Club History

EAST DEVON TRACTOR, MACHINERY AND ENGINE CLUB –

Club formed with donations by the following on 13-12-1975 to the Hon Sec:

Mr W Balsdon        £5.00

Mr F Down             £5.00

Mr S Martin            £5.00

Mr M Pidgeon        £5.00

Mr R Pardy            £5.00

STARTING FUND = £25.00

The first official meeting was held on 10-01-1976 where there was a film show held.

CONSTITUTION – CREATED ON JANUARY 10TH 1976
Aims and objects of the Club as put to the preliminary meeting held at The Institute, Ottery St Mary on January 10th 1976 and subsequently adopted.
I. To promote the interests of members in their respective followings and to be of assistance to one another to facilitate the exchange of information and ideas to the furtherance of members and The Club.
2. To encourage junior members to become interested in relics of the past and encourage the furtherance of their respective interests.
3. To assist rallies and the such like by providing tractors, machinery and engines, etc. in order to promote the exhibition and demonstration of their respective interests and cooperate with the organisers.
4. To hold meetings periodically during the winter months in order to create and promote interest and further advancement of Club activities and organise outdoor events when thought fit.
5. That each Club member shall be wholehearted in their support of The Club and willing to take an active part in The Club and the events that are organised.

Constitution (Revised 1995)
The Club shall hold an Annual General Meeting in October of each year, when a Chairman, Vice Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer and six members of Committee will be nominated and elected.
The Chairman and other Officers of The Club together with the Committee shall retire at each A.G.M. and a new election take place, all Officers. and Committee may offer themselves for re-election.
The Chairman shall retire after three consecutive terms of office.
The outgoing Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer shall present their annual report, the latter providing an audited balance sheet for members examination.
Up to three co-opted members may be appointed as advisers or representatives of the elected Committee who may attend meetings at the Chairmans discretion but shall have no powers of vote.
Subscriptions are due on the 1st January each year, all members must pay their respective subscriptions within one month, any member in arrears after this date will no longer be deemed to be a member of The Club, nor covered by The Club Insurance.
The Club subscription fee shall be reviewed and confirmed annually or at each A.G.M.
The Chairman shall conduct meetings in an orderly fashion, he may nominate the Vice Chairman to act for him during his absence and when doing so the Vice Chairman shall have the same powers and authority as that of the Chairman.
Seven clear days notice of a pending meeting must be notified to all Officers and Committee members.
If and when matters are to be decided by voting or a show of hands, the Secretary shall count the votes (or hands) as ‘for’ or ‘against’ the motion, this shall be recorded and minuted.
The Chairman shall have, when voting is equal, a casting vote in order to decide the matter one way or the other.
Persons under the age of 16 will be classed as Juniors and will provide a nominal £1 subscription fee, they will not be eligible to vote unless the matter affects them and is ruled by the Chairman to be voted upon.
The Chairman shall have power to call an extraordinary meeting of The Club when he considers fit or when required to do so by other Officers or Committee.
The minimum of three may form a quorum.
The Club must not hold rallies in opposition to other organisations but can liaise with other clubs or such like to exhibit, assist or support at Shows and Country Fairs and the like.
The Club name must not be used for individual attendance at functions but can be used collectively by members with the sanction of the Committee.
All monies due must be made payable to “The East Devon Tractor Machinery and Engine Club”, and must be banked under that named account.
The Club may own equipment or machinery for the furtherance of their interests and shall be recorded by the Secretary as “Club Assets”, these will be revealed to succeeding Officers as and when they take office and also divulge the location.
The Club may be wound up by a majority decision of it’s members at any time and the Club’s assets disposed of and realised in cash, after settling all debts the money left in balance must be disposed of to a similar club or charity as agreed by the members.
The Club must have a majority decision of it’s members in order to amalgamate with another club or such like.
The Officers have power to refuse membership or renew membership to any individual if thought justified, without disclosing reason or otherwise.
The Officers and Members of the Club shall not be responsible or liable in the event of an accident involving other persons or property at or during Club events.
All paid up members are covered by the Club insurance when exhibiting at other events to cover third party, providing members abide by the rules and regulations governing each particular event and abide by the “General Code of Practice”.
The Club may appoint an Honorary Life President as declared at the A.G.M. in December 1983, he shall be deemed to be an esteemed and long standihg member of the Club, the office of President would run continuously and be elected by the Club members who may also, by a majority vote, request a retirement or resignation, as also may the recipient, the President would not require to attend all meetings of the Committee unless he felt obliged to do so or members felt his presence would be helpful.
The main duties of the President would be to ensure correct administration of events and the upholding of this Constitution, represent the Club when necessary and take the Chair during the election of the Chairman.
The Club may appoint any member to the statue of “Honorary Life Member” for services rendered to the Club.
Note
The Chairman should stipulate if the term “majority” i.s that.. f paid up members or that of those attending a meeting as a majority in the event of a vote.

15th February 2015 – Club website launched bringing the club into the age of 21st century technology and hopefully making the club more accessable to new generations of vintage enthusiasts.

Revised Aims and Objectives of the Club as agreed at the Annual General Meeting held at Payhembury Village Hall on October 20th, 2018. This being a revision of the Aims and Objectives adopted at the Preliminary Meeting of the Club held at the Institute, Ottery St Mary on January 10th, 1976.

To promote the interests of members in their respective followings and to be of assistance to one another to facilitate the exchange of information and ideas in furtherance of members and The Club.

1. To Encourage junior members to become interested in relics of the past and encourage the furtherance of their respective interests.

2. To Assist rallies and such like by providing tractors, machinery and engines etc. in order to promote the exhibition and demonstration of their respective interests and cooperate with the organisers.

3. To Hold meetings periodically during the winter months in order to create and promote interest in, the further advancement of Club activities and to organise outdoor events when thought fit to do so.

4. That each Club member shall be wholehearted in their support of the Club and any events that are organised.

Club Constitution: (revised October 2018)
The Club shall hold an Annual General Meeting in October of each year, when a Chairman, Vice Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer and eight Committee members will be nominated and elected, or where Officers and Committee members may offer themselves for re-election.
The Chairman shall retire after three consecutive terms of office, but can, with the agreement of the other Officers and committee members, be asked to serve as Chairman for a further year, subject to the usual re-election processes conducted at the Annual General meeting.
The outgoing Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer shall present their annual report, the latter providing a scrutinised balance sheet for member’s examination.
Up to three co-opted members may be appointed as advisers or representatives of the elected Committee. They may attend meetings at the Chairman’s discretion but shall have no powers of vote.
Subscriptions are due on the 1st of January each year. All members must pay their respective subscriptions within one month of the due date. Any member in arrears after this date will no longer be deemed to be a member of the Club, nor covered by the Club insurance.
For all renewals made after January 31st, the individual will be deemed to be a ‘new member’. Insurance cover for new members will only come into effect 5 working days after their subscription has been paid.
The Club subscription fee shall be reviewed and confirmed annually at the Annual General Meeting. Persons under the age of 16 will be deemed to be junior members and will be required to pay a nominal subscription of £1.
The Chairman shall conduct meetings in an orderly fashion. They may nominate the Vice Chairman to act on their behalf during their absence and when doing so, the Vice Chairman shall have the same powers and authority as that of the Chairman.

Seven clear days’ notice of a meeting must be given to all Officers and Committee members. If and when matters are to be decided by voting, or a show of hands, the Secretary shall count the votes (or hands) ‘for’ or ‘against’ the motion. This then shall be recorded and entered into the minutes.
The Chairman shall have, when voting is equal, a casting vote in order to decide the matter, one way or the other. Persons under the age of 16 will be deemed to be junior members. They will not be eligible to vote unless the matter being voted on effects them and is ruled by the Chairman to be eligible for them to vote upon.
The Chairman shall have the power to call an extraordinary meeting of the Club when they consider fit to do so, or when required to do so by other Officers or Committee members. A minimum of 5 officers will be required to form a quorum.
The Club must not hold rallies in opposition to other organisations but can liaise with other Clubs or such like to exhibit, assist or support at Shows and County Fairs and the like.
The Club & the Club name must not be used for individual attendance at functions but can be used collectively by members with the approval of the Committee.
All monies due, if paid by cheque, must be made payable to ‘The East Devon Tractor, Machinery and Engine Club’ and must be banked under that named account.
The Club may own equipment or machinery for the furtherance of its interests and shall be recorded by the Secretary as ‘Club Assets’. These will be declared, along with their location, to succeeding Officers as and when they take office.
The Club may be wound up by a majority decision of its members at any time and the Club’s assets disposed of and realised in cash. After settling all debts, any monies remaining in balance, must be disposed of to a similar Club or Charity as agreed by members.
The Club must have a majority decision of its members in order to amalgamate with another Club or similar organisation.
The Officers have the power to refuse membership or renew membership to any individual if thought justified – without disclosing the reason for such a decision being made, to that individual.

The Officers and Members of the Club shall not be responsible or liable in the event of an accident involving other persons or property – at or during Club events. All paid up members are covered by the Club Insurance when exhibiting at other events to cover third party, providing Members abide by the rules and regulations governing each particular event and abide by the ‘General Code of Practice’
The Club may appoint an Honorary Life President (as declared at the Annual General Meeting in December 1983). The elected President will have been deemed to be an esteemed and/or long-standing member of the Club. The Office of President would run continuously and be elected by Club members. Club members may also, by a majority vote **, request the retirement or resignation of the President. Anyone appointed to the post of President could tender their resignation at any time. The President would not be required to attend all meetings of the Committee unless they wished to, or the committee felt their presence would be helpful.
** The Chairman should stipulate if the term ‘majority’, when voting on the retirement or resignation of the Club President, that of paid up members or that of those is attending the meeting where such a vote is taking place.
The main duties of the President would be to ensure the correct administration of events and the upholding of the Club’s Constitution. Represent the Club when necessary and take the Chair during the election of the Chairman.
The Club may also appoint any member to the position of ‘Honorary Life Member’, in recognition of services rendered to the Club.
Data Protection:
Under the terms of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which came into effect in May 2018 – the Club will follow the strict rules within the Regulation called ‘data protection principles’.
The Club will make all members aware, in writing, as to what information it (the Club) holds on individuals and they will have the right to agree or disagree to the Club holding such information – this being done by means of them signing to say they are in agreement (or otherwise). A Club member can change their agreement or disagreement to the Club holding information about them, at any time they wish to do so.