The Constitution of Places, Plants and People Archive Network
1. Name
The name of the group is Places, Plants and People Archive Network (‘the Network’).
2. Purpose
The Network aims to bring together a diverse range of archives and organisations with holdings related to living landscapes. Living landscapes broadly refers to any human interaction with the land around them, or land management that benefits people, wildlife and the economy, and its documentation. Such holdings include, but are not limited to, botanical, horticultural and agricultural material.
The central aims of the Network are to:
Promote visibility, wider understanding, and greater use of archives in this subject area
Facilitate joint working to increase accessibility and relevance of resources to all users, through new collaborations that capitalise on digital opportunities
Improve discoverability of collections through joint working on cross-domain classification, taxonomy, and data standards, leveraging the wider GLAM, academic and community connections of partners
Act as a forum for development of funded research collaborations, enabling archives to be proactive in research and delivery of research impact relating to their collections
Improve co-ordination of acquisitions and rescues to ensure records are appropriately housed, including developing strategies to meet challenges of born-digital records, and – by taking an inclusive approach – capturing records that would otherwise be lost
3. Powers
In order to attain the aims, set out above in section 2, but not further or otherwise, the Network shall have the following powers:
raise funds, receive grants and donations
apply funds to carry out the work of the Network
co-operate with and support other organisations and networks with similar purposes
do anything which is lawful and necessary to achieve the aims of the Network
4. Membership
Membership is open to any organisation in the United Kingdom and Ireland with archival holdings on living landscapes, this includes but not limited to botanical, horticultural and agricultural collections, as well as organisations with related holdings and/or research focus that are aligned with the Network’s purpose as stated in item 2 of this constitution
Membership is by application to the Secretary and will begin once the application form has been approved by the Executive Committee.
At the point of adaptation of the constitution there will be no membership fees. However, the constitution gives the Network permissive powers to introduce membership fees at a later date should it be deemed necessary and beneficial for the Network in achieving its aims as stated in item 2 of this constitution.
Every member organisation will have one vote.
A list of membership will be kept up to date by the Secretary.
Ceasing to be a member:
Members may resign at any time in writing to the secretary.
If membership fees are introduced, any member who has not paid their membership fee for one year will be contacted by the Executive committee, who will then decide whether that member is deemed to have resigned.
Any offensive behaviour, as set out in the code of conduct and ways of working will not be permitted. Any member infringing on the code of conduct and ways of working may be asked not to attend further meetings and to resign from the group. The member concerned shall have the right to be heard by the executive committee before a final decision is made. Should the member then refuse to resign voluntarily, they shall be removed from membership by the executive committee.
5. Equal Opportunities
The Plants, People and Places Archive Network and its members will not discriminate on the grounds of sex, race (including colour, ethnic or national origin), sexual orientation, disability, gender reassignment, religious or political belief, pregnancy or maternity, marital status or age.
6. Code of Conduct
Members of the Network will agree and sign the code of conduct and ways of working (appendix 1) at the point of becoming a member. Membership will not be granted without signing this declaration.
7. Environmental Sustainability
The Network is committed to sustainable development and environmental sustainability in carrying out its aims. Members of the Network will be expected to have an awareness of and commitment to sustainable development and environmental sustainability
8. Governance
The business of the Network will be carried out by the Honorary Officers and the Executive Committee, which will consist of the Honorary Officers and 5 representatives from the Network. The Committee will meet as necessary and not less than four times a year.
The Honorary Officers’ roles are as follows: Chair, Vice-chair, and Secretary
Should there become a need for a Treasurer, the Executive Committee will establish the role which will be filled following the same process of election as the other Honorary Officers in point 7.3 of this constitution.
Honorary Officers will be elected annually at the Annual General Meeting and can hold their post for a maximum of two terms. They are permitted to hold a different Honorary Officer term after two terms in one post. The maximum length of term of office is 2 years, however they will stand for election every year.
Until the first AGM is held, not less than 6 months after the signing of this constitution two Honorary Officer posts, Chair and Vice-Chair, will be filled by representatives of the applicant organisations, The Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, and University of Reading, Museum of English Rural Life. The post of Secretary will be elected from the current membership. At the AGM all posts will be open for election. These initial 6-month terms will not count as a term under 7.3
The other Executive Committee members will be elected at the Annual General Meeting and there is no limit to how many terms they can hold.
In the event of an officer standing down during the year a replacement will be elected by the next General Meeting of members.
Any Executive committee member not attending a meeting without apology for three months will be contacted by the committee and asked if they wish to resign.
The Executive Committee may appoint additional Officers from its members, such as Web Officers, as and when appropriate.
9. Meetings
Each member organisation is permitted 2 people to attend a meeting, with the exception of an Open Meeting. Any additional attendees will be at the discretion of the Secretary. Regardless of the number of attendees each member organisation will have one vote as per item 3.4 of this constitution.
Annual General Meetings
An Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held within fifteen months of the previous AGM. The date will be determined by the Executive Committee.
All members will be notified in writing at least 4 weeks before the date of the meeting, giving the venue, date, and time.
Nominations for the Executive Committee may be made to the Secretary before the meeting, or at the meeting.
The quorum for the AGM will be two thirds of the members present
At the AGM:
The Executive Committee will present a report of the work of the Network over the year.
If there are accounts to present, the Committee will present the accounts of the Network for the previous year.
The Honorary Officers and Executive Committee for the next year will be elected.
Any motions given to the Secretary at least 14 days in advance of the meeting, having been circulated to the membership no less than 10 days before the meeting, will be discussed.
Special General Meetings
The Secretary will call a Special General Meeting at the request of the majority of the committee or at least eight other members giving a written request to the Chair or Secretary stating the reason for their request.
The meeting will take place within twenty-one days of the request.
All members will be given two weeks’ notice in writing of such a meeting, giving the venue, date, time and agenda.
The quorum for the Special General Meeting will be two thirds of members
General Meetings
General Meetings are open to all members and will be held at least once every 4 months or more often if necessary.
All members will be given minimum of two weeks’ notice of such a meeting, giving the venue, date, time and agenda by email.
The quorum for a General Meeting will be two-thirds of members
Executive Committee Meetings
Executive Committee meetings may be called by the Chair or Secretary. Committee members must receive notice of meetings at least 7 days before the meeting.
The quorum for Committee meetings is two-thirds of Committee members.
Open Meetings
Open meetings are open to all members and non-members and will be held at least twice a year. Members must receive at least 4 weeks’ notice of such meetings.
The Secretary will maintain a mailing list of non-members interested in the work of the network.
10. Rules of Procedure for meetings
All questions and issues that arise at any meeting will be discussed openly and confidentially, and the meeting will seek to find general agreement among those present.
If a consensus cannot be reached a vote will be taken and a decision will be made by a simple majority of members present.
11. Finances
Should the Network establish the need for an account, an account will be maintained on behalf of the Association at a bank agreed by the Executive Committee. Three cheque signatories will be nominated by the Executive Committee from among their members (one to be the Treasurer). The signatories must not be related nor members of the same household.
All payments will be signed by two of the signatories. For cheque payments, the signatories will sign the cheque. For other payments (such as BACS payments, cash withdrawals, debit card payments or cash payments), a requisition note will be signed by two signatories, and held by the treasurer.
Records of income and expenditure will be maintained by the Treasurer and a financial statement given at each meeting. The Treasurer will submit annual accounts at the AGM.
All money raised by or on behalf of the Network is only to be used to further the aims of the group, as specified in item 2 of this constitution.
12. Amendments to the Constitution
Amendments to the constitution may only be made at the Annual General Meeting or a Special General Meeting called for that reason.
Any proposal to amend the constitution must be given to the Secretary in writing. The proposal must then be circulated with the notice of meeting.
Any proposal to amend the constitution will require a two thirds majority of those present and entitled to vote
13. Dissolution
If a meeting, by simple majority, decides that it is necessary to close down the Network it may call a Special General Meeting to do so. The sole business of this meeting will be to dissolve the Network.
If it is agreed to dissolve the Network, all remaining money and other assets, once outstanding debts have been paid, will be donated to a charitable organisation whose aims are compatible with those of the Network. The organisation will be agreed at the meeting which agrees the dissolution.