifications and does not cater for most field events. Also, it is privately owned with no public access.
•  

There are also cinder tracks at Chatham Garrison, Shornecliffe (army), Grove Park (school), Biggin Hill (school), Dover (school) and Canterbury (University). Apart from Canterbury, these tracks are no longer used or are not accessible. The Canterbury track is used as a training base by a club but is unsuitable for most events.

• Canterbury High School: Construction has started (autumn 2000) for a 6 lane synthetic track, expected to be available for use late summer 2001.
• Strood: At Chapter School there is a sports hall adapted for limited training in pole vault, shot, discus, sprints and hurdles, with a synthetic track surface.

KEY ISSUES

Development Officer: Having had a development officer in post for four years up to March 2000, it is important that the development momentum is not lost. See UKA and AAAE initiatives below.

Active Sports: This national scheme applies to 9 sports, including athletics, and offers the prospect of a properly funded scheme for developing sport at a local level. It is aimed at young people who already enjoy sport and want to improve through better coaching, competition and clubs. This is an opportunity that the county should take full advantage of, as part of its development strategy. The scheme runs for five years, during which time the county will need to have taken full ownership if the benefits are to be sustained thereafter.

Funding for development work: A sound development programme is likely to continue to be supported by the KSDU, so long as their own budget is maintained at present levels. The other main source of continuing funding in the future should be Active Sports. Specific projects can attract funding or sponsorship. For example, Kent Week has supported our Schools' Trophy competitions and Pfizer have supported club development in Thanet with the purchase of equipment. "Awards for All" should be targeted for other projects at both club and county level.

Coaching and coach education: UKA is introducing a radically new education and training programme and qualification structure for coaches, as well as for other groups such as officials. All coaches will be affected. After transferring to or starting on the new scheme, renewal of coaching licenses will require continued education and training throughout coaching life. With renewal will also come UKA insurance cover.

Facility development: There are fewer tracks in Kent, especially in East Kent, than there were before synthetic tracks first appeared and this probably contributes to the decline in participation. Nowadays, because only synthetic tracks are used for competition, cinder tracks are not viable to maintain or make available for use. At present (year 2001), there is only one synthetic track in East Kent (at Ashford), with another due to be opened in Canterbury in mid-2001. As a result, there are considerable populations in the East Kent coastal districts with no reasonable access to a track. The minimum provision to allow athletics to develop in these areas would be full tracks in Thanet and Dover. However, the county's top priority after Canterbury, is for a track in Maidstone, which is at the centre of a large population in mid-Kent.

The KSDU's "Single Sport Deficiency" document contains fuller details, including indoor and training facilities. The national facility strategy for athletics (to which the lottery sports fund refers for guidance) understates the need for new tracks in Kent by a considerable amount compared with the assessment of this Association.

Most existing facilities have deficiencies. The KCAA needs to maintain its policy of continuous facility improvement through monitoring and advice.

Attracting and retaining young people in the sport: Participation in athletics, as with other sports, is declining. Fewer young people are joining and a high proportion of them leave at what should have been an early stage in their careers. It is believed that factors include the reduction of school PE and sport, the increase in homework loads, the wider variety of alternative attractions, including other sports as well as TV and computers, the shortage of volunteers in athletics (which also leads to a shortage of school/club links) and the inaccessibility of facilities for many.

Attracting and retaining volunteers: The numbers of coaches, officials and club workers is declining. While changes in work patterns for those in mid-career have made it harder for people with both experience and energy to give time to voluntary activity, other factors such as the disastrous era of BAF and the apparent inequities of the part professional, part amateur nature of modem sport seem to have contributed to the shortage of volunteers. Concerns over child protection and insurance for volunteers have also had a negative impact.

Volunteers can take advantage of a number of support mechanisms, such as coach education, officials' courses, NCF courses and Running Sport programmes.

UKA and AAAE initiatives: The county will be affected by and should aim to benefit from developments initiated at national level. These include:

• The appointment of Regional Development Co-ordinators (Paul Eales is the RDC for the south east counties of Kent, Surrey and Sussex, and is based at Horsham; Dave Reader is the RDC for London and is based at Picketts Lock) and Regional Performance Managers (Mark Rowland for the south east)
• Active Sports Athletics
• UKA Club Development Framework
• UKA Education and Training structure
• UK Competition
• UKA's Development Plan "from fun to fulfilment"
• UKA's Child Protection policy and guidance.

Communication: The Association has to communicate with 48 clubs, 195 coaches, 154 officials, about 500 schools and with many individual athletes, as well as broadcasting to the media and the public. The vast majority of communication to clubs, coaches, officials and athletes is via the public postal service. The Association has a web-site as well as the Kent Athletics News. Communication to schools can take advantage of Kent County Council's internal postal service. Communication between officers and committee members is predominantly by post, telephone and meetings. Cost and time delays are significant factors in the Association's communications. There is scope for achieving improvements and economics in communications, both internally and externally.

Links with schools: The initial experience of athletics for most children is at school. For satisfactory recruitment into the sport, this experience needs to be a positive one that is followed by an easy pathway into club athletics for those who so wish. This has implications for teacher education, school-club links, coaching and clubs in particular.

Athlete Support: Above county level, the new World Class Performance and World Class Potential programmes should provide a back-up service for good class athletes and their coaches, giving access to high level coaching advice, sports science services, sports medicine and life-style support. Just below this level, the county's sports science support programme remains important. It would be of undoubted benefit if it could be extended to offer assistance to the power events in addition to endurance. Sports medicine support would be at least as beneficial.

Equity: Athletics has a good record in making the sport accessible and welcoming to all sections of the community, with the possible exception of some disability groups for whom the availability of suitable facilities, knowledge and expertise are not widespread. The Active Sports programme will address these issues for young entrants to the sport. Rises in charges for the use of training facilities, both indoor and outdoor, are bound to reduce effective access to the sport for some sections of the community.

THE FUTURE - WHERE WE WANT TO BE IN 5 YEARS TIME

Competition Championships: ·

• Remain up-to-date with provision of championships in all disciplines and age groups. Reduced time from closing date for entries to date of event by greater use of IT.
• Inter-county events: All age groups have the opportunity to compete at this level every year.
• Sports hall athletics: A well-supported (200+ children) series of events, including county championships and some inter-county competition, open to clubs and schools, to be held every winter. Local events for schools and community to be held in most Districts every year.
• Indoor events: An indoor season to be held, with venue(s) reasonably accessible to Kent athletes.
• Leagues: County leagues and other competitions to complement national provision, in particular by providing appropriate competition for the younger age groups.
• Schools competitions: KCAA co-operating with KSAA to provide attractive inter-school competitions in a governing body setting.
• Kent Youth Games: Community-based competition targeting the younger age groups (10 to 12 years) not yet in club athletics.

Coaching ·

• Appropriate coaching in all events for all age groups and levels in all clubs or
• clusters of clubs.
• Coaching clinics/squads in all events well supported by athletes, coaches, would-be aches and teachers.
• Regular and widespread coaching in the community and in after-school clubs.
• Adequate number of coaches at all events and levels.

Coach Education

• All coaches have adequate encouragement, support (including mentoring and some funding), information and opportunity for their continual education and training.
• Permanent recruiting drive for more coaches from all sectors of the community.

Teacher Education

• Opportunities for all primary and secondary teachers and teachers in pre-service training in Kent to receive training in teaching athletics.
• Opportunities for all teachers to receive coach education and to attend coaching clinics.

Officials

• Adequate numbers of officials for club and county promotions.
• Recruitment and upgrading of officials more than compensating for retirements.
• Wide age spectrum of officials, from teenage upwards.

Facilities

• Full synthetic tracks in Canterbury, Maidstone and an east Kent coastal town (e.g. Thanet or Dover) in addition to present stock, with plans for others.
• Outdoor track and field training facilities in all other population centres.
• Indoor training facilities near each track and club.
• Indoor competition facilities in east and west Kent.

Clubs

• Junior or feeder clubs catering for track and field and cross country in all population centres not supporting all-discipline athletic clubs
• All-discipline athletic clubs in all major population centres without one, preferably by existing clubs extending their repertoires to include all disciplines.
• Opportunities for volunteers, including administrators, event organisers and other helpers, to access appropriate information, education, training and experience.
• Numerous school/club links.

Communication

• Good communication network between KCAA committee and subcommittee members and clubs.
• Attractive, informative and up-to-date website.
• Efficient communication to and from coaches, officials, schools, athletes, clubs, UKA/AAA and Kent local authorities.
• Good media exposure.

Athletes - who are the whole point of athletics and its development

• Information, coaching and other advice, competition, indoor and outdoor training facilities, social envirownent and other resources are readily accessible to match the athletes commitment and ability, from beginner to elite level.

ACTION PLAN FOR THE FUTURE - HOW DO WE GET THERE?

The detailed plan of action for achieving the aspirations listed in the previous section, for the period 2001 to 2006, is set out in tabular form in the following pages. It is divided into the following sections:

• Competition
• Coaching
• Schools and teachers
• Officials
• Facilities
• Clubs
• Communications

Annual review: The KCAA Development subcommittee will:

• Identify and progress action for each year.
• Co-ordinate a review of progress and revision of the plan at yearly intervals from the date of commencement of the plan.

Back to Action Plan