Dragon Gaming > Policies > Guild Charter

Guild Charter

Last updated 13th July 2026 | Link to live document

1. Purpose

This Charter sets out how a Dragon Gaming guild is run day to day: who is responsible for what, how the Guild Council and HQ work together, and how issues get resolved. It sits underneath the Guild Structure & Governance Policy and the Financial Transparency Policy. Where this Charter and those policies overlap, the policies take precedence on detail, and this Charter is the practical ‘how we actually do it’ reference.

2. Guild Council responsibilities

Each guild is run by a three person elected Guild Council. The roles are:

Guildmaster: Operations and finances at guild level

Owns the Guild Treasury tab: submitting guild expenses with correct category and receipt, keeping an eye on guild balance
Point of contact for HQ on anything financial or operational at the guild
Acts as the day-to-day liaison with the guild’s venue contact (scheduling, session logistics, any issues that come up), but see Section 10 on contracts
Ensures the guild’s sessions run predictably (GMs scheduled, sign-ups open on time)

Player Envoy: Member welfare and complaints

First point of contact for any member with a concern, complaint, or welfare issue
Escalates to HQ where a complaint can’t be resolved at guild level, or where it involves a safeguarding, harassment, or code-of-conduct matter (these always go to HQ regardless of stage – see Section 12)
Champions member voice at Guild Council level

Games Warden: Games and equipment

Coordinates GM scheduling and game submissions for the guild
Manages guild stock and equipment (rulebooks, mats, borrowable items), tracking what’s out, what needs replacing
Works with Guildmaster on any equipment-related expense requests

Council members act as a team. Decisions affecting the whole guild (e.g. changing a regular venue, adjusting number of games, reinvesting/donating guild funds etc.) should be a Council decision, not one role acting alone.

3. HQ responsibilities

HQ (the directors, acting through the HQ Admin area) is responsible for:

Approving or rejecting guild expense requests, and settling HQ charges
Setting and reviewing the price and redemption rate of DGMs, and any changes to either (with proper governance – see Section 9)
Agreeing all contracts entered into on behalf of a guild or Dragon Gaming, including venue hire agreements (see Section 10)
Running elections and managing the nominations process
Holding the company-level Corporation Tax, CIC, and regulatory responsibilities
Providing the platform and reporting tools guilds rely on
Stepping in on any complaint that reaches Stage 2 (Section 12) or involves safeguarding

HQ does not run guilds day to day, that’s the Council’s job. HQ’s role is oversight, approval and support, not micromanagement.

4. Nominated Directors

As Dragon Gaming grows, each guild will have a nominated director: a director who acts as that guild’s point of contact for anything needing HQ or Board-level input, including emergencies. This isn’t a separate role from the Board itself; it’s simply about giving each guild a clear, direct line to a specific director.

The Guildmaster should know who their guild’s nominated director is and how to reach them. This should be kept up to date as guilds are added and directors take on new guilds.

5. Accountability

Guild Council members are accountable to their guild’s members (via election and the transparency the platform provides) and to HQ (for financial conduct and compliance with policy)
HQ is accountable to the Board of Directors, and, through the CIC structure, to the CIC Regulator and to members via the transparency model
The Board is accountable to Companies House, the CIC Regulator, and the asset lock to SpecialEffect

No one at guild level is accountable to another guild’s Council. Guilds are run independently within the same platform and policy framework.

6. New Guild Formation

The formation of a new guild is a decision for the Board, based on the level of interest in an area. As a starting point:

A minimum of 18 prospective members’ worth of interest is needed to consider forming a new guild, broadly envisaged as three groups of five players plus Games Masters
The player base is then expected to grow from there over the following 12 months to become self-sufficient
If a guild has not reached self-sufficiency within that 12-month window, it will not be considered viable and will close
- ‘Self-sufficient’ means the guild’s income from DGM redemptions is reliably covering its ongoing running costs, principally venue hire/rent and the Dragon Gaming SLA plus any other recurring expenses, without needing to draw on outside support. This is assessed by the Board using the guild’s Treasury figures over the preceding period, rather than a single snapshot month, to allow for normal week-to-week variation in attendance.

7. Guild Council Elections and Handover

Guild Council elections are held partway through a gaming season. Once the outcome is announced to members, the incoming Council does not take up their role immediately, instead, an interim handover period begins:

The outgoing Council and the Council-elect run the guild together during this interim period
Any onboarding or induction sessions with HQ for incoming Council members take place during this time
The incoming Council formally takes up their role at the start of the following season

Mid-term vacancies. If a Council seat becomes vacant between elections (resignation, or a member becoming unreachable or unable to continue), the guild’s nominated director temporarily takes on the responsibilities of the missing role alongside the remaining Council members. The nominated director does not hold a voting right whilst holding an interim role on the Council.

Where the two remaining Council members cannot agree on a decision during this interim period, the preferred approach is to delay the decision until the vacant seat is filled, provided the matter isn’t time-sensitive. Where a decision genuinely cannot wait, the Council should put the matter to a guild vote via the platform’s voting system rather than the nominated director casting a deciding vote; this keeps the decision with guild members rather than HQ, and avoids the director’s interim, non-voting role turning into a vote by the back door.

A mid-term election for the vacant role only is then held as soon as convenient, rather than waiting for the guild’s next full election cycle.

8. Guild Council meetings

Recommended: the Guild Council meets at least monthly, informally (it doesn’t need to be a formal minuted meeting, but a regular check-in). Suggested standing agenda:

Any open expense requests or equipment needs
Upcoming sessions and GM availability
Any member concerns raised since last meeting
Anything needing HQ input

A short written note (even a few bullet points) after each meeting is enough to keep a record without adding admin burden.

9. Financial governance boundary

The price at which DGMs are sold, and the rate at which they are redeemed against guild income, are set entirely at the discretion of HQ (the directors). This is not a decision a Guild Council can make or vary at guild level under any circumstances, it applies uniformly across all guilds.

If a Guild Council believes a rate change is needed (for example, because costs at their guild have shifted), the correct route is to raise this with the directors so it can be discussed and decided at Board level. The same applies to deferred income treatment and any other DGM-related accounting policy.

Guild Councils manage their own guild-level expenses within the categories and approval process set out in the Financial Transparency Policy; anything touching the wider DGM economy, company accounting, or contractual commitments goes to HQ.

10. Do’s and don’ts of running a guild

Do:

Keep sessions and communications welcoming and inclusive
Submit expenses promptly with a receipt and the correct category
Use the platform’s transparency tools – members should be able to see what’s going on
Flag venue, safeguarding, or conduct issues early rather than letting them build up
Keep Council decisions collective where they affect the whole guild
Liaise directly with your venue’s point of contact for day-to-day session logistics

Don’t:

Sign or agree any contract on the guild’s or Dragon Gaming’s behalf — this includes venue hire agreements and any other contractual commitment, regardless of value. The Guildmaster manages the relationship with the venue contact, but the agreement itself must be agreed by HQ/the directors, since they carry the regulatory scrutiny (CIC Regulator, Companies House) that comes with it. If a new venue or a change to venue terms is needed, bring it to HQ before anything is agreed with the venue.
Handle safeguarding or harassment complaints informally at guild level – escalate
Change, or agree to change, the price of DGMs or their redemption value, see Section 9
Commit the guild to new ongoing costs without HQ sign-off

11. Data Handling

Guild Council members have access to member information as part of running the guild: names, attendance and token redemption activity at guild level. Full financial and personal data is not shared with the Guild Council and remains within HQ. This must be handled in line with Dragon Gaming’s Data Protection & Privacy Policy. Council members should only access member data as needed to carry out their role, and should not share it outside the Council or the platform’s official channels.

12. Complaints handling

Stage 1: Guild level. Raise it with the Player Envoy. Most day-to-day issues (session conduct, minor disagreements, scheduling gripes) should be resolved here, informally and quickly.

Stage 2: Head Envoy. Dragon Gaming appoints a fixed independent Arbiter (a ‘Head Envoy’, playing the same welfare and complaints role as a guild’s Player Envoy, but at HQ level) as a non-director HQ volunteer. Escalate to the Head Envoy if:

Stage 1 hasn’t resolved it within a reasonable time.
The complaint is about a Guild Council member.
The complaint is about a director, or about HQ’s handling of a matter.
- The Head Envoy may loop in the Board (excluding that director) if the matter is serious enough to warrant it.

If the complaint concerns the Head Envoy themselves, Stage 2 is skipped and it goes straight to Stage 3.

Stage 3: HQ. Escalate to HQ if:

The complaint touches safeguarding, harassment, or a Code of Conduct breach, these skip straight to HQ regardless of stage.
Stage 2 hasn’t resolved it within a reasonable time.
The complaint concerns the Head Envoy.

Where a complaint reaching Stage 3 concerns a specific director, that director takes no part in considering or deciding it.

The Head Envoy and HQ (as applicable) will acknowledge receipt within 3 days. Complaints are typically resolved within 14 days of the initial complaint being raised, but this can vary depending on complexity. If a complaint takes longer than 14 days to resolve, you will be updated periodically on progress.

Complaints about HQ or a director. The Head Envoy acts outside the normal Council-to-HQ reporting line, so a complaint about a director can be raised and looked into without going through the person it concerns.

Confidentiality. Complaints are handled discreetly. Only those who need to know in order to resolve the matter are told. This includes protecting the complainant’s identity wherever possible. There may be situations, particularly where safeguarding or a legal obligation is involved, where identity cannot be fully protected; where this applies, it will be explained to the complainant as early as possible.

Allegations of abuse. Where a complaint involves an allegation of abuse, physical, sexual, financial, or otherwise, against a director, Guild Council member, GM or volunteer, this must be reported to HQ immediately, not held at guild level under any circumstances. Separately from the welfare and safeguarding response (see the Safeguarding Policy), Dragon Gaming’s insurance requires the company to notify the insurer within 7 days of becoming aware of, or having reasonable grounds to suspect, such an allegation. This is a condition of cover, not just good practice. Missing this window could affect whether a resulting claim is covered. Whoever first becomes aware of such an allegation should treat notifying HQ as time-critical.

(This section should be read alongside the Anti-Harassment & Code of Conduct and Safeguarding policies.)

13. Under 18s Policy

Not yet in effect.Dragon Gaming currently operates as an adults-only club (see the Data Protection & Privacy Policy). The provisions below set out the policy Dragon Gaming intends to apply once under-18 attendance opens, so that guilds understand the approach in advance. They are not live and should not be applied to any session until Dragon Gaming formally confirms the change to members and guilds.

The general rule for Dragon Gaming sessions is that members must be 18 or over, however members aged 16 or 17 are welcome to attend, provided one of the following applies:

They are accompanied by a parent or guardian who is present at the venue but not taking part in a game, or
They are accompanied by a parent or guardian who is also a member and is playing in the same game as them

Members under 16 are not permitted to attend.

The Guildmaster is responsible for being aware of any 16-17 year old attendees at their guild and confirming the accompanying adult arrangement is in place before the session. If there’s any doubt about whether this policy is satisfied for a particular member, raise it with your guild’s nominated director before the session goes ahead.

On the night. If a 16-17 year old attends without the required accompanying adult arrangement in place, or there’s uncertainty about whether someone meets the 18+ requirement with no way to verify it, the person running the session should politely explain that they’re unable to attend until the arrangement is confirmed. This should not be decided as an on-the-spot exception — if there’s any doubt, contact your guild’s nominated director before the session rather than after.

Verification means confirming the accompanying adult is who they say they are and is genuinely the young person’s parent or guardian; this can be a quick conversation on the night, but if the Guildmaster wasn’t already expecting that pairing, it should have been confirmed with the guild’s nominated director in advance rather than settled at the door.

For a member whose 18+ status is in doubt, an acceptable form of ID would be a government issued photo ID showing date of birth (driving licence, passport, or similar). Verbal assurance alone is not sufficient in either case.

14. Emergency Procedures

This section applies at any guild session, regardless of venue. It sits alongside whatever venue-specific safety briefing you get from your venue contact (e.g. fire exits, assembly points, first aider location) — those specifics should be confirmed at each venue and kept somewhere the Guild Council can quickly reference.

Dragon Gaming holds public liability and employers’ liability insurance covering guild sessions and the volunteers who run them. If an incident occurs that could lead to a claim, contact your guild’s nominated director immediately. See the Incident Note process below.

Illness or injury (non-emergency)

Alert the venue’s first aider if one is present
If in doubt, call 111 for advice
Follow whatever guidance you’re given
Inform your guild’s nominated director after the session, a brief note is enough

Serious illness, injury, or emergency

Call 999 and alert the venue’s first aider
Follow the instructions you’re given
Only provide first aid yourself if you’re trained to do so
Contact your guild’s nominated director immediately, by phone – don’t wait until after the session

Fire

If it’s safe to do so, you may make one attempt to extinguish it, but don’t take risks
Raise the alarm (activate the nearest fire alarm point)
Call 999 and report the fire

If you hear a fire alarm

Stay calm and follow the venue’s fire marshal or staff instructions
Help others if it’s safe to do so
Leave belongings behind
Use the nearest exit and go to the assembly point – don’t leave without telling someone in charge you’re safe
If it turns out not to be an emergency, let your nominated director know afterwards; if it is, contact them immediately by phone

After any incident

Complete the Incident Note (Section 15) as soon as practical
Send it to your guild’s nominated director so it can be logged and any necessary follow-up (with the venue, with a member, with insurance) can happen

This section covers what to do in the moment. It doesn’t replace a proper risk assessment for each venue, which is something the Guildmaster and their nominated director should agree together when a guild starts using a new venue.

15. Incident Note Template

To keep this quick to fill in during a volunteer-run session, the template is short and structured. You can copy/paste it into a note or document and fill in the blanks:

INCIDENT NOTE
Guild:
Date/time:
Venue:
Who was involved (names, roles):
What happened:
What action was taken at the time:
Was emergency services / first aider involved? (Y/N, details):
Was the nominated director contacted at the time? (Y/N):
Any follow-up needed (e.g. with venue, with a member, with insurance):
Completed by:
Sent to nominated director on:

16. Review

This Charter should be reviewed annually, or sooner if the Guild Council structure changes (e.g. a role is renamed or new responsibilities are added).