Next Friday (28 January) UK Athletics will hold an EGM where it is proposed to make a number of changes to its articles of association. Below I explain the two proposals being put forward, and why they are being made.

The first of these is to make sure the articles of association properly reflect the role that the UKA members play as members of the company; in other words, what is the purpose of the UKA members? There was a lot of useful discussion on this amongst the members, recognising that the Board of UKA, not the members, are the ultimate decision-making body of the organisation. The discussion also recognised that UKA and the Home Country federations (Athletics Northern Ireland, England Athletics, Scottish Athletics and Welsh Athletics) are sister organisations, each of which has its own objectives and individual membership structures.

In UKA’s case it is clear that the primary responsibilities are for the performance end of the sport and for high level events, as well as having an overview of the athletics landscape in the UKA. The development side of the sport, including the clubs, schools, and local competition, is the primary responsibility of the Home Country bodies.

The suggested purpose of the UKA Members which is being put forward in the proposal, is as follows:

• The UKA Members have a key role in providing high level input on the vision and direction of UK Athletics.
• The members are consulted on the development of the strategy for the sport, debate significant issues relating to Athletics, act as a ‘sounding board’ for the Board and the wider executive providing constructive challenge and advisory opinions.
• They act as an ambassador to disseminate the Company’s strategic vision, helping to ensure that all stakeholders understand and support a shared vision for the development of Athletics.

The second part of the resolution is in relation to who the Members of UKA should be, and what their respective voting rights should be. When discussing this it was recognised that the voting rights of Members of any organisation, including UKA, are fairly limited, and restricted to ‘high level’ issues such as changes to the articles of association, removal of directors, and appointment of auditors. The role of a member remains a very important one, however, particularly in terms of providing useful input to the Chair, CEO and others.

Following much discussion, it was agreed there was merit in proposing a solution that recognised the wide range of roles across the sport but split this into ‘voting’ and non-voting’ categories, with the votes being held by those areas most closely aligned with UKA’s core activities. It is proposed that half the votes are allocated to the Home Country bodies, with England Athletics being allocated three votes and the other Home Country bodies one vote each.

The other six votes are proposed to be allocated to the Athlete’s Commission representatives (one non disabled and one para), an officials’ representative, a coaching representative, the President and the Vice President. The clubs are obviously a really important part of the athletics landscape in the UK, but as stated above the primary responsibility for clubs lies with the Home Countries rather than UKA, so a non-voting member role for the club representatives seemed a more appropriate way forward.

Voting members:
President (1)
Vice President (1)
Officials’ representative (1)
Coaching representative (1)
Athletes’ commission representative – non disabled athlete (1)
Athletes’ commission representative – para athlete (1)
England Athletics representative (3)
Scottish Athletics representative (1)
Welsh Athletics representative (1)
Athletics NI representative (1)

Non-voting members:
First track and field club elected representative (0)
Second track and field club elected representative (0)
Road running representative (0)

I believe that the proposals offer a sensible way forward for the sport, and I hope that they are approved by the current members. Approval will allow us to meet the final outstanding requirement of the UK Athletics Change Plan which followed the Dame Sue Street report. More importantly, it will allow us to move forward positively as a sport, recognising the importance of all working together and doing our individual roles as well as we can be.

We have had a lot of turmoil in athletics over the last few years, and I am very keen that we move away from this and establish a much more positive culture, one where we are all part of the athletics family in the UK, where we are all working towards the common goal of a successful sport. I hope you agree that it is time for us to move forward, and that the proposals are accepted.

Ian Beattie – Chair