Sadly, unlike in America, where Robert's Rules is all but synonymous with meeting procedure, the situation in the UK, and hence in Australia, is far more complex. As such, I've compiled a list of relevant reference works on meeting procedure here, based on Appendix 6 of N E Renton's Guide for Meetings and Organisations Volume 2 (6e), with a handful of my own observations.

TL;DR: N E Renton's Guide for Meetings and Organisations Volume 2 is a very nice book, Palgrave's The Chairman's Handbook is probably the nicest public domain one, and there are loads of other books on this topic too

Books in the public domain / available freely online

  • Sir Reginald Palgrave, The Chairman's Handbook (first published 1878, latest 1964, out of print)

A UK guide to meeting procedure. Palgrave was Clerk of the House of Commons, so naturally the work is based heavily on the practice of the House at that time, and is now somewhat dated in its focus on form, but serves as a good parallel to public domain versions of Robert's Rules.

The 1896 edition is out of copyright and is freely available from the Internet Archive.

  • John Rigg, How To Conduct A Meeting: Standing Orders And Rules Of Debate (first published 1920, out of print)

A very brief coverage of basic meeting procedure, but with an appendix containing a set of no less than 118 specimen standing orders!

Out of copyright and freely available from the Internet Archive.

  • Sir Erskine May, Parliamentary Practice (first published 1844, latest 2011, in print)

Erskine May is the most authoritative text on the procedure of the British House of Commons (comparable to House of Representatives Practice and Odger's Australian Senate Practice). While largely not relevant to the meeting procedure of modern associations, it is nevertheless worth a mention.

Various editions out of copyright are freely available from the Internet Archive.

  • H M Robert, Robert's Rules of Order (first published 1876, latest 2011, in print)

Little more needs to be said about Robert's Rules at this point! An American text, not entirely applicable to Australian or UK practice, but worth a mention as an introduction to the conceptual basis of meetings. American texts like Robert's Rules also tend to go into much more detail about procedural motions and other procedural miscellanea than many comparable Australian texts, which may be of academic interest.

The 1915 edition is out of copyright and is freely available from the Internet Archive.

Technical books

  • Eilis Magner, Joske's Law and Procedure at Meetings in Australia

  • A D Lang, Horsley's Meetings Procedure, Law and Practice

Both very legal-centric books on meeting procedure, focusing more on the legal basis for certain procedures (with a healthy sprinkling of citations to legislation and precedent). In this respect, both books are fairly comprehensive, but miss out details on many less formal and more practical matters left to the discretion of chairs and attendees. Both also contain significant discussion of law as it relates specifically to companies and other bodies, though I felt this was a greater focus in Joske's, and so Horsley's may be somewhat more in depth in terms of meeting procedure in general.

More accessible books

  • N E Renton, Guide for Meetings and Organisations Volume 2 (first published 1961, latest 2005, in print)

A compromise of sorts between the legal-centric books above and the heavily simplified ones below: Covers in detail the conduct of meetings from start to finish and detailed discussions of amendments and procedural motions, with 26 specimen standing orders, and several interesting appendices. Being a more practical work, Renton is firmer on some procedural points than the above works, but alternative procedures are acknowledged. Highly recommended as a general reference work.

(Volume 1, the companion volume, focuses more on the operation of voluntary associations as a whole, rather than meeting procedures specifically, detailing constitutional matters, the formation of associations, elections and so on.)

  • Marjorie Puregger, The Australian Guide to Chairing Meetings (first published 1962, latest 1998, in print)

A relatively short ~140 page book covering the conduct of meetings from start to finish, including detailed procedures on amendments and some procedural motions, with 38 specimen standing orders, as well as agendas and minutes, and a transcript of a complete mock meeting detailing various procedural points.

A limited sample is available from Google Books.

I have no idea what these books contain, or whether they are any good whatsoever (and the references appear to be rather dated, and include books on American practice), but a short description of each is contained in Guide for Meetings and Organisations Volume 2 if you have a copy.

  • The Club Treasurer's Handbook (Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia/Natioanl Australia Bank, Sydney, 1984)

  • Bentley, Handbook for Chairman and Secretaries (Sydney, 1970)

  • Brown, Company Resolutions (Sydney, 4e, 1982)

  • Carr and Foyster, Take the Chair (Perth, 3e, 1983)

  • Lord Citrine, The Labour Chairman and Speaker's Companion (London, 1921) – later The ABC's of Chairmanship

  • Gollicoat, Taking Minutes (Melbourne, 1970)

  • Crocker, Principles of Procedure in Deliberative Bodies (New York, 4e, 1910)

  • Curry, Crew's Conduct and Procedure at Public, Company and Local Government Meetings (London, 1956)

  • Gifford, The Victorian Council Meetings Handbook (Melbourne, 3e, 1977)

  • Gifford, The Western Australian Council Meetings Handbook (Sydney, 3e, 1976)

  • Gurney and Renton, Successful Clubs (Sydney, 1995)

  • Head, Meetings (London, 6e, 1957)

  • Hunt, Practical Chairmanship, Public Speaking, Committee and Club Procedures (Sydney, 1960)

  • Leigh, Group Leadership (New York, 1936)

  • Major, A Guide to Good Chairmanship (London, 1968)

  • Marshall, Chairmanship and Meeting Procedure for College Schools and Private Groups (London, 1957)

  • Menderson, Parliamentary Procedure Simplified (Cincinatti, 1953)

  • Milburn, Speak Easy (Wellington, 4e, 1958)

  • Monro, How to Conduct Meetings (Melbourne, 1934)

  • Monro, Guide for the Chairman and the Secretary (Melbourne, 14e, 1958)

  • Muirhead, Law of Meetings (London, 2e, 1920)

  • Newport, The Conduct of Meetings (London, 3e, 1952)

  • Parish, The Chairman's Pilot and Chart (London, 2e, 1936)

  • Ransom, The Chairman's and Debater's Handbook (London, 3e, 1949)

  • Renton, Public Relations, Newsletters and Internet Usage for Organisations (Sydney, 1997)

  • Rigg, How to Take the Chair (London, 1926)

  • Roberts, Successful Submission Writing (Melbourne, 4e, 1990)

  • Rosenblum, Meetings … and How to Run Them (Sydney, 1963)

  • Scholefield and Isdell-Carpenter, Blackwell's Law of Public and Company Meetings (London, 8e, 1937)

  • Shackleton, The Law and Practice of Meetings (London, 9e, 1997)

  • Shaw, Towards a Better Meeting (Adelaide, 1984)

  • Shaw and Smith, The Law of Meetings (London, 5e, 1979)

  • Sturgis, Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure (New York, 3e, 1988)

  • Taylor and Mears, The Right Way to Conduct Meetings, Conferences and Discussions (London, 4e, 1955)

  • Tonkin, The Art of Chairmanship (Wellington, 2e, 1963)

  • von Dadelszen, Members' Meetings in New Zealand (Havelock North, 1995)

  • Yurchak, The Club Leader's Handbook (New York, 3e, 1943)