© 2025 News On The Block. All rights reserved.
News on the Block is a trading name of Premier Property Media Ltd.
© 2025 News On The Block. All rights reserved.
News on the Block is a trading name of Premier Property Media Ltd.
The Directors
All the affairs of the company are conducted by its directors. Every private company must have at least onedirector and it is his or her duty of to manage the company’s affairs. The directors will appoint a number of other officers to assist them with day-to-day running.
In residential management companies, the director will often be a member (flat owners) who has found himself in the unenviable position of taking charge. This duty is a crown difficult to renounce. It can be rewarding, but takes some effort, thought and regular involvement. Directors come and go as flats are sold.
Management companies are more at risk to fall foul of administrative provisions. Non-compliance with statutory obligations through negligence or oversight is common and alarming. The consequences are disastrous!
The frightening factor, apart from the possibility of summary conviction or fine, is that the management Company may be struck off, resulting in individual flats becoming unsellable.
The Company Secretary
The Companies Act 2006 allows a private limited company to operate without appointing a secretary (1). In a management company the secretarial role is crucial for corporate administration.
A company secretary is responsible to the board for advising and ensuring that all procedures are complied with. If no company secretary is appointed, the responsibility falls to the directors.
Upon incorporation, the registered office (2) of the company will be that of the company secretary. All formal correspondence sent by, served or issued upon the company will go there.
Registration of the company’s books will be at this address and must be open for inspection. Administrative formalities include:- Holding company books and constitutional documents (Memorandum and Articles of Association) Register of officers Register of members (flat owners) Certificate of Incorporation Completion and filing of annual return Registering returns and allotments Issuing share certificates Delivery up of particulars for mortgages or charges Maintaining all registers.
HELP AT HAND
Management companies are unique in their operation. Membership is transient and often very large, their directors are often temporary and undertake the position secondary to other work or commitment and without reward.
The abolition of the necessity for the company secretary by the Companies Act 2006 highlights the specific need that management companies have for such a role. If that function is held by an experienced professional, the risk to the company and its directors is reduced. The continuity in registered office and carrying out of administrative functions is a service that few management companies can afford to refuse.