THE REVISED CONSTITUTION OF THE WINNIE-THE-POOH SOCIETY OF PEMBROKE COLLEGE CAMBRIDGE

Enacted by the Pembroke College Winnie-the-Pooh Society in the Presidency of Tim Hincks and the Secretariat of Jonathan Jarrett, and in the presence of the Lady Foundress, Helen Masters.

    Description of the Document

  1. This document and all rules and regulations herein are the constitution of the society known as the Pembroke College Winnie-the-Pooh Society.

    2. The Society

  2. The name of the Society shall be the Pembroke College Winnie-the-Pooh Society.

    3. Membership

    Entitlement

  3. All undergraduates, graduates, and senior members of Pembroke College, Cambridge, in residence within the University, shall be entitled to be members, and membership applications from these people are not subject to ratification.
  4. Applications for membership from persons resident within the University but not qualifying under Clause III may be considered if supported by a member of the Comittee, and shall be ratified by motion of the membership at any meeting.

    5. Conditions

  5. Membership is awarded for one year or until the next Annual General Meeting, whichever be the sooner, and is contingent upon the payment of a Pooh Levy, the exact amount of which shall be as determined by the Committee and approved by the membership.

    6. Rustication

  6. Membership may not be revoked prematurely, but rustication may be imposed by motions at two successive Elevenses Meetings. A member who is thus rusticated shall be excluded from meetings until the motion be revoked, or until the next Annual General Meeting, whichever be the sooner.

    7. Honorary Membership

  7. Honorary Membership may be awarded by motion of the members at any meeting. A person thus awarded honorary membership shall have their name added to the list of honorary members, and may attend Meetings at any time. No Levy is to be taken for Honorary Membership.

    8. Officers of the Society

    The President

  8. There shall be an officer, called the `President', who shall be a member of the society and shall be elected in renewable terms of approximately one year in General Meeting.
  9. The duties of the President shall be to provide general guidance for the society, to preside at meetings, to liaise with Senior Members of the College concerning Society matters, to act as the point of contact between the Society and others, and to carry out such other duties as may be necessary and appropriate.

    10. The Secretary

  10. There shall be an officer, called the `Secretary', who shall be a member of the Society, and shall be elected in renewable terms of approximately one year in General Meeting.
  11. The duties of the Secretary shall be to arrange and notify members of Meetings of all sorts, to keep the records of the Society, to arrange freshers' events, and to carry out such duties as may be necessary and appropriate.
  12. The Secretary shall be the President's deputy.

    13. The Treasurer

  13. There shall be an officer, called the `Treasurer', who shall be a member of the society, and shall be elected in renewable terms of approximately one year in General Meeting.
  14. The duties of the treasurer shall be to collect the Pooh Levy and arrange, in consultation with the President and Secretary, such matters as may concern the financial business of the society, and any other duties as may be necessary and appropriate.

    15. The Under-Secretary

  15. There shall be an officer, called the `Under-Secretary', who shall be a member of the Society, and shall be elected in renewable terms of approximately one year in General Meeting.
  16. The duties of the Under-Secretary shall be to keep duplicate copies of the minutes and records of the society, and to provide such assistance as the Secretary may require.
  17. The Under-Secretary shall be the Secretary's deputy.

    18. The Foreign Secretary

  18. There shall be an officer, called the `Foreign Secretary', who shall be a member of the Society and shall be elected in renewable terms of approximately one year in General Meeting.
  19. The duties of the Foreign Secretary are specifically to facilitate liaison with the College and University organisations, inter alia, and in general to carry out such duties as may be necessary and appropriate, in accordance with their office. These shall include relations with affiliated organisations and chapters of the Society as described in Clauses XLIX and L.
  20. The Foreign Secretary shall be the Under-Secretary's deputy.

    21. The Christopher Robin

  21. There shall be a position for an officer, called the `Christopher Robin', who shall be a retired officer of the society, but still a member.
  22. The Christopher Robin shall be appointed in General Meeting for the duration of his/her membership, and shall have no duties or powers, and shall not exercise a Committee veto, although he/she shall have the casting vote in matters on which the Society is divided.
  23. The Christopher Robin shall have the right of speaking first in debates.

    24. The Committee

  24. The Committee of the Society shall be composed of all the officers named in clauses VIII, X, XIII, XV, XVIII and XXI above.
  25. The Committee shall hold a right of majority veto, which need not be exercised in the presence of the general membership, over motions proposed and carried at Elevenses Meetings, whereafter the aforesaid motion shall be submitted to an Extraordinary General Meeting or the Annual General Meeting, whichever be the sooner.

    26. Other Society Posts

    The James

  26. There may be, if a candidate present him/herself, an officer called the `James', who shall not be a member of the Committee, and may be voted into or out of office at any time.
  27. The duties of the James shall be to abstain from voting on any matter, and to provide hunny-and-condensed-milk sandwiches once a year at a time which may be convenient to him/her.

    28. Other posts

  28. Temporary posts may be created at any time by the Committee, or by motion of the membership, and shall remain in existence until abrogated by motion of the membership or until the requirement leading to the post's creation has elapsed.
  29. Such temporary posts may or may not entitle their holders to membership of the Committee, as is felt to be necessary and appropriate to the office; this should be stipulated before voting on the creation of the office. However, on no account shall the holder of such a post have the right of Committee veto.

    30. Elections

  30. Candidates for election to those offices or posts of the Society which require election shall be proposed and seconded by two members of the Society, and the proposal submitted in writing to a member of the Committee. Election shall be by simple majority, with the candidate with the higher or highest number of votes cast winning. In the event of a tie, a new vote shall be taken between the tied candidates only; in the event of a further tie selection shall be made by lot, trial by ordeal, foodfight, sumo wrestling or other selection procedure as may be chosen by those present.
  31. Election to Committee offices may only be made in General Meeting; elections for the post of James or for temporary offices for which election has been deemed an appropriate method of selection may be made in any Meeting.

    32. Refusal of Office

  32. If a person elected to an offce shall refuse the post or later wish to relinquish it, the candidate next in the ballot shall receive the post, or failing that a new election shall be called, and an Extraordinary General Meeting if this is necessary.

    33. Meetings

    Elevenses Meetings

  33. Elevenses Meetings shall occur once a week during full term.
  34. Meetings shall be held in members' rooms on a voluntary basis, unless other provision has been made, and the host shall provide refreshments as they may consider to be necessary and appropriate, the expenses of which are not refundable by the Society except by motion of the members.
  35. The location of a meeting shall be decided at the previous meeting.

    36. Annual General Meetings

  36. An Annual General Meeting shall be held during the second quarter of the Lent Term, at such a time as may be arranged, for purposes of elections and other such requirements as may arise.
  37. The Annual General Meeting shall only be recognised as such in the event of the presence of 33% of the membership: if this condition is not fulfilled a new Annual General Meeting must be called.

    38. Extraordinary General Meetings

  38. An Extraordinary General Meeting shall be called in the event of the resignation of an officer, or on the request of two members of the Committee, or of 33% of the membership, and shall be subject to the same rules and capacities as the Annual General Meeting.

    39. Motions

  39. Motions may be proposed at any quorate meeting (excepting those touching the Constitution), by any member, and shall be voted on immediately by those there present, and shall be carried by majority vote.
  40. A meeting shall be deemed to be quorate in the presence of a quorum, which shall be 10% of the membership, or three members, whichever be the greater, the which must include a member of the Committee. In the absence of a quorum a meeting's motions shall only be valid for the duration of that meeting.

    41. Constitutional Motions

  41. Motions touching the Constitution and amendments to the Constitution may only be proposed in General Meeting.
  42. Amendments to the Constitution may only be made by the approval of a majority of two thirds of those present in General Meeting, and will be incorporated without identification into this revision of the Constitution.
  43. A temporary exemption or suspension of one or more clauses of the Constitution, excepting clauses XLIX, L and LI, and this clause itself, may be proposed in any meeting, and shall require a two-thirds majority for approval; such suspensions and exemptions are valid only for the duration of that meeting.

    44. The Lesson

  44. At the start of each meeting, there shall be a reading from the extant corpus of A. A. Milne, which shall immediately be followed by the benediction, "Gratias Agimus A. A. Milnei," or alternatively, "Thanks be to A. A. Milne."
  45. On no account, however, shall any one person be permitted to read `Lines & Squares' any more often than once a term.

    46. The Loyal Toast

  46. During every Annual General Meeting, a toast shall be drunk by all in tea, or whatever liquid be convenient, as follows: "A toast, to A. A. Milne, to the enduring glory of Helen Masters, our wise foundress, to Paul Smith, the first Secretary, to Monty Adkins, Composer of the Society Anthem, all the founder members, Solon the Wise, Lawgiver of the Society, and all the members past and present."

    47. The Society Anthem

  47. The anthem of the society, which should be played (though it need not be) at major events, shall be `Cottleston Pie' as set to music by Matthew "Monty" Adkins, Bard of the Society.

    48. Financial Arrangements

  48. The Society shall be financed by the Pooh Levies payable for membership, and by other Pooh Levies which may be imposed by motion of the membership or by unanimous Committee decision.
  49. Expenditure on the Society's behalf must be authorised by the Treasurer and at least one other member of the Committee, and should be reported to the membership at the next Meeting.

    50. Affiliation of other Organisations

  50. The Society shall only affiliate with other organisations of the same purview. In the event of such an affiliation, precise terms of affiliation shall be determined in General Meeting.

    51. Chapters

  51. The Society may allow daughter organistions to be formed: these shall be formed using this Constitution and shall be invited to send representatives to Society events. They may amend the Constitution as is required by local circumstances using the procedures outlined in Clause XL.

    52. Ownership of the Constitutional Manuscript

  52. Given the proviso in the next article, the constitutional manuscript shall be the property of the Society in perpetuity.
  53. In the event of the dissolution of the Society, as provided for, the manuscript shall become the inalienable property of the foundress, Helen Masters, or her descendants by either male or female line, the Salic Law not applying, or, if her line has failed, the library of Pembroke College, Cambridge, which property shall not be alienated from the person or body to whom it belongs by decree or motion of any body, from either College or Society.
  54. The preceding two articles, and this article, may not be contradicted or repealed or amended by any vote of the Society or any action of any person, all other rules and regulations notwithstanding.

This is the amended constitution as passed in Extraordinary General Meeting on 26 October 1996 as detailed in the minutes of the society, during the Presidency of Tim Hincks and the Secretariat of Jonathan Jarrett, in the presence of the Lady Foundress, Helen Masters, and a quorate majority of the members of the society.

The original constitution and the first amendment of the constitution were written by Anthony Zacahary, also known as Zak also known as Solon the Law-Giver. This amendment, which is the second amendment of the constitution, was written by Jonathan Jarrett, Secretary.


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