What a club secretary does
The secretary is the club's record keeper. The exact job comes from your constitution or bylaws, but it usually means:
- Before meetings: send the notice and agenda, and book the room if needed.
- At meetings: note who attends, confirm there is a quorum if one is required, and take the minutes.
- After meetings: send a draft of the minutes, collect corrections, and get them approved at the next meeting.
- Between meetings: handle the club's letters and emails, keep the member list, and keep the records safe: approved minutes, the constitution, past agendas.
- Once a year: help prepare the annual general meeting, including the notice and the election of officers. See AGM minutes.
The secretary does not make decisions for the club. You write down what the members decided.
A club minutes template
Download the Word template. It also opens in Google Docs: File > Open > Upload.
[Club name] meeting minutes Date, time, place: [date], [time], [place] Present: [names]. Apologies: [names]. Quorum: [yes / no]
- Welcome. [Chair] opened the meeting at [time].
- Minutes of the last meeting. Approved [as written / as corrected]. Moved by [name], seconded by [name].
- Matters arising. [Item and update.]
- Correspondence. [Letters or emails received or sent.]
- Treasurer's report. Balance: [amount]. Income and spending since last meeting: [notes].
- Other business. [Item, short summary.]
| Motion | Moved by | Seconded by | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| [exact wording] | [name] | [name] | Carried / failed |
- Action items. [Task, owner, due date.]
- Next meeting. [date, time, place]. Closed at [time].
Minutes taken by: [name]. Approved on: [date]. Signed: Chair ______ Secretary ______
Tips for a first-time secretary
- Prepare the minutes template before the meeting, with the agenda already in it.
- Write down motions word for word and read them back before the vote.
- Keep the minutes to decisions and actions. A page or two is plenty.
- Send the draft within a few days, while people remember.
- Check your constitution for what it says about minutes and keeping records.
Fill it from a recording
Record the meeting in My notes and a few minutes after you stop, the transcript appears with speaker labels and times. Ask AI can draft the minutes from it in the shape above. It is a first draft: you check the names, numbers and votes against the transcript before it goes anywhere. There is no bot for online meetings, and no Word export. Copy the text into the template. Nothing is for sale right now: every account that signs in has Pro free until January, up to 10 hours of transcription a month.
More: meeting minutes hub, minutes template, how to take meeting minutes.