Question Regarding Community Association

[cassa333]

A local community centre association has ‘sections’. These sections are basically clubs run by members on the behalf of the association.

One section is particularly aggrieved at the treatment they are receiving from the CA trustees and would prefer to break away from the association and become an independent group.

The section has money in their account, some of it advances on club (but not association) fees. And other money raised through club members efforts and In pursuance of the club aims.

The trustees have said that everything the club ‘owns’ either in money or equipment and indeed the club name Belong to the association and the club, although able to use (at present at least) the funds and equipment as they see fit the association are able to take and use any and all money’s and equipment whenever they want but if the members decide to leave and start again somewhere else they lose everything they have built up. Including apparently personal equipment used by the club and advances of fees.

My questions are many fold but start with:

Can the association claim members personal items as their own just because they are used on a regular basis by the club?

If the members decided to leave would they be entitled to a rebate of unused club fees?

Someone mentioned the club could cede to the association but I can’t see how that helps asdoesnt it just mean they give back to the association everything?

Thank you

[EDDIE51]

There is no specific legal rule. It all depends on the rules /regulations of the particular Community Association. These MUST be available to members,so look them up.

[cassa333]

You’re probably right Eddie.

I’ve said the club should change its rules to rather than pay £2 weekly subs to pay a nominal 10p or something and keep note of what would have been paid lol

[Buenchico]

>>> Can the association claim members personal items as their own just because they are used on a regular basis by the club?

Definitely not. Title to those items remains with their original owners unless they've
(a) sold them to the association ; or
(b) given them to the association as unconditional gifts ; or
(c) legally 'abandoned' the goods.


>>> If the members decided to leave would they be entitled to a rebate of unused club fees?

A well-written constitution should cover such matters. In the absence of any relevant provisions within the association's constitution though, the answer is almost certainly 'No'. (The constitution might not even recognise the idea of members 'leaving'; it might be that, even though they no longer take part in any of the association's activities, they're still regarded as members until the end of the membership year that they've paid for).

[EDDIE51]

They can 'break away' but it means finding new premises for their meetings (away from the 'Association) Things like rebates are down to each individual Association and its rules.

[jno]

is this a surreptitious Brexit question?

[cassa333]

Thanks for your answers.

No JNO it isn’t.

The club I belong to is having trouble with our CA and we suspect it is in financial trouble. They want access to our funds and want a set ‘contribution to costs’ (which isn’t room hire but equates to the same) and have reminded us all equipment is the property of the CA and can be sold by them if they should decide to do so.

Looking on the charity commission web site they have spent more than they bring in by twenty thousand or so a year for three years, have just made one of their few paid employees redundant and now want access to our funds. Although our funds aren’t great by any stretch of the imagination it would pay their staff costs for a month.

We have incidentally just (as individuals and not from club funds) forked out for a £600 lighting deck for the stage that the CA weren’t going to replace because they couldn’t afford it.

[woofgang]

good grief! do you know where the money has gone?

[cassa333]

General running costs.

If it weren't for grants they would have gone t up years ago. As it is grants have been drying up for the last ten years. There is very little on that respect.

The added difficulty they have is they have a grade 2 listed building poorly maintained.

[woofgang]

that's unfortunate IMO you would have been on a firmer footing of the money had been used for unreasonable purposes....by members personal items do you mean items owned by individuals or items owned by a section?

[cassa333]

The ca has said all equipment but we have personal items that we use as well so not part of the section inventory.

[woofgang]

Well they can’t just take what does not belong to them or a section. Can I suggest that everything that can be proved to be owned personally is removed asap? You might start with some CAB advice but personally I think you are on a loser so far as section owned items and funds are concerned. If its as bad as you say, it sounds like they are going down the tubes anyway. In your position I would save what I could, let the thing collapse and then look at starting again as a totally separate entity......but thats sense advice not legal advice