Regulations for Castle Wardens
CHAPTER I
Scope of Application
1 §
In addition to what is mentioned in the TKY rules and regulations for dormitories, the castle wardens of dormitories owned by the Student Union of the University of Technology (TKY) follow these regulations.
CHAPTER II
General Description
2 §
The castle warden is appointed in a house meeting in November for the following calendar year.
3 §
The castle warden is an elected official for residents whose primary purpose is to supervise the rights and benefits of residents and help to clarify conflict situations which concern enjoyable living within the building.
4 §
The castle warden’s purpose is to act as a link between the residents and the organs of TKY.
5 §
The castle warden must assist the Village Senate, the Housing Committee and the Housing Office in their activities when possible. The castle warden can receive reasonable compensation for assistance.
Similarly the Housing Office, the Village Senate and the maintenance company can assist the castle warden in his/her activities.
Public Order Issues
6 §
The castle warden must supervise that residents follow the current ordinance of the city of Espoo and TKY.
7 §
For minor disturbance, such as making noise during the night time, the castle warden’s responsibility is to orally complain to the person or people who cause the offence. If an oral remark does not lead to a result, the castle warden can make a complaint in writing and s/he must report it to the village secretary who further delivers the case to be handled by a body which is in charge of the issue.
Disturbances and violations of rules caused by summer residents must always be reported to the village secretary.
8 §
In cases of serious disturbance, the castle warden’s responsibility is to contact the police immediately and also report it to the village secretary.
Condition of the Building
9 §
The castle warden must supervise the condition of the general and common premises and the yard during his/her term of office. The castle warden must monthly perform an inspection of the condition of the building and deliver a report to the village secretary. Any noticed defect or deficiency must be reported to those in charge of them.
10 §
The castle warden is liable to report vandalism towards the building or property to the village secretary and if possible also report the name of the person in question and any other information for inspecting the case.
Information and Notice Boards
11 §
The castle warden must make sure that his/her contact information is available on the notice boards of every stairwell during the whole term of office.
12 §
The castle warden is responsible for informing residents about the most important notices of the Housing Office, the Housing Committee and the Village Senate.
13 §
The castle warden must supervise the use of notice boards and to remove any expired notices and those without a date.
The castle warden must make sure to remove expired notices on the doors.
14 §
The castle warden has the right to remove notices and posters from notice boards which have been attached without a permission of the Village Senate as soon as they are detected.
15 §
The minutes of house meetings must be attached to notice boards of every stairwell for residents to see.
The castle warden must inform about calling house meetings as is mentioned on the CHAPTER IV in these regulations and in the regulations for dormitories.
CHAPTER III
The Rights of Castle Wardens
16 §
The castle warden receives a master key for the building for his/her term of office from the TKY Secretariat.
17 §
The castle warden has the right to open the door for residents if they have misplaced or forgotten their key. In this case, the castle warden must require the resident to prove his/her identity and to confirm from the resident list s/he has received that the person actually lives in the flat. In addition, s/he is entitled for receiving reasonable compensation from the resident for opening the door.
If there is reason to assume that the person lives in the flat but cannot prove it before getting inside the flat, the castle warden is allowed to open the door. In this case, the resident’s identity must be proved immediately after opening the door.
If a person who is not mentioned in the resident list attempts to get in to a flat, his/her identity must be written down if possible and the information must be delivered to the village secretary.
In case of an immediate danger or if the authorities demand so, the castle warden has the right to open the door.
18 §
The castle warden is entitled for receiving compensation for his/her work and the amount of compensation is annually confirmed in connection with the TKY budget.
House Meetings
19 §
House meetings are regulated in the regulations of TKY dormitories.
The castle warden calls the house meetings. The statutory house meeting must be held in November. The invitation must be delivered to the Housing Office and to every flat and the notice boards of every stairwell.
The invitation must be delivered at least seven (7) days before the meeting and it must mention the time, the place and the issues handled in the meeting.
An additional house meeting must be called if it is demanded by the Village Senate or by ten (10) residents, within two (2) weeks when the demand has been presented.
A secretary who takes the minutes is appointed in the meeting. The minutes of the house meetings of the Teekkari Village must be delivered to the Housing Office which further delivers them to be handled and read by the village secretary and the chair of the Village Senate.
The minutes must be delivered to the Housing Office within seven (7) days.
20 §
Statutory house meeting
1. appoints the castle warden amongst the residents of the building
2. makes proposals for improving enjoyable living
The house meeting can also cover other issues connected with the wishes of residents.
21 §
All residents who are over 18 years are eligible and entitled to vote in the castle warden elections. The right to vote is personal and it is not possible to vote by proxy.
Special Regulations
22 §
The castle warden is responsible to the house meeting and TKY for carrying out his/her tasks.
23 §
If the castle warden leaves the building for longer than fourteen (14) days, s/he is responsible for appointing a deputy for that time and to inform the Housing Office about this. The deputy must be suitable for the job. The deputy can be a castle warden from another building or the castle warden must know the deputy well. The castle warden is responsible for the master key and for the deputy’s activities during this time.
If the castle warden is away longer than three (3) months the deputy is appointed in a house meeting.
If the castle warden moves out in the middle of the term, wants to resign or is otherwise permanently prevented, s/he must call a house meeting to appoint a new castle warden. The meeting has to be held before the removal.
24 §
Changes to these guidelines are carried out by the Village Senate and they must be submitted to be confirmed by the Housing Committee and the Executive Board of the Student Union.
Changes are valid once they have been confirmed.
Transition Regulations
25 §
These regulations annul the previous contradictory decisions and regulations except by taking into account the regulations in 1 §.
These regulations were accepted in the Village Senate meeting in February 2008 and they were confirmed in the Housing Committee meeting in April 2008 and the Executive Board meeting in May 2008.