Managed Association & The Law

[DAVEM]

Ours is a 'self-managed association'. We collect rents for the local authority and after that we run things for ourselves within the limits of the lease provided by that authority.
We are having some difficulty over rules about managing ourselves. Does anyone know if we are govenrened by any law that says , for example , that we must have a committee of elected members and hold meetings ? What are our liabilties about monies we collect from members above the local authority rental which we might use to develop the association?

[carlseawolf]

our site is managed by a commitee of chairman , secatery and tresurer and a member from each site so making a total of 7 , the site is rented from the council and all rules are made by our commitee.
the commitee is responsible for site safety and rent collection and they have a float of about 600 pounds from the rent which pays for the safety aspects and any other costs that crop up every now and then.
We have also got a good council that will sometime give us supplies of fencing matterial or machinery if there work to be carried out on a site ( this idea works on the basis of they give a little every now and then when we need it so they don't have the hastle or expence of running the site- last lot was 1000 pounds on fencing ).
the commitee meets four times a year to discuss day to day stuff and once a year we have the agm where new stuff is discussed and voted on as one person one vote and if your not present then you have no vote.
we also have a cheap seed project through kings seeds and this puts a little extra in the penny jar and these things have stopped rent rises in the last 2 years.

[pigletwillie]

You will need to have proper accounts and get them audited if you are handling money, its as much about protecting you as the money but really is necessary. A committee is always a good idea as it gives you some structure and a line of responsibility that is transparent.

iI can send you a copy of our rules if you email me.

[DAVEM]

Many thanks for your response. We do have a committee run pretty loosely so far over the years and of course keep accounts and have a rule book. We have one member however calling into question the way the committee functions and is elected, saying we are 'breaking the law'. I am not yet aware of any law that applies to how we run things - unless you can tell me different. We are I think what is called an 'unincorpotated association'. Any further comments wd be welcomed. Thanks again.

[carlseawolf]

i think as long as the three main posts are voted in by the members and all bank accounts / check books can only be accessed by 2 signatures then nothing should go wrong .
And as pw said make it transparant and a chain of command / complaints so the members know who does what , and the extra commitee members should be voted in so yu end up with an odd amount.
Our association is made up of four sites in ilfracombe from two sites with 2 plots to one with 50 but the important thing everyone has the same say at the meeting ( there is no us and them ) which is important.
The reason we have a site rep for each site on the comittee is so it get rid of usless time wasting on asking for permission to do stuff and repares get done faster.
Keep the rules simple as this makes life easier for you when your down your plot and does not constrain the development of the site as everyone does things slightly diffrent.