Club Governance

Club Governance and Policies

This page is designed for your information as members. Here, you'll find our current club's Own Rule and the policies that guide it. Our Current constitution is from 1989, and the ELBC Committee will undertake the process of updating it in 2026 by forming a working group of members and conducting membership consultation. We'll update you here and via our various communication channels as we start this process, and for your involvement!

Committee Meeting - Friday 2 January, members welcome!

The upcoming committee meeting will be held as follows:

Location: Hills Physiotherapy Clinic, 333 Belgrave - Gembrook Rd, Emerald.

Friday 2 January 2026

Time: 6:30 pm

Agenda will cover:

Club status update (governance, compliance, administration)
2026 program priorities (Little Lakers, Laker Ready, coaching development)
Volunteer Opportunities and Expressions of Interest
Governance and club improvement initiatives (Model Rules, Terms of Reference)
Uniforms, payment systems, and administrative improvements
High-level financial and operational overview
Member questions and feedback
Next steps and upcoming meetings

We will generally try to hold meetings at the Hub at Worrell Reserve, but the Council is closed for bookings and communication until that morning, and we can't guarantee availability. This also rules out other Council assets, such as the library or the Community House. We also discussed the potential of the Junior Football club, but this would be too difficult to communicate to the entire Worrell Reserve Committee of Management, and the Cricket Club has tenancy over the summer.

Hills Physiotherapy is air-conditioned, centrally located, comfortable, and accessible. We'll try to shift back to the Hub as soon as possible once the work year commences. (For those who haven't been, there is ample parking down the back, access via the lane behind Mitre 10.

We understand many members are away on well-deserved holidays at this time of year. However, if you're still interested in attending, we'll set up Zoom access. Though we'll likely mute you initially, as large groups can talk over each other, you can use the raise hand or chat features. We'll include and questions and discussion. If there are only a few on the Zoom meeting, then we'll just leave audio on.

Want to attend via Zoom? Shoot Alicia and email on secretary@emeraldlakers.com.au

AGM 15 December 2025

Thank you to the 40+ members who attended (or followed along throughout the process) our Annual General Meeting held on Monday, 15 December 2025. We’re pleased to share the outcome and introduce the newly elected committee.

We would also like to acknowledge and thank Basketball Victoria for attending the AGM and for their support and guidance during this process.

Below is a message from our President, Ben Kewish:

Hi Everyone,

I am writing to inform you all that Emerald Lakers Basketball Club held its Annual General Meeting last night, Monday, 15 December 2025. At that meeting, a full committee was validly elected in accordance with the Club’s Rules.

The newly elected office bearers are:

President: Ben Kewish
Vice President: Wei Choong
Secretary: Alicia Thompson
Treasurer: Dean Prouse

Extra-Ordinary Committee Members:

Lisa Jackson (not pictured)
Eleanor Cullen (not pictured)
Vanessa Krzywokulski
Chris Harvey
Luke Hill
Jason Goodwin

The Club has now completed the required notification of office bearer changes with Consumer Affairs Victoria. The newly elected committee is focused on stabilising governance and ensuring the Club can move forward with a clear, compliant structure and a renewed focus on basketball operations and member wellbeing. Key areas of focus early will be establishing clear and easy feedback mechanisms so members' voices are heard, and suggestions are discussed at committee meetings. Members are also welcome at our committee meetings, the first of these being January 2nd, location tbc, but likely The Hub in Emerald. Further details will be emailed out and posted on social media closer to the date.

The committee would like to thank members for their patience and engagement during this process. We are now focused on moving forward and returning our attention to the core purpose of the Club, supporting our players, families and basketball community.

Enjoy a little time off basketball, have an amazing holiday season with your friends and family, and we look forward to what 2026 brings for the Emerald Lakers!

Yours sincerely,

Ben Kewish

Lakers President

AGM minutes and reports will be shared with members shortly.

Here’s to a settled end to the year and a strong, positive season ahead for our players, families and wider Lakers community.

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Outgoing Committee Communication

Outgoing President's Report 2024/2025

Outgoing Committee Email to Members

Minutes from AGM

15 December 2025

Minutes HERE

Communication to Members from current President

President's Communcation

1989 ELBC "Own Rules"

1st September 1989

Our first formal constitution and our current rules...

Adopted in 1989, the Emerald Lakers Basketball Club Rules were established to provide clear, fair and workable governance for a growing community club. They set out defined processes for membership, voting, meetings and committee accountability, ensuring that members had genuine rights to participate in the life and direction of the club.

The Rules emphasised transparency, democratic decision-making and shared responsibility, with safeguards around elections, special general meetings, proxies and member voting. Importantly, they recognised the club as a community organisation, balancing structured governance with inclusivity and volunteer involvement.

More than three decades on, these founding Rules continue to reflect the values on which the club was built, fairness, participation and accountability, and remain a touchstone for the Emerald Lakers Basketball Club’s culture and operations.