Duties of BBS Officers and Council Members

Duties of elected members

1. To attend as many meetings of the Society as possible and work enthusiastically for its well being.

2. To participate fully in Council meetings, keeping a watching brief on the activities of Council in order to ensure that it operates in the best interests of the Society.

3. To be prepared to serve on a reasonable number of Committees at the request of Council.

4. To deal promptly with correspondence relating to the affairs of the Society.

General duties of officers

1. To attend as many meetings of the Society as possible and work enthusiastically for its well being.

2. To participate fully in Council meetings, and recommend initiatives and courses of action particularly in their areas of responsibility.

3. To be arbiters in their areas of responsibility subject to the Rules of the Society and decisions of Council.

4. To work within annual budgets of expenditure for their areas of responsibility, as agreed with the Treasurer.

5. To render annual accounts of any expenditure incurred on the Society's behalf.

6. To submit annual reports to the Spring Council meeting through the General Secretary.

7. To be prepared to serve on a reasonable number of committees at the request of Council.

8. To deal promptly with correspondence relating to the affairs of the Society.

Duties of specific officers

President

1. To preside at all Council and General meetings of the Society, and at meetings of the Executive Committee and the Honorary Membership Committee.

2. To welcome foreign bryologists and distinguished guests attending meetings.

3. To introduce speakers at paper-reading meetings and offer thanks at the conclusion of lectures and proceedings at such meetings.

4. To communicate with individuals and societies, and otherwise represent the Society in matters where the prestige of the Presidency is considered desirable, in consultation with the General Secretary.

5. To write letter's of condolence to next-of-kin on the occasion of the death of a member.

Vice President

1. To deputise for the President where necessary.

2. To serve on the Executive Committee.

3. To prepare for taking over the Presidency, thus ensuring continuity in the conduct of presidential duties.

Past President

1. To deputise for the President on occasions when neither the President nor the Vice-President is able to attend.

2. To maintain continuity over matters under discussion when he steps down from the Presidency.

3. To serve on the Honorary Membership Committee for a period of four years after stepping down from the Presidency.

General Secretary

1. To act as Chief Executive Officer of the Society, and to serve on the Executive and Honorary Membership Committees.

2. To deal with general correspondence and enquiries, consulting others when advice is needed.

3. To prepare agendas for Council and general meetings in consultation with the President and to circulate background notes on agenda items prior to Council meetings.

4. To take and maintain minutes of Council and general meetings and circulate them to Council members.

5. To prepare annually a Council Newsletter for submission to the Bulletin editor.

6. To prepare for inclusion in appropriate issues of the Bulletin notice of general meetings and calls for nomination of officers and elected members of Council, and to supply the Bulletin editor with the annual reports of officers.

7. To maintain the Society's collection of photographs of bryologists.

Treasurer

1. To keep thc accounts of the Society and prepare an annual statement.

2. To receive the Society's income, to keep watch on expenditure, and to invest any credit at the most favourable rates of interest.

3. To pay all reasonable bills rendered to the Society.

4. To recompense officers for their expenditure on behalf of the Society.

5. To prepare an annual budget, estimating expenditure in each area of activity in consultation with the appropriate officer.

6. To submit to the Spring Council meeting: i. the current year's budget estimate together with the previous year's estimated and actual expenditure and ii. preliminary accounts for the previous year.

7. To submit to the Autumn Council meeting a revised budget for the current year and preliminary estimates for the following year.

8. To submit a full account for the previous year and the budget for the current year for publication in the July Bulletin.

9. To serve on the Executive Committee.

Bibliographer

1. To compile the most complete listings possible of current and recent bryological literature.

2. To submit lists of recent literature for publication.

3. To answer reasonable enquiries from members regarding the bryological literature.

Bulletin Editor

1. To edit and prepare for printing two issues each year of the Society's Bulletin containing information about the activities of the Society, lists of new vice-county records, the Proceedings of the Society, other bryological news items and articles of general bryological interest.

2. To ensure that business items such as notice of general meetings appear in appropriate issues of the Bulletin in consultation with other appropriate officers.

3. To regulate the size of the Bulletin having regard to an annual budget agreed with the Treasurer.

4. To arrange for the printing of the Bulletin and its distribution to members.

Conservation Officer

1. To promote the conservation of bryophytes and ensure that the Society's activities are conducted in a manner compatible with conservation.

2. To advise and collaborate with bodies such as the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, other statutory agencies, local authorities, Non-Governmental Organisationss, and individuals on matters relating to the conservation of bryophytes..

3. To ensure that the Society is represented at hearings and enquiries into proposed developments that pose major threats to important bryophyte floras.

4. To represent the Society at meetings of Plantlife Link and at other meetings that are primarily concerned with conservation of bryophytes in Britain.

5. To work towards the publication and periodic revision of a red data book on threatened bryophyte species.

Journal Editor

1. To edit and prepare for publication two issues each year of the Society's Journal containing accounts of original research, review articles, book reviews, lists of recent bryological literature and obituaries of distinguished bryologists.

2. To arrange for papers submitted for publication in the Journal to be reviewed by members of the Editorial Board or other competent referees.

3. To make recommendations to Council concerning membership of the Editorial Board.

4. To regulate the size of the Journal having regard to an annual budget agreed with the Treasurer.

5. To arrange for the printing, proof reading, publication and distribution of the Journal to members and subscribers to be undertaken by publishers nominated by Council.

6. To seek grants from outside agencies towards the cost of publishing lengthy papers or expensive photographs.

Librarian and Sales Officer

1. To curate the Society's collection of books, journals, separates, slides and archival material and to maintain catalogues as appropriate.

2. To determine and regulate the conditions of borrowing and within these conditions to make items, or copies thereof, available on loan to members, ensuring their safe return.

3. To make acquisitions of books, journals and other material in accordance with an acquisitions policy agreed with Council.

4. To operate an exchange with individuals and institutions, receiving books and journals with substantial bryological content in exchange for the Society's publications.

5. To collaborate with the Reading Circle Secretary to achieve the smooth running of the Reading Circle.

6. To send Society publications to members who are entitled but have not received them, in consultation with the Membership Secretary.

7. To ensure that the activities of the Library to not contravene the laws relating to copyright.

8. To stock for sale current, and where available past issues of the Bulletin, Journal and other Society publications, and other items such as forceps, lenses and microscopes where this service is a convenience to members.

9. To submit annually a price list of items for sale for inclusion in the Bulletin.

Meetings Secretary

1. To co-ordinate arrangements for the Society's spring and summer field meetings, the autumn Annual General and paper reading meeting, the annual taxonomic workshop and such other meetings as Council may determine.

2. To appoint local secretaries for these meetings and supply them with the necessary information and advice.

3. To find speakers for the annual paper-reading meeting and tutors for the taxonomic workshop.

4. To ensure as far as possible that all meetings are conducted in accordance with the Society's codes of practice regarding conservation and safety.

5. To supply the editors of the Bulletin and other appropriate periodicals with advance notice of meetings.

6. To ensure that accounts of the meetings are prepared and forwarded to the editor of the Bulletin.

Membership Secretary

1. To respond to enquiries about membership of the Society and explain the benefits.

2 To welcome new members and supply them with the Rules of the Society and other appropriate information.

3. To maintain contact with the existing members and get to know as many of them as possible.

4. To maintain an up-to-date list of members' names and addresses.

5. To receive membership subscriptions and pass them on to the Treasurer.

6. To prepare annually a reminder that subscriptions are due, to be circulated with the Bulletin, and to send reminders to members whose subscriptions are in arrears.

7. To operate, where possible, systems facilitating the payment of subscriptions by overseas members.

8. To supply the publishers of the Journal with a "STOP LIST" of members whose subscriptions are in arrears.

9. To submit an annual list of additions and amendments to the membership list to the Bulletin editor.

10. To operate in a manner permitted by the Data Protection Act.

Reading Circle Secretary

1. To maintain an up-to-date membership list of the Reading Circle.

2. To circulate copies of the contents lists of current issues of foreign bryological journals to members of the Reading Circle at regular intervals.

3. To determine from time to time a level of annual subscription to the Reading Circle that will cover printing and postage costs relating to content lists, and to receive such subscriptions.

4. To supply to members photocopies of such articles from foreign journals as they may request, in collaboration with the Librarian, at prices to cover printing and postage costs.

5. To ensure that the activities of the Reading Circle do not contravene the laws relating to copyright.

Recorder for Hepatics

l. To maintain a "recorder's book" containing an up-to-date record of the known distribution of hepatics in the British Isles based on the vice-county system.

2. To receive and check the identity of voucher specimens supporting all new vice-county records, sending the specimens annually to the Curator or permanent retention in the Society's herbarium.

3. To encourage contributors of new vice-county records to supply National Grid references, and inform the Mapping Secretary of the new records.

4. To revise vice-county distributions where new data, new species or past errors come to light and when taxonomic interpretations change.

5. To compile annually a list of additions and amendments to the lists of vice county records for submission to the Bulletin editor.

6. To prepare new Census Catalogues from time to time, perhaps once in 20 years.

7. To maintain old "recorder's books" and other archival material relating to the distribution of hepatics by vice-counties, and to provide information to members and others on request on such matters as the origin of vice-county records that they cannot trace.

8. To serve as the Society's Referee-in-Chief for hepatics, appointing and periodically reviewing a panel of referees to assist members with the naming of specimens, offering a second opinion on the identity of particular specimens at the request of referees, and submitting annually a list of referees to the Bulletin editor.

Recorder for Mosses

Duties those of the Recorder for Hepatics as they relate to mosses.

Recording Secretary

1. To promote and support an active Regional Recorder network, encourage the submission of records, supply recording cards to members (and to keep such cards up to date to reflect nomenclatural changes), maintain a current list of Recorders and respond, as far as possible, to requests for the supply of, or access to, data.

2. To act as the collation point for completed recording cards, to undertake quality control of these as far as is feasible and to submit cards to the Biological Records Centre at least annually.

3. To maintain liaison with bodies such as the Biological Records Centre and the National Biodiversity Network, to represent the BBS at meetings with them where appropriate and to explore and promote innovative ways of data access and exchange, and secure storage of data, with these and other key organisations.

4. To prepare annual reports and maintain the Recording Matters column in the Bulletin to inform members of recording projects and to inform the membership at large about the current work of the Society's recorders and the current recording activities of individual members

5. To identify and promote the establishment of special recording projects which support the aims of the Society, particularly conservation.

Web Site Editor

1. To ensure that the web site contributes as fully as possible to the Society's objectives of promoting bryology, facilitating the exchange of information among bryologists and promoting the conservation of bryophytes.

2. To keep the structure, format and contents of the web site under review and to ensure that it is up to date, informative and attractive for users.

3. To ensure that the web site promotes an awareness of the benefits of membership of the Society among the general public.