LGBT+ Society Constitution 1. Governance 1.1.

This document should be read alongside the UPSU Activities Constitution, the Students Unions Memorandum and Articles of Association and Byelaws, and any UPSU policies. Where a conflict exists, the UPSU Activities Constitution and UPSU policies will take precedence. 2. Amendments 2.1. This constitution should be reviewed and ratified at the Societys Annual General Meeting, or an Extraordinary General Meeting (see 8.1.4). 3. Interpretation 3.1. Any dispute of any part of this document should be taken to the Societys committee for clarification. 3.2. Challenges to the Committees decision can be taken to the relevant Sabbatical Officer. Any further challenge should be presented to Student Council. 4. The Society 4.1. The official name of the Society herein is the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender + Society, which is abbreviated as UPSU LGBT+ for national distinction, or LGBT+ Society within the University of Portsmouth (herein the University) 4.2. The Society is defined as a cultural society, under the University of Portsmouths Students Union (herein UPSU) Activities Departments categories, but additionally pursues issues of welfare, politics, religion and social. 4.3. The objectives of the Society are to support and further the interests of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and other sexual and gender minorities (herein LGBT+) members of the University, by the following means: 4.3.1. Support and represent LGBT+ members of the University in coordination with the UPSU LGBT Students Officer. 4.3.2. Ensure a safe environment for LGBT+ students to work and socialise at and around the University campuses. 4.3.3. Actively pursue charitable campaigns to further the wellbeing of LGBT+ people. 4.3.4. Actively support political campaigns and regularly attend meetings conducted by the LGBT Association 4.3.5. Represent the views of the Societys members, by working with local and national bodies and participating in relevant events, where it is practical to do so. 4.3.6. Improving the awareness of the health and political issues that affect the Societys members, and the services available to support them. 4.3.7. Raising general awareness of LGBT+ people in the wider community, and the issues that affect them. 5. Society Membership 5.1. Membership to the Society is subject to the following rules: 5.1.1. The Society charges a fee of 5 for membership, this will be placed into the societys A account. 5.1.2. Full membership is open to any registered member of UPSU. 5.1.3. Alumni members of UPSU may become associate members of the Society. They are entitled to the same rights and privileges as full members except they may not hold office, vote in elections or meetings, or speak at meetings. 5.1.4. The Society does not maintain a membership list. UPSU does maintain a membership list. 5.1.4.1. The Societys committee does have access to the membership list, and can view it at any time. 5.1.4.2. The membership list will not be made available publically, or to any third party. 5.2. Only full members of the Students Union, who are also members of the society, are able to vote in group elections or hold a position on the groups committee. Associate members cannot take part in these activities. 6. Confidentiality and Equality

6.1. Anyone is welcome to join the Society, and/or attend the Societys events, regardless of sexual orientation and without fear of prejudice. 6.2. The attendance of a person, to any Society meeting or event, implies nothing about their sexual orientation. Whenever there is doubt that all attendees are aware of this policy, they should be reminded. 6.3. The Societys mailing list is not a members list, as anyone can join it, regardless of their relationship with UPSU. It only contains email addresses for the purposes of communication. It is administered solely by the Treasurer/Secretary, and should be purged annually, after subscribers are given detailed instructions of how to relist. 6.3.1. To subscribe to the mailing list, you do not need to be a member of the Society. 6.4. People of all ages are welcome to join, but the committee must take the number of under 18s into consideration when organising events and meetings which may be effected by age restrictions. 6.5. The Society is subject to the rules outlined by the UPSUs Zero Tolerance and No Platform policies. Any member found to be acting in contradiction to these policies will be subject to disciplinary in accordance with the UPSU Disputes Between Members policy. 6.6. The Society does operate social network pages on Facebook and Twitter. It is the responsibility of members to decide whether or not they wish to subscribe to these pages. 6.7. The Societys committee are required to keep all one-on-one conversations with students confidential, except when, in severe cases, it may be relevant for the Society, UPSU, the University or local authorities to step in for further action. In the event that this is necessary, the involved parties should decide how to proceed. 7. The Societys Committee 7.1. The administration and management of the Society is the responsibility of its Committee. The Committee consists of the following key roles: 7.1.1. The President is the figurehead of the Society to all external interests, and is responsible for the Societys policies and actions throughout their term. It is essential that the President delegates tasks to the other committee members wherever possible. They must also: Ensure that the society regularly communicates with the UPSU LGBT Students Officer, and the LGBT Association Liaise with the Activities Chair and Vice President of Activities regularly. Attend all Union democratic meetings Ensure the committee are fulfilling their requirements. Chair group meetings 7.1.2. The Treasurer/Secretary maintains the accounts for the Society, adhering to UPSUs financial regulations, and also deals with the administrative aspects of the group. In their role, they must: Manage the Societys bank accounts and claim all plausible costs from the Societys budget. Attend budget meetings with UPSU Minute the Societys meetings and ensure that Society and UPSU policy is followed. Manage room bookings, the Societys inventory and the mailing list. 7.1.3. The Social and Media Secretary is responsible is responsible for overseeing, organising and publicising events, as well as publicising the society in a wider context. They should: Be involved in any risk assessments required by UPSU. Ensure the events are suitably funded. Be responsible for communicating relevant events to members. Liaise with local venues relevant to the Society for events. Be responsible for maintaining the societys online presence. Making sure the society is using the media resources available at UPSU to promote the group and its activities. 7.1.4. The Welfare Officer is responsible for all the welfare requirements of the members, which include ensuring UPSU and University services are promoted to the Society. They should be on hand to provide welfare when needed to individuals.They should liaise with UPSUs Vice President for Welfare and Community, and the Societys Council

Welfare Representative to provide adequate welfare. The Welfare Officer are subject to strict confidentiality rules. (see Item 6.7) In their role, they must: Regularly attend a weekly non-drinking daytime social. Liaise with local welfare charities and services. Organise effective campaigns for Sexual Health and Guidance (SHAG) Week Arrange for welfare services to attend meetings with members. Ensure members are aware of important services such as LAGLOs from the start of the year. 7.1.5. The Gender Diversity Officer is responsible for representing Transgender or Gender Minorities members and students on the committee. They should also provide work alongside the welfare officers and provide welfare. Gender Diversity Officers are also subject to strict confidentiality rules. (see Item 6.7). In their role they should also liaise with local Transgender charities and Organise an effective event for Transgender Day of Remembrance. The Gender Diversity Officer also has a secondary role as a secondary welfare Officer to which they are tied to the same rules and guidelines outlined in 7.1.4. 7.1.6. The Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority Officer (Herein BAME Officer) should represent Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority members and students on the committee, they should identify as Black, Asian and/or as an Ethnic Minority. The role of the BAME Officer should also be to organise an effective event for LGBT History Month and to organise an event for One World Week. The Gender Diversity Officer also has a secondary role as a secondary welfare Officer to which they are tied to the same rules and guidelines outlined in 7.1.4. 7.2. It is essential that the Society has a President, Treasurer/Secretary and Social and Media Officer in order to exist and function. Without these, the terms of UPSUs affiliation are void. 7.2.1. The other positions are not essential for the UPSU, but are considered essential for the Society to meet its objectives. If any position is left vacant following an Annual General Meeting (herein AGM), the Committee must delegate these responsibilities among themselves until the Termly General Meeting (herein TGM) (see item 8.1.2) 7.3. The Society elects two further Committee positions in October, known as Open Officer positions. The purpose of these positions is to allow new members to participate and contribute to the committee. In their role they must: Organise events for LGBT History Month Liaise with UPSU LGBT Students Officer for the purposes of LGBT History Month 8. Meetings 8.1. The Society conducts regular General Meetings, wherein all members of the Society are invited to reflect on the Societys achievements, and Society members can discuss its future organisation. 8.1.1. General Meetings should not be confused with Regular Meetings held to discuss upcoming events and host speakers. 8.1.2. A TGM should be held at least once per term, and advertised to all Society members with at least 7 days notice. 8.1.2.1. The first TGM should be held within 6 weeks of the start of the academic year. This TGM should be used to elect Open Officer positions and fill any further openings on the committee. 8.1.3. An AGM should be held in the spring term. The UPSU will decide a time frame within which AGMs should be held. This should be advertised to all Society members with at least 14 days notice. 8.1.3.1. The AGM should be organised in conjunction with UPSU to ensure a suitable returning officer is assigned and voting is conducted fairly. 8.1.3.2. The current committee are expected to make a short speech concerning their activities during the academic year. This is compulsory for the Treasurer/Secretary, who must present the years accounts.

All committee positions must be vacated at the AGM, and elections held accordingly (see item 9) 8.1.4. An Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) can be called in exceptional circumstances by: the President; the Treasurer/Secretary; or a petition to the President naming at least six Society members, and giving the reason for the meeting. 8.1.4.1. Only business calling for the EGM may be discussed at the EGM. 8.1.4.2. The EGM must be held within 7 days of its calling, and all members must receive at least 24 hours notice of its time, place and reason. 8.2. Committee Meetings take place weekly to discuss, organise and vote on issues relevant to the Society and its objectives. 8.2.1. All Committee Meetings should be publicised to the Society at least 24 hours in advance. Committee members should be made aware of the next Committee Meeting at every Committee Meeting. 8.2.2. Anyone may attend Committee Meetings. Only Committee members may speak and vote at a Committee Meeting. 9. Voting & Elections 9.1. Every full member of the Society is entitled to one vote on every voting matter at General meetings 9.2. Voting conduct (i.e. showing of hands or closed ballot) is at the discretion of the Chairperson, except elections where a closed ballot must be used. All votes in the same meeting must be conducted identically. 9.3. Members should be given 14 days notice of elections. 9.3.1. Any full member is allowed to stand at elections. 9.3.2. A manifesto must be submitted no later than 7 days prior to the elections for all candidates. 9.3.2.1. Manifestos should be no longer than 400 words. 9.3.2.2. Late manifesto submissions will be subject to a Committee vote. 9.3.3. Each candidate must have a proposer and a seconder. 9.3.3.1. Proposers and Seconders must be full members 9.3.3.2. Members can not Propose and Second more than one candidate running for the same position. 9.3.4. Elections should be organised in conjunction with UPSU to ensure a suitable returning officer is assigned and voting is conducted fairly. 9.4. Proxy votes are not admissible. 9.5. Student ID cards must be presented at elections. Members without a valid Student ID card will not be able to vote. 9.6. All votes are subject to a quorum of 20% of the full membership (i.e. the sum of full and associate members). 9.7. If an election is tied, then the casting vote resides with the Chairperson. Alternatively, the position may remain vacant to receive new nominations for the next General Meeting. This is subject item 7.2. 9.8. Upon election of a new committee, the outgoing committee is responsible for overseeing the handover of responsibilities for the remainder of the academic year. 9.8.1. Each Committee member is responsible for the handover of their own responsibilities, except where a previously vacant position has been filled. 9.8.2. The result of any Committee election must be submitted to the UPSU Activities Department within 14 days, or when the Societys Renewal Pack is made available. 9.8.3. Essential details and documents for the running of the society, such as passwords, account details, budget submission forms etc., must be transferred in the handover time. 9.8.3.1. Passwords should be changed after handover is complete, i.e. during the summer break. 9.9. A Vote of No Confidence (herein VNC) can be submitted for any member of the Societys committee. 9.9.1. A VNC can only be submitted by either a petition signed by 51% of all members of the society, or by two-thirds of the Societys committee. 9.9.1.1. Signed petition must be forwarded to all members of the committee, and the VP of Activities.
8.1.3.3.

9.9.2. An EGM must be called (see 8.1.4 and 9.3.4). The petition must then be supported by vote by 75% of eligible members at the EGM. 10. UPSU Affiliation 10.1. Committee members are jointly liable for the proper management of the Societys finances and ensuring that UPSUs financial regulations are followed. 10.1.1. All Society funds must be held in the UPSU allocated A and B accounts. 10.1.2. The financial concerns of the Society are entirely its own and do not affect, nor are they affected by, UPSUs financial concerns, except for the Societys allocated budget. In particular, if the Society finds itself in debt, regardless of the members responsible, it is the Societys own concern to repay the debt. 10.2. At least one Committee member must attend Society workshops, council, EGM and AGM 10.3. The Society must adhere to the Activities Constitution, the Memorandum and Articles of Association and Byelaws and all other policies at the Union. 10.4. All information sent from the VP of Activities, Societies Coordinator, Activities Manager or the Exec must be forwarded to members when requested. 11. Other Affiliations 11.1. The Society may affiliate with other organisations if they provide a direct benefit to its members. 11.1.1. All affiliations must be discussed with the UPSU Activitys Executive to ensure compliance with UPSU policies, in particular, No Platform.