CHAPTER V: STUDENT SOCIETIES
 Mission Statement
 Student societies aim to provide an outlet for students with a common interest to join together.
 1.         Name, Aims and Organisation
 (a)     The full name of the Sub Council shall be the "NEWCASTLE UNIVERSITY STUDENT SOCIETIES, SUB COUNCIL OF THE UNION SOCIETY OF NEWCASTLE UNIVERSITY" hereinafter referred to as Student Societies.
 (b)       The composition, work and organisation of student societies shall be regulated by this Constitution and by the Constitution of the Union Society. In the event of a conflict of meaning between the two, the latter shall have precedence.
 (c)       The aims of Student Societies shall be:
              (i)       To facilitate, promote, represent and control all activities of the members of Student Societies.
              (ii)      To provide a recognised means of communication with other bodies on matters connected with Student Societies.
 (d)       Student Societies will be overseen on a day to day basis by the Activities Officer who is directly answerable to the Executive Committee.
 (e)       The "Student Societies Executive Committee" shall control and manage the general business and policy of Student Societies
 (f)        Societies Forum shall oversee the general business of Student Societies and shall determine policy.
 2.         Membership
 (a)           Ordinary membership
             (i)        Membership of any student society will be open to any student of Newcastle University.
            (ii)       Membership of any student society will be open to any member of staff of Newcastle University.
  3.         Student Societies Executive Committee
 The "Student Societies Executive Committee" shall control and manage the general business and policy of Student Societies - Clause 1 (e)
 a)         The Executive Committee shall have the following voting members:
 The Activities Officer (Chair)
The Education Officer (Secretary)
Arts Rep. (Art/Music/Dance/Media/Performance)
Departmental/Academic Rep.
Culture, Faith and Nation Rep.
Political & Campaigning Rep.
General Interest/Other Rep.
Ordinary Officer (x 3)
 (b)       the quorum for the Societies Executive Committee shall be 5 members.
 (c)       The Societies Executive Committee shall exist to allocate funding for societies, both through ordinary grants at the beginning of semesters one and two and through special grants.        
 (d)       Individual members of the Executive Committee will be answerable to the Executive Committee as a whole.
 e)         Executive Committee shall meet at least once a month during term time. Members of Executive Committee will be granted seats on Union Council
 
(d)       The Societies Executive committee reports to the Societies Forum which in turn reports to Union Council.
 4.         Societies Forum
 Societies Forum shall oversee the general business of Student Societies and shall determine policy. Clause 1-(f)
 (a)       The members of the Societies Forum shall be:
 i)          The Activities Officer
ii)         2 student members of each ratified society at the Union Society
 (b)       The Activities Officer shall convene the Societies Forum each term.
 (c)       The purpose of the Societies Forum shall be to ensure the proper running of societies at the Union Society, and to discover and address any problems or issues which may arise.         
 (d)       The Societies Forum shall elect 8 representatives through the single transferable vote system to form the Societies Executive Committee;  these representatives shall also represent the Societies Forum at Union Council.
 (e)       The Societies Forum may report to Union Council as and when necessary.
               
5.         Ratification and De-ratification of Student Societies
 1.         All student societies of the University may apply to be officially ratified by Societies Executive Committee.
 2.         No student society may use the title 'Newcastle University' if it has not been ratified by Societies Executive Committee and any student society de-ratified by Societies Executive Committee must immediately cease to use this title upon de-ratification.
 3.         A student society cannot be ratified by Societies Executive Committee:
             (a)   if the Aims and Objectives of the proposed society contravene the Union Society Constitution, Bye Laws or Policy Document
             (b)   if a ratified society already exists with similar Aims and Objectives
             (c)   if the society has less than 15 members
             (d)   if the society is not open to all members and staff of the University of Newcastle upon Tyne.
             (e)   if the society is affiliated to or an integral part of an outside body that makes claims to monies held in any society account, the exception being affiliation or membership fees
 6.         Ratifications will be presented to Societies Executive Committee by the Activities Officer
 1.         A ratified society must have a constitution approved by the Societies Executive Committee.
 2.         The constitution of a ratified society must contain:
 (a)       The aims and objectives of the society
(b)       The titles and duties of officers of the society
(c)       The membership of the committee(s) of the society
(d)       The procedure for election of officers and committee members of the society
(e)       The procedure for amendment of the constitution of the society by its membership
(f)        Such other regulations or provisions which the society deems appropriate to ensure the fair and democratic operation of the society
 3.         Societies not deemed suitable for ratification by Societies Executive Committee have the right of appeal to Union Council.
 3.         No alteration may be made to the constitution of ratified societies without the consent of the Societies Executive Committee
 4.         No alteration to the Aims and Objectives of ratified societies may be made without the consent of Societies Executive Committee.
 5.         A copy of each society's constitution must be lodged with the Activities office.
 6.         A list of each society's officers and their contact details must be lodged with the Activities office. This must include the email address, mobile telephone number and signature of each elected officer. A form is available for this purpose from the Activities office. 
 D.        Officers of Student Societies
 1.         All societies ratified by Union Council must elect their officers for the following academic year in the second semester.
 2.         All officers of student societies must be registered student members of the University, with the exception of Honorary Officers who may be persons that fall outside this category.
 3.         Full results of the officer elections must be forwarded to the  Activities Office  immediately the result is known.
 4.         The officers of student societies will be held liable for any debts incurred by the society.
 5.         There must be at least three elected officers:
             (a)       a President or Chairperson
            (b)       a Secretary
            (c)       a Treasurer
 6.         Other officer positions must first be created in the student society's constitution before any election for the said positions takes place.
 7.         Officers must be elected at a General Meeting of the student society, of which 14 days' notice must be given to the entire membership. The quorum for such a meeting is 25% of the membership or 10 members; whichever is the most.
 8.         All presidents of Student Societies are required to attend Student Society Training  which will be arranged by Activities Officer. This shall take place in September of each year.
 9.         No officer of the Union Society, whether a member of Executive Committee or not, may be an officer of a student society concurrently.
    STUDENT SOCIETIES POLICY
 E.         Finance
 1.         The accounts of all ratified societies will be administered by the Activities Office on behalf of the Activities Officer.       
2.         A ratified student society must have a minimum subscription of £5.00 per member per year.
 3.         Membership fees must be paid into the Union Society membership account for that student society through the  Union society website.
 4.         The financial year for all societies is the same as that for the Union Society.
 5.         If a society is suspended or deratified, any balance left in the society's grant or membership account shall be transferred to the Union Society revenue account and shall be redeemable by no one. All equipment belonging to the society will be entrusted to the Activities Officer.
 6.         Any ratified society can claim a grant from the Union Society for a budgeted activity which is not purely social and is in agreement with the Aims & Objectives of that society.
 
7.         Departmental societies will not receive grants for activities that, in the opinion of the Activities Officer and societies executive committee, should be funded by their respective departments.
 8.         The procedure for claiming grants will be detailed on the grant form and explained by the Activities Officer at the Societies Training in the first semester.
 9.         The grant form shall have separate sections to allow requests for grants for specific purposes. These shall be:
               
                (i) Speakers
  Each society may claim for the travel expenses of two speakers and 50% of the travel expenses of  three other speakers.
                 (ii) Conferences
               
Each Society may claim for the conference registration fees and 50% of travel for 5 delegates and an extra delegate for each 20 members.
                 (iii) Other Events
 Travel expenses, deposits and some other payments may be claimed. Excursions will be taken on merit and a full itinerary of the days may be required.
 (iv) Publicity, Secretarial and other Publications
 Societies may claim for the cost of stationery, postage, posters and other similar outlays.
 (v) Equipment Expenditure
 Societies may claim up to 50% of equipment costs. All equipment purchased by a society shall remain the property of the Union Society. Equipment of a perishable nature will not be funded.
 10.       The society may prioritise its grant request in favour of a particular expenditure or expenditures.
 11.       Grants will be awarded by and at the discretion of the Societies Executive Committee. The Societies Executive Committee shall determine the level of grant to a society based on a consideration of that society's grant form and the priorities and items of expenditure detailed therein.
 12.       Each academic year the Societies Executive Committee will set a maximum grant per student member of each society. The grant will be split into instalments per semester. If grant money allocated to a semester in not used in that semester then it shall be transferred to the Union Society revenue account and shall be redeemable by no one.
 14.       If the maximum grant is not requested it will not be granted. If a grant is requested for purposes the panel considers to be ultra vires of the Constitution of either the society or the Union Society, a grant will not be given for this purpose.
 15.       If a society is not satisfied with the grant received it may appeal to Finance Committee. If satisfaction is not reached the society may then appeal to Union Council.
 16.       Societies may run activities to raise money for charity, provided always that:
  (i)        All donations received are paid into the Union's Charities account, where they will be earmarked for disbursal by the society that raised them.
 (ii)       Any event that is held to raise money for charity should endeavour to cover the costs of organising the event out of entrance fees or similar.
 (iii)      The profit at the end of a fund-raising event shall be treated as a donation under (i) above.
 [Enacted in accordance with the Education Act 1994 Section 22 (2) (i)].
 17.       The Activities Officer (or, if authorised and in his absence, the A.U President shall sign all student society cheques.  The second cheque signatory for all cheques will be either the Student Services Manager or the Student Activities Manager.
 18.       The Activities Officer shall not sign any student society cheque drawn on a student society grant account that is not accompanied by appropriate proof of purchase (e.g. receipt, invoice), and a copy of the approved grant form.
 19.       The Activities Officer shall have the power to freeze a student society's grant accounts in any case of suspected financial impropriety, breaking of the law or fiscal irresponsibility, pending an immediate investigation by Finance Committee.
 20.       Student societies may apply to the Societies Grants Panel for a project-specific 'special grant'. Requests should be made in writing to the Activities Officer.
 21.       Any student society shall be suspended, thus having both their membership and grant accounts frozen and all services (e.g. email, website) withdrawn if, in the opinion of the Societies Executive Committee, the society is not complying fully with this chapter of the Bye Laws at the time.
 F.         General Regulations
 1.         Problems and queries shall be directed to the Activities Officer in the first instance (or the Activities office in their absence), then the Societies Executive Committee.
 2.         No Union Society grant shall be spent on refreshment for members or guests of a society with the sole exception that a society may entertain visiting speakers.
 3.         Social functions, including hire of equipment, must be self-supporting.
 4.         The elected officers of any society which is alleged to have committed an offence against the Union Constitution or Bye Laws shall be subject to the Disciplinary Procedure as laid down in the Bye-Laws, Chapter IV. In particular societies shall be responsible for the behaviour of their members at society events.
 5.         All members of a society must be treated equally. They must all be given the same opportunity to participate in society activities at the same time, receive the same communications from the society's Executive Committee at the same time, and receive the minutes from every meeting of the society's Executive Committee no later than three days after the meeting. The method of communication will be email to the respective members' stipulated email addresses.
  TRIP AND ACTIVITY REGISTRATION
 -                ONLY SOCIETY OFFICERS WILL BE ALLOWED TO BOOK TRIPS
 -                It is essential that we know about all events, meetings and trips that a society has planned. This is to ensure that all risks are assessed.
 -                All societies are required to register their activities with the Activities Office.
 -                Any trip which takes place must be submitted to the Activities Office one week in advance of the departure date
 -                Any trip or activity which takes place outside the UK must be submitted to the Activities Office at least one month in advance of the departure date.
 -                Trip registration forms are available from the Union Society Website
-                RUNNING A SUCCESSFUL SOCIETY
Top Tips
-    READ THE SOCIETIES CONSITUTION
-    MAKE SURE KNOW ALL DEADLINES FOR FORMS AND REGISTRATION
-    KEEP UP TO DATE WITH THE SOCIETIES PAGE ON THE UNION SOCIETY WEBSITE
 -                COMMUNICATION
 -    TRY A WEEKLY NEWSLETTER TO MEMBERS
-    CHECK EMAILS EVERYDAY
-    MAKE SURE YOU REGISTER FOR A SOCIETY EMAIL ADDRESS