Ring-fenced support for youth sailing, athlete development and Cayman's place on the start line
Donors and sponsors give to one fund, held in its own bank account in the Club's name. A Fund Committee decides against published criteria, two people approve every payment, and the accounts are reported to members at every AGM.
Why a fund, and why now
Sailing overseas is expensive: entry fees, charter boats, flights and a place to stay. Today, sailors and their families carry most of that cost themselves, often at very short notice. Many companies and foundations will not give to individuals, and money given to the Club for sailors has had no separate account or published rules.
The Fund gives donors a clear, accountable place to give, and gives every eligible sailor and programme in the Cayman Islands the same route to support, whichever club they sail with.
- Youth sailing and learn-to-sail programmes
- Athlete development and coaching
- Representing the Cayman Islands at international events
- Coaches, judges and race officials gaining qualifications
All within the purposes in the proposed Article 37A(a) and the Club's existing objects as the national authority for sailing.
From application to the start line
Every step is recorded, and every record can be checked. These steps follow the draft eligibility criteria.
Register once
Sailor, parent, team, programme, coach or official
Applicants register with their documents. Under-18s are registered by a parent or guardian, who stays in charge of everything that follows.
The Club Administrator checks eligibility and safeguarding documents before anyone can apply. Fund Committee members never see passports.
Apply with a budget
Applicant
Each application sets out the event or programme and every cost, line by line, under ten cost headings that match Olympic Solidarity's. Any other support is declared under the same headings, so nothing is paid twice.
Every applicant confirms they have read the safeguarding, anti-doping and competition integrity guidance. Youth applications also need a named safeguarding lead and parental consent.
Two reviewers score it
Two Fund Committee members
Reviewers check eligibility and safeguarding, then score the application against the published criteria.
Neither sees the other's scores until both are in. Anyone connected to the applicant is blocked from reviewing.
The Fund Committee decides
Fund Committee meeting
Members declare interests, then vote on each application in turn. Every vote is recorded by name, with reasons.
Draft rule: a majority of the eligible members present, and never fewer than three in favour. No casting vote. A member with a personal or family interest takes no part.
Sign the grant agreement
Applicant, coach and the Fund
The website writes a one-page agreement from the approved budget: the budget by cost heading, the period, how payments are made, the report dates and when support can stop.
Each person signs in their own account with a security check, and the Fund signs last. Nothing is paid until everyone has signed (draft criteria 6A).
Supporters give
Donors and sponsors
Donors give to the General Pool, to a programme, or to an approved sailor's budget. They see where their gift goes before they pay.
Giving never affects selection, and the Fund Committee decides within the published criteria.
Claim against receipts
Applicant, then Treasurer
Sailors pay their costs, keep receipts and claim within 60 days. The Treasurer checks each claim against the approved budget line.
Draft rule: costs from 1 October 2026 can be claimed by any eligible sailor, for any event, on budgets sent in within 90 days of the Fund Committee being appointed (criteria 4A(e)). Repayment comes only from gifts directed to that sailor or from an approved General Pool grant (criteria 4A(d)).
Two people approve the payment
Two appointed approvers
Two different people authorise every payment, each with a security check. Payment usually follows within 14 days.
No payment can be made by one person alone (proposed Article 37A(d)).
Report back
Applicant, then Treasurer and Chair
A final report within 60 days of the event, with results and a short note for donors. On budgets longer than four months, a short progress report every four months.
The Treasurer checks the figures and the Fund Committee Chair accepts the report. Further payments wait for a progress report that is due (draft criteria 4A(h) and 6.4).
The proposed Article 37A, in plain English
Resolution 1 adds a new Article 37A to the Club's Articles of Association. Each clause is summarised below. The full text is in the notice of resolutions sent to members.
Purpose
Relies on Memorandum clauses 3(h) and 3(i).
The Club keeps a restricted fund for youth sailing, athlete development and representing the Cayman Islands internationally.
Ring-fenced money
Gifts go into a separate bank account in the Club's name and are never used for the Club's running costs. Donors may ask for a gift to support a particular programme, team or sailor; the Fund Committee honours that within the published criteria.
Fund Committee
At least five voting members of the Club, appointed by the Committee of Management, with at least two who are not on it. Terms of up to three years, staggered, with a six-year limit. Grants follow published criteria, and anyone with a personal or family interest declares it and stays out.
Payments
Every payment needs Fund Committee approval and authorisation by two appointed people.
Accounts
The Fund is shown separately in the Club's accounts, independently reviewed each year by someone outside the Fund Committee, and reported at every AGM.
Safety net
If another body ever becomes the national authority under Memorandum 3(i), the Fund and its promises to donors move with the national role, for the same purposes. Until then, the Fund stays with the Club.
Same duties as officers
Applies Article 60.
Article 60 applies to every Fund Committee member as if they were an officer of the Club.
Winding up
If the Club is ever wound up, the Fund's balance goes to a non-profit body with similar purposes.
Resolution 2 sets the timetable
The Committee of Management opens the bank account and appoints the Fund Committee within 30 days of the AGM, publishes the eligibility criteria within 60 days, and asks the review of the Memorandum and Articles approved in 2024 to consider the Fund's longer-term structure. If Resolution 1 is not passed, members ask the Committee of Management to set up the Fund by by-law under Article 33.
Who can apply
Any eligible sailor, team, club or programme in the Cayman Islands can apply, on the same terms, whichever club they sail with.
| Applicant | What you will need |
|---|---|
| Adult sailor | Proof of eligibility to represent the Cayman Islands, sailing CV and results, signed Code of Conduct |
| Youth sailor (under 18) | Registered by a parent or guardian; parental consent; medical and emergency form (seen only by the safeguarding lead); Code of Conduct signed by sailor and parent |
| Team or squad | Team list, season plan and budget, safeguarding plan with a named lead if any sailor is under 18 |
| Club or youth programme | Constitution or registration, safeguarding policy and named lead, programme plan and budget, latest accounts |
| Coach, judge or race official | Qualifications, course details and costs, safeguarding training |
Where your gift goes
You choose where your gift goes. You will see the split before you give, and you will hear how it was used.
Support where it is needed most
100% goes to grants the Fund Committee makes across youth sailing, development and international events, including a Youth Pool for young sailors.
Back a programme you care about
100% stays with that programme or team, for its approved costs.
Support a sailor's approved budget
95% goes to that sailor's approved costs and 5% to youth sailing for everyone.
A CI$1,000 gift to a named sailor (draft rule, criteria section 5(c))
Your choices as a donor
- Be named on the donor list, or give anonymously
- Let the sailor or programme know your name so they can thank you (your amount is never shared)
- If a directed gift is not used within 24 months, it moves to the General Pool unless you asked for a refund
- Your gift never affects selection for any team
The Fund cannot accept gifts until members approve it and the bank account is open. US tax-deductible giving is not available at this stage.
Questions members ask
Why not wait for the review of the Articles?
The review was approved at the 2024 AGM and is still under way. Resolution 2(c) asks that review to consider the Fund's longer-term structure, so the two work together. Sailors and donors need a clear route now.
Does this separate the Federation from the Club?
No. The Fund sits inside the Club, under its existing role as the national authority for sailing (Memorandum clause 3(i)). Separation is not proposed. Clause 37A(f) is only a safety net in case the national role ever moves.
Why include youth sailing as well as international sailors?
The Club already does both as the national authority, and young sailors are where every national team sailor starts. One fund covering the whole pathway, from Optimists to the Olympics, matches how the Club already works.
How do we know the money is spent as promised?
It is held in a separate account (37A(b)), paid only against receipts within approved budgets, authorised by two people (37A(d)), and independently reviewed and reported at every AGM (37A(e)).
Can support be stopped?
Only on published grounds (draft criteria 6B), such as no longer taking part, a missing report or a false claim. The applicant gets written reasons and 14 days to respond, and the Fund Committee decides at a meeting by named vote. Costs already incurred are still paid, and the applicant can ask the Committee of Management for a review. A safeguarding concern suspends support at once and goes to the Club's Safeguarding Officer.
Can sailors from other clubs apply?
Yes. As the national authority, the Club serves every sailor in the Cayman Islands. Any eligible sailor or recognised programme can apply on the same terms and under the same safeguarding rules.
Who will do the administration?
A small Fund Committee of volunteers, supported by simple online tools for applications, approvals and reporting. The Fund Committee decides what is built, by whom and at what cost.
The proposer has a declared interest. How is that handled?
The proposer's daughter is a national team sailor. He will not sit on the Fund Committee and takes no part in any decision about appointments to it or about grants to national team sailors. Every sailor applies on the same terms.
How does this fit with CIOC and Olympic Solidarity?
The Fund adds to support from the Cayman Islands Olympic Committee and World Sailing; it does not replace it. It can also support events, classes and young sailors that Olympic programmes do not cover. Budgets use the same cost headings as Olympic Solidarity, so a sailor supported by both reports once and nothing is paid twice.