Becoming a member

Background

According to our rules ‘all tenants [of the Co-op] must be members [of the Co-op] and all members must be tenants or prospective tenants’ (Rule 7d). Those on the waiting list are prospective tenants. They become members when they take up their tenancy.

When someone is allocated to a tenancy from outside the Co-op, they become members at the same time as they take up their tenancy.

That means that they take on the duties of a Member to join a subgroup, attend meetings and contribute towards the management of the Co-op.

Vine’s aim is for new members to be fully informed and to feel as welcome and included in the Co-op as possible.

Procedure

Once someone has been allocated, the Membership Subgroup takes a number of steps within a four week period. These are:

1. Arrange a ‘new member’s meeting’, in which they will:

• give the new member a copy of Vine’s ‘New Members’ Handbook’
• explain fully how the Co-op works,
• help the new member select a sub-group,
• put them in contact with the convenor of the chosen sub-group

2. Arrange for the new member to have a ‘twin’ within their chosen sub-group, whom the new member can phone for help, and whom they will meet before the first sub-group meeting.

3. The new member should attend at least one sub-group meeting in the four week period, and a General Meeting if one is held.

4. Their membership will be announced (by the membership sub-group) at the next MC, with an indication that these procedures have been followed. Their full names and addresses will be given to the MC and to the GM.

5. They will be formally welcomed into membership at the next GM