7 August 2008
New Rules?
Proposal to Revise the Rules of Tenants First Housing Co-operative
The Committee of Management has for some time now been discussing changes to the Co-operative’s Rules to take account of changes both within the Co operative itself, as it has grown, and in the regulatory framework introduced by the government.
A key concern has been to strengthen the opportunities for all members to take part in the running of the Co-operative.
For example the current structure for appointing your Committee of Management (COM) is dependent on members attending AGMs. Given the wide geographical spread of our properties this can be very difficult for many of our members.
We are now close to reaching agreement with the regulator on the changes we are seeking. This article outlines these proposed changes and we have sent a questionnaire to all our members to give them an opportunity to advise us of whether they agree with what we are seeking to achieve.
Introduction
The Co-operative’s Rules set out the Co-operative’s purpose;
- what it is set up to do and for whom
- how it is governed
- what are the responsibilities of the office bearers
Changes in the Law
The Co-operative’s rules were written in 1999 and since then there have been important changes in the laws under which the Co-operative operates, most importantly the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001. The Co-operative also has a new regulatory regime under the Scottish Housing Regulator.
The Co-operative’s Rules have been revised to reflect the new laws and the governing standards in which we now operate.
The Tenant Management Board Structure
Tenants First’s current Rules were written to enable the amalgamation of six small housing co-operatives Bennachie, Deeside, Fraserburgh, Sheddocksley, St Machar and Ugievale into what is now Tenants First Housing Co-operative.
These six co-operatives provided the basis for the Tenant Management Board Area structure, and each member on taking up their tenancy is still affiliated to one of them.
Although the Tenant Management Boards have no role in the day to day operations of the Co-operative they still have the important function of electing members to serve on the Committee of Management (COM) and its Sub Committees.
This happens at the time of the Annual General Meeting (AGM) when each TMB may elect up to 2 members to sit on the COM.
The number of members attending the AGM, however, has been declining significantly over the past four years and with fewer members turning up the numbers willing to put themselves forward for election to the Co-operative’s Committees has also declined. Two out of the six TMB Areas have, additionally, no functioning Tenant Management Board.
It is considered that this TMB structure acts as a barrier to participation by otherwise interested members.
The revision of our Rules will remove this barrier and open participation to all Members wherever they live without restriction.
The possibility of re-instating some form of regional sub structure in the future will however be retained.
Democratic Participation
At the AGM in 2006 members responded favourably to the introduction of postal voting as a means of promoting wider participation.
Postal voting has therefore been incorporated into the new Rules.
This is intended to be an inclusive measure, to give appropriate weight to the views of members who may not be able, physically, to attend the AGM.
The Co-operative recognises that this will require a number of administrative changes to the AGM process, but we want to make it as easy as possible for the full membership across the geographical spread of the Co-operative’s stock to participate in whichever way suits best.
Conclusion
The Co-operative’s Revised Rules have been drafted to meet the objectives outlined above and submitted to the Scottish Housing Regulator for formal approval.
The enclosed questionnaire seeks your views on the main changes. Your replies will guide us as we now seek to conclude this exercise.
When all is agreed we shall send you a copy of the Revised Rules and invite you to attend a Special General Meeting to approve them.
