CONDUCT OF TRUST BOARD DIRECTORS
“It is against the principle of collective responsibility for a member of the Board of an organisation to speak out publicly against a decision made by that Board. If the member doesn't agree with the actions of the Board to which he or she belongs, and wants to say that publicly, they should resign before doing so. If they don't resign and they make the statement referred to above, then the Board will consider very seriously whether it is appropriate for him or her to remain a member.”
In signing this form I confirm I am not disqualified from serving on the Society Board by reason of Society Rules 58b), c), d) or e), viz,
b) is subject to a bankruptcy order or has in place a composition with their creditors;
c) is subject to a disqualification order made under the Company Directors Disqualification Act;
d) has been convicted of an indictable offence;
e) is or may on the basis of medical evidence be suffering from mental disorder;
I also confirm I will not use pseudonyms when speaking on Society Policy, I will respect confidentiality of e-mails of my fellow Board members and will not misuse Internet message-boards or use them to pass personal opinion, or the opinion of the Society Board, on matters pertaining to the Society or the Football Club. (See notes 6 and 14).
Confidentiality and Collective Responsibility
1) Members of the Board acknowledge that discussions at Society Board Meetings are strictly confidential save where expressly stated not to be, and save for official reports of meetings, such as basic publication of minutes, and in the event of the Club being floated as a company listed on the London Stock Exchange, Board members may from time to time have access to or knowledge of price sensitive information. Including those circumstances set out in 2 below, all Board members shall keep all such discussions or information strictly private and confidential. The confidentiality provisions shall not apply where a Board member is asked to cooperate with any statutory or regulatory body and should not stifle due and proper debate on issues within the confines of Board meetings or discussions between Board members.
2) For the avoidance of doubt the confidentiality provisions above remain even after a member is no longer serving on the Board.
3) From time to time the Board will vote on issues, make decisions, or pass resolutions and each and every member of the Board will be bound by collective responsibility in respect of these with the effect that once a decision is made, a resolution passed etc, no board member shall speak out in public against that decision or resolution. Full and open debate within the confines of the Board is obviously encouraged but once a
4) decision has been made or a resolution passed the Board must speak with a unified voice.
5) breach of the policy on collective responsibility is a disciplinary offence.
6) At their first Board meeting members will be required to sign a declaration relating to giving their names when speaking on Society issues, not using pseudonyms, respecting confidentiality of e-mails from their fellow Board members and the misuse of Internet message-boards.
Limitations and Conflicts of Interests
7) Any Board member may speak about or give comments or opinions on a variety of issues provided they are expressed to be a personal opinion.
8) Only the authorised spokesperson(s) (or such other person who has the express consent of the board or the Head of the Communications/Media sub-committee) may issue communications or brief the press/media on behalf of the Society.
9) All efforts must be made to retain copies or recordings of all Society communications, minutes, press releases, interviews, and publicity whether in written, oral or visual form, by the Secretary, on behalf of the Board, for posterity and consistency and to deal with any future queries.
10) Any Board member who volunteers to take on a particular job must, as far as possible, carry out that task to the best of their ability. It will be the responsibility of each Board member to take the action required to deal with any task allocated to him/her in the minutes. Failure to do so may be considered a disciplinary offence. Guidance can always be sought from the rest of the Board.
11) All money collected by Board members on behalf of the Society must be forwarded to the Treasurer for entry into the Society's Bank Account. There will be no exception to this rule. The Treasurer has authority under the Treasurer’s Rules, which may be amended from time to time by the Society Board.
12) All information is strictly confidential. Any Board member collecting details of new members must ensure that they forward all the correct information and monies to the membership secretary.
13) Any attempt by a Board member(s) to arrange undue or improper favours with members of staff at Lincoln City FC for personal gain will result in disciplinary measures.
14) Any Board member may speak about, give comments or opinions on matches (including reports) transfer activity, tactics and player management issues provided that these do not conflict with Board or the Society's policy, resolutions or decisions (including the confidentiality provisions in this document), and provided they are expressed to be a personal opinion and no mention is made of the Society.
15) If a Board member acts in a way which conflicts with the Rules, this document, the Society's policy or Board decisions or resolutions, that Board member will be subject to disciplinary measures.
16) A breach of the provisions relating to conflicts of interests is a disciplinary offence.
Disciplinary Matters
17) Where any Board member is felt by a majority of the Board to have a case to answer over an issue that may constitute a disciplinary offence as defined above or has otherwise acted in a way which a majority of the Board believe is in contrast to the spirit of this document or the Rules, they shall be at liberty to constitute a disciplinary committee ("the committee") to determine the facts and recommend to the Board such measures as the committee sees fit. If the Board decides to constitute a Committee the Board member(s) concerned will be suspended and shall not be entitled to vote nor attend Board meetings for the period of suspension.
18) The Committee will consist of the then Chair and Vice-Chair of the Board unless one or both of them is the subject of the disciplinary action, in which case another member of the Board will be selected by the Board as Chair of the Committee and he/she shall have the casting vote if necessary. In addition 3 other Board members (who shall not
19) be the subject of the disciplinary action or serve of the same subcommittee as the member who is the subject of the disciplinary action) shall sit on the Committee.
20) The Committee shall meet as soon as is practicable (where possible within 7 days) after the Board meeting which constituted the Committee and shall invite the member concerned to attend or submit his/her version of events or mitigating circumstances. The Committee shall act honestly and equitably in assessing the facts of the disciplinary case before them and may recommend to the Trust Boardsuch sanction as it sees fit, including for example, dismissal; further suspension to allow more facts to be gathered; censure or warning within the Society’s Rules. If appropriate the Committee may choose to recommendno sanction. If the member concerned fails to either attend or submit as envisaged above the Committee can proceed and make such inferences as it sees fit from such non-attendance or non-submission.
21) Co-opted Board members may not serve on a disciplinary committee.
