1. Name of Federation

The name of the Federation shall be the “International Federation of Swimming Teachers’ Associations Limited” (IFSTA)

2. Object of the Federation

As an international, world wide and non-profit making association the IFSTA is dedicated to reduce death by drowning. Thus the objective of the IFSTA is:

“To promote internationally, the highest standards in the teaching of swimming,
life saving and other survival techniques.”

3. Incorporation

The IFSTA is a UK registered company limited by guarantee. <top>

4. Membership

Membership of the IFSTA is open to all persons and organisations, who support the IFSTA objectives, regardless of nationality, ethnic origin, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or age.

There shall be different categories of membership as decided by the Council from time to time. The categories of membership as at October 2002 are:

a. Full Members
Full Members shall only be organisations or associations that are nationally recognised as being organisations concerned with swimming teaching, aquatic teaching, lifeguarding and lifesaving.

There shall, in normal circumstances, be only 1 Full Member per country. Full Members shall be entitled to appoint 2 representatives to the Council of the IFSTA but no country shall be entitled to appoint more than 2 representatives.

b. Associate Members
Associate Members shall be substantial organisations or associations concerned with swimming teaching, aquatic teaching, lifeguarding and lifesaving but who are not nationally recognised; they may, for instance, represent a state or region of a country.

No country shall be entitled to appoint more than 2 representatives to the Council of the IFSTA. Therefore whether an Associate Member can appoint 2, 1 or no representatives will depend on whether there is a Full Member, or other Associate Members, for the same country.

Where an Associate Member is permitted to appoint representatives they shall attend Council as observers only; they will not be entitled to vote.

c. Corresponding Members
Corresponding Members shall be individuals, or small associations, in countries where the National Association is not a member of the IFSTA.

Corresponding Members shall not be entitled to appoint representatives to the Council. <top>

5. New Member Applications

Any organisation or person who wishes to become a member of the IFSTA must complete the Application Form (available for download here in MS Word Format) and forward it, together with the Joining Fee and first Annual Fee, to the STA (UK). All applications are subject to approval by the Council who may, at their discretion grant membership, provisional or conditional membership, or decline membership; they may request further information about the standing of the applicant and details of the syllabus and assessment methods and standards.

6. Exclusion from Membership

Any member may be permanently excluded from the IFSTA by Special Resolution of the Council. <top>

7. Council and Officers

The officers and management of the IFSTA shall be as follows:

a. Council
The management of the IFSTA will be undertaken by the Council consisting of the Chief Executive Officer and representatives of Full Members as set out in clause 4 above.

b. Notice and Voting
Proper notice of all Council meetings shall be served to all committee members by letter, e-mail or facsimile at the last advised address of the representatives.

Voting at the Council meetings will be by simple majority (50.1%) of Full Member representatives, except for the following which will require a 75% majority:
· Exclusion of existing members
· Changes to the constitution of the IFSTA

c. President
The Council will elect one of the Full Member representatives sitting on the committee to act as President of the IFSTA.

d. Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
STA (UK) will provide a staff member to act as CEO. The CEO will undertake the day to day administration of the IFSTA at a fee to be agreed from time to time. The duties undertaken will include:
· Maintaining the accounts of the IFSTA
· Circulating information amongst the members
· Ensuring that UK company law requirements are met
· Other duties as directed by the Council.

e. Directors
To comply with UK company law the Directors of the IFSTA shall be the President, the CEO and at least 1 further member of the Council appointed by the Committee.

f. Bank Account
Until such times as the IFSTA is self funding the STA (UK) will manage the funds through their UK bank account.

g. Conference
A conference shall be held every 2 years at a time and place to be agreed by the Council. <top>

8. Funding

Funding will come from a variety of sources including:

a. Annual Membership Fees
The rates will be set by the Council and will be payable in advance in January of each year. The rates in October 2002 are:

· Full Members and Associate Members:
Joining Fee – single payment £100
Annual Membership Fee – less than 100 members £150
Annual Membership Fee – more than 100 members £250
· Corresponding Members:
Joining Fee – single payment £10
Annual Membership Fee £15

b. IFSTA Logo Royalty Charge
Subject to the conditions set out below in clause 10 below members may use the IFSTA logo. A charge will be made based on annual usage; the rates at October 2002, per imprint, are:

Up to 1,000 imprints per year £0.50
Between 1,000 and 5,000 imprints per year £0.40
Between 5,000 and 10,000 imprints per year £0.30
Over 10,000 imprints per year £0.25

c. Donations, Grants and Sponsorship
The IFSTA will accept donations grants or sponsorship from organisations or individuals subject to approval by the Council. <top>

9. Use of Funds

The funds of IFSTA will be administered by the Council, the areas in which they will be used includes:

· To pay for administration costs
· To support, if necessary, IFSTA conferences
· To build up a fund for future developments including support materials and support for projects in member countries that further the objectives of the IFSTA
· Any other expenditure that furthers the IFSTA objective and is approved by the Council

10. Copyright, Use of Logos and Royalties

The IFSTA Logo is the copyright of STA (UK) that is on permanent free loan to IFSTA. The various members may have their own logos. All members will agree that:

· They will respect the copyright of the Logos of the IFSTA and of its members. They will not use them or copy them without permission in writing
· They may use the IFSTA logo on their letterheads and free promotional material without charge
· They may use the IFSTA Logo on their Certificates and on other material that is sold (e.g. caps, T-shirts etc) provided that they agree to pay the relevant fee to the IFSTA (see paragraph 8)
· They will not claim or imply that they, or their certificate, are approved by the IFSTA. They can only use words to indicate “membership of the IFSTA” and/ or “qualification recognised or accredited by the IFSTA” and then only if the qualification has been approved, in writing, by the IFSTA <top>

11. Raising Standards

To further the IFSTA objective of raising standards the IFSTA members shall adopt the following principles:

a. Education Committee
There will be an Education Committee with representatives from National Associations who will meet to discuss all educational matters, set standards and produce recommendations for the Council.
b. Teaching Training Programmes
All members will move towards adopting teacher training programmes based on a common standard with consistent outcomes, subject to recognising that conditions prevailing in member countries may necessitate variations in the syllabus.
c. Certificates of Competence
The IFSTA will produce Certificates of Competence; these will be available to be issued to members of National Associations who can demonstrate that they have passed a qualifying examination approved by the Council of the IFSTA There will be a charge for each certificate issued.
d. Awards, Badges & Certificates
The STA (UK) range of awards, badges and certificates will be made available to member Associations at a special contract price. The copyright of the awards will remain with the STA (UK). <top>

12. Magazines/Interchange of Information

All members who produce magazines or other technical documents should make a copy available to each Full & Associate member of the IFSTA.

13. Costs and Charges

Where the STA (UK) makes any charges for services to the IFSTA it will on the basis of recovery of all costs and not on a profit basis.

Address of STA (UK) and IFSTA for correspondence:
Swimming Teachers’ Association, Anchor House, Birch Street, Walsall, West Midlands WS2 8HZ United Kingdom

Phone + 44 (0) 1922 645097
Fax + 44 (0) 1922 645097
Website www.sta.co.uk
E-mail sta@swim-sta.demon.co.uk
E-mail (CEO) roger@swim-sta.demon.co.uk
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