Manual of Operations

The Manual of Operations of the British Caving Association

Note: The manual of operations is a working document detailing the BCA’s standard operating procedures. It is an advisory, not a binding document, of how the BCA should operate.

The BCA Secretary has the duty and the right to update the document to ensure it stays up to date. However, substantive changes should be brought to the BCA’s National Council.

The BCA’s Manual of Operations is shown below, as approved by the BCA’s National Council on 16/09/2025 for the substantive changes that were made.

  1. NATIONAL COUNCIL
    1. Often referred to as [the] ‘Council’, the BCA’s National Council is defined under Article 6 of the BCA Constitution.
    2. The Nation Council is attended by:
      1. the Executive.
      2. 2 Group Member Representatives.
      3. 2 Individual Member representatives.
      4. A representative from each Regional Caving Council.
      5. A Representative from each of the National Caving Bodies.
      6. Working Group Convenors.
      7. Appointed BCA Officers.
      8. BCA Staff.
      9. BCA Members who request the Executive to do so.
  2. NATIONAL COUNCIL MEETING PROCEDURES
    1. The National Council must meet at least twice a year  as per Article 6.11 of the Constitution but should aim to meet four times a year.
    2. Meetings of the National council will ordinarily be scheduled to coincide with important constitutional and financial deadlines and to avoid dates and periods which will reduce the ability for members to attend e.g. religious holidays and major national caving events.
    3. The dates for Council Meetings throughout the year will ordinarily be decided at the Council Meeting following the AGM and advertised in the minutes of that meeting.
    4. Emergency Council meetings may be called by the Executive and may follow a contracted timeline. Such meeting should concern only those topics that are necessary to be dealt with immediately and otherwise cannot wait until the next scheduled Council meeting.
    5. Council meetings may be held online or in-person at any suitable location in a multi-modal format to allow participants to also join remotely via video link.
    6. Voting is by simple majority of those present and eligible to vote with no minimum number necessary for the meeting to be quorate.
    7. The following persons shall be entitled to a vote:
      • The Executive
      • 2 Group Member Representatives.
      • 2 Individual Member representatives.
      • A representative from each Regional Caving Council.
      • A representative from each of the National Caving Bodies.
    8. The Chair shall hold the casting vote. An individual is free to represent more than one Group, but nobody is entitled to more than one vote.
    9. This is the recommended timeline ahead of Council Meetings:
      1. Six Weeks prior – the Secretary should request reports from the Executive, Working Group Convenors, Officers, and option reports from other Council members; as well as agenda items from Council members.
      2. Three Weeks Prior – the deadline for the submission of agenda items from Council members to the Secretary.
      3. Two weeks prior – the deadline for the submission of reports to the Secretary. The Secretary will then ensure the agenda and draft minutes from the last meeting are published on the website and advertised to Council and the caving community.
      4. At least one week prior – the Secretary will collate and ensure all reports are published on the website and advertised to Council and the caving community. Council members are expected to have read these reports prior to the meeting.
      5. No later than eight weeks following the meeting – the Secretary should ensure the draft minutes are published on the website and advertised to Council and the caving community.
    10. As standard the Agenda for a Council Meeting will include:
      1. Welcome by the Chair & Apologies for Absence.
      2. Acceptance of the Minutes of the previous meeting.
      3. Matters arising from the previous meeting including review of the action log.
      4. Officers’ Reports, including the opportunity for questions/discussion.
      5. Items/proposals for discussion/voting submitted by BCA Council members.
      6. Any other business.
    11. Any items for discussion which are not on the agenda should be declared no later than the start of the meeting and will be included under ‘Any other Business’ at the discretion of the Chair. There should be a good reason why the item was not included on the advanced agenda or in an appropriate report.
    12. Reports should:
      1. Update Council on developments/changes since the last Council meeting and include proposals for Council’s consideration, including the necessary background information and any recommendations of the author.
      2. Identify anything that may:
        1. Constitute a material change to the business and operation of the Officer, Working Group, body or representative.
        2. Involve other Association groups or members.
        3. Have legal implications for the Association.Have financial implications for the Association beyond those already agreed.
        4. Involve the Association in a change to established policies or require the Association to agree a new policy or procedure.
    13. Council Meeting Minutes should include:
      1. Date, time and location.
      2. Details of those present.
      3. Apologies given for absence.
      4. Any matters arising from previous minutes.
      5. Outcomes of any actions from the previous meeting.
      6. Details of discussions regarding the reports including a record of their acceptance. The reports themselves may be attached or included within the minutes, or they may be included in a separate document available alongside the minutes.
      7. Details of discussions on specific issues, points raised, and decisions taken including, where appropriate, records of proposers, seconders, votes for and votes against.
      8. A means of indicating actions to be taken outside of the meeting, such as an action log; it is suggested to include this clearly at the end of the minutes.
  3. THE EXECUTIVE
    1. The Executive shall be comprised of:
      1. The Chair.
      2. The Secretary.
      3. The Treasurer.
      4. Other Members as may be deemed necessary by the National Council to carry out the administrative business of the Association. See Article 6.14 of the Constitution.
    2. The Executive officers will conduct the tasks specific to their roles while working in cohesion to guide the Association.
    3. The Executive will make decisions by discussion and mutual agreement. Should a vote be necessary, it will be by simple majority with the Chair holding a casting vote.
    4. The Executive shall:
      1. Manage the Association in the period between Council meetings.
      2. Shall guide the Association in terms of policy and goals, with the approval of the National Council.
      3. Make any urgent decisions, and subsequent actions, that may become necessary for the good of the Association
    5. The Executive may call an Emergency General Meeting.
    6. In the absence of an Executive member, the remaining members should aim to only decide on the most urgent, or non-controversial business. If a decision is necessary in a member’s absence, then it should be dealt with by more than one Executive member and at least two other Council Members should be included in the decision-making process. It is recommended a record of these discussions is kept.
    7. The Treasurer shall have the specific role as the convenor of the Finance Committee Working Group.
  4. REGIONAL CAVING COUNCIL & ASSOCIATE BODY REPRESENTATIVES
    1. Representatives are empowered to agree matters on behalf of the Body they represent, unless instructed specifically to the contrary by that Body.
    2. Representatives who feel unable to express the view of the Body they represent should be given the chance to refer the matter back to their Body for clarification.
      1. The time given to refer a matter back must not be used as a delaying tactic.
  5. WORKING GROUPS
    1. Working Groups are established under Article 6.10 of the Constitution. They are set up by National Council, which should determine their Terms of Reference.
    2. Each Working Group shall publish their Terms of Reference on the BCA website.
    3. Working Groups are organised by the Working Group Convenor, an Officer appointed by National Council, who chairs the group.
    4. Working Groups should report to National Council at each meeting and preferably send a representative to each National Council Meeting.
    5. Working Groups should meet at least three times a year and provide minutes of these meetings to the Secretary.
    6. The Convenor of the Working Group decides the membership of the group. Each group should aim for its membership to represent the interests of regional councils and constituent bodies, but this does not mean each body must have a direct representative in the group. Active volunteers, professionals, and experts are other classifications of person encouraged to be members of the group. Ultimately, the Convenor decides the membership of the group with the aim that the group operates to the best of its ability to achieve the specific business contained within their Terms of Reference.  
    7. The continued operation of: the Working Group, the Convenor, and a review of their remit; shall take place annually at the National Council meeting directly following the AGM.
  6. BCA OFFICERS
    1. At the Council meeting following the Annual general meeting the National Council shall confirm the appointment of BCA Officers.
    2. The appointed officers usually include:
      1. The representative & deputy representative to the International Union of Speleology
      2. The representative & deputy representative to the European Speleological Federation
      3. British Caving Library Representative
      4. Safeguarding Officer
      5. Insurance Officer
    3. The National Council may appoint or remove individuals to/from these roles as it sees fit.
  7. GENERAL MEETING PROCEDURES
    1. General Meetings are regulated under Article 7 of the Constitution.
    2. An Annual General Meeting should be held in June each year or as soon as reasonably practicable thereafter.
    3. An Emergency General Meeting may be called by any 2 members of the Executive with an agenda and accompanying documents circulated no less than two weeks in advance.
    4. Emergency General Meetings shall be limited to discussing only the subjects that gave rise to the emergency.
    5. A Special General meeting may be called by:
      1. The Executive,
      2. National Council,
      3. 20 or more BCA members
    6. The agenda and accompanying documents for a Special General Meeting must be circulated no less than 12 weeks in advance and the meeting shall be limited to discussing only the matter(s) that gave rise to the original request for the meeting.
    7. The date, time, venue, and format of all General Meetings will be agreed on by the National Council.
    8. National Council shall nominate a Chair and Recorder for the General Meeting. The General Meeting may elect a Chair or Recorder in their absence. Neither the Chair nor the Recorder shall be entitled to vote.
    9. The time, date and venue, whether physical or teleconferencing, of an Annual or a Special General Meeting shall be published at least 18 weeks in advance of the meeting.
    10. This is the recommended timeline ahead of Annual General Meetings:
      1. 18 Weeks before –
        • the Secretary will publish the time, date, place, and format of the meeting.The Secretary will request and make BCA members aware of the deadline by which they must be notified of matters and proposals to be discussed at the AGM.The Secretary will advertise the roles and positions up for election
      2. 84 Days (12 Weeks) –
        1. Deadline for notifying the Secretary of any matters and proposals, including all proposals for constitutional change to be discussed at the AGM. This will ideally coincide with a Council Meeting.
          • Proposals do not need to be seconded until the AGM but finding a seconder before the AGM is recommended.
        2. Deadline for receipt of nominations for positions up for election.
      3. Council Meeting Preceding – National Council shall nominate a Chair and Recorder for the General Meeting. These are usually the Chair and the Secretary, respectively.6 weeks before – Secretary to circulate the agenda to the membership.Two weeks before – Officers and Convenors and other Council Members to send written reports to the Secretary.One week before – Secretary to publish the reports document for the meeting together with any other supporting documentation.
      4. Up to 6 weeks after – Secretary to publish the draft minutes.
    11. Agenda items may be submitted to a General Meeting by any Member of the Association (Group or Individual).
    12. Anyone may attend and speak at a General Meeting.
    13. The quorum for a General Meeting is 10 individual members who are eligible to vote.
    14. The following items require voting:
      1. Appointment of Honorary Members and an Honorary President
      2. Accepting minutes, reports and other regular ‘housekeeping’ duties or matters arising that would not be considered ‘motions’ (50% majority of all votes required with no subsequent online voting).
      3. Submitted motions. It is suggested that before any voting occurs, those attending the meeting should debate any presented motions and, if necessary (and with the permission of the proposer), refine or consolidate them. The final motions must then receive the support of ≥25% of all individual members present and eligible to vote, or ≥10 individuals, whichever is lowest, to pass at the meeting. Motions passed at the meeting must then be progressed to an online ballot of all individual members.
    15. Motions are items that would make any change to the constitution or involve taking a significant action or making a significant change to BCA operations, policy, procedure or position. They are expected to be submitted in advance on the agenda. In the event of uncertainty as to whether something should be a ‘motion’ or a ‘housekeeping’ matter, the Chair shall make the final decision, and the idea is that common sense should prevail here. The default position, in the event of indecision or dispute should be to consider the item a ‘motion’ and process accordingly.
    16. The constitution states that ‘uncontested candidates’ for Council positions ‘will be elected’. This wording was based on the pre-2019 status quo of appointing unopposed candidates without a vote. This should therefore be the default interpretation.
    17. It desirable for contested Council positions to be resolved at the meeting by mutual agreement between the candidates. The Chair is encouraged to facilitate discussions of this nature. However, if this is not possible, then the contested position and candidates will be progressed automatically to an online vote, in which it would be good practice to provide the candidates the opportunity to include a statement.
    18. Online voting should be available to all BCA Individual Members for a 14-day period commencing as soon as is possible after the General Meeting. It is good practice to ensure this is well communicated to all members by email (if possible) and through the BCA website and social media. Motions will be passed by simple majority (50% support of all votes cast) or by a majority of 70% for changes to the constitution. For contested positions or multi-choice option motions, the candidate or option with the most support will be appointed/accepted.
    19. For the purposes of all voting, abstentions are not considered a ‘vote’.
    20. Minutes of meetings should be prepared by the recorder and be distributed as soon as possible after the meeting. The draft minutes must be distributed within eight weeks of the AGM.
    21. Draft minutes should be approved by at least two meeting attendees before publication. It is recommended that at least one of the approving attendees should be members of the executive.
    22. General Meeting Minutes should include:
      1. Date, time and location.
      2. Details of those present.Apologies given for absence.Any matters arising from previous minutes.
      3. Outcomes of any actions from the previous meeting.
    23. Draft minutes will be voted on at the following AGM.
  8. PUBLISHING A DOCUMENT
    1. Documents containing new policies or changes to existing policies of the Association must be approved at an AGM as per item 7.11 of the Constitution.
    2. Meeting minutes may be published automatically.
    3. Officers should circulate the document they wish to publish to the Executive and National Council for comments with a sufficient timeframe to receive feedback before its publication.
    4. Documents which are likely to be contentious should be brought to the National Council for approval. If an Officer or Working Group is unsure if a document is contentious, they should seek the advice of the Executive.

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