Earlier BrumLETS Members' Agreement

Original Members' Agreement BrumLETS has a structure which is founded on the basis of members' commitments to each other and to the wider community. All activities within LETS are based on consent; this consent is freely given by all participants to each other as a condition of holding an account. The ability to extend trust or credit is based on the commitments undertaken in adopting the Members' Agreement of LETS. Members agree to be bound by the conditions of this agreement.

1. Structure and Administration of BrumLETS
1.1. BrumLETS is a non-profit-making club whose rights and authority are vested in its members.
1.2. The administration of LETS is carried out by 'teams' consisting of one or more members, with responsibility for the following tasks/functions: * Membership * Treasury/Accounts (Hearts and sterling) * Directory
* Social Events * Local representation - see note (1) below * Newsletter * Mailing and distribution * Public relations and development * Mediation/arbitration
Core Group meetings are attended by at least one representative of each of the above-listed teams. There may also be teams responsible for Equal Opportunities Issues, Social Audit, Special Interest Groups - see note (2) below and Training. Representatives of these teams are to attend Core Group meetings as and when necessary.

1.3. BrumLETS holds an Annual General Meeting every year. Core Group meetings and Members' meetings take place at regular intervals.
1.4. Team members are elected at Members' meetings/AGM, or may be co-opted at any time to fill vacant posts. Elected members hold their position for three years, at the end of which they may stand for re-election. Co-opted members serve until the next election takes place, when they may stand for election- see note (3) below
1.5. The membership may raise issues of concern or ideas about LETS for referral to the next Core Group meeting. Decisions regarding the running and organisation of BrumLETS are taken at Core Group meetings. Any member may see minutes of Core Group meetings on request.
1.6. All members have the right and are encouraged to attend members' meetings and to participate in decision making through discussion and sharing of views. Members have the right of appeal to a full meeting of members against any decision taken at a Core Group meeting.
1.7. The Core Group is authorised to charge joining and renewal fees in Hearts and sterling as the situation requires, and to levy service charges in Hearts on members' accounts at rates assessed with the membership.
1.8. BrumLETS is designed to operate economically and sustainably. Sterling expenditure is reviewed annually by the Core Group and accounts are presented yearly at the AGM.
1.9. The structure of BrumLETS can be altered by majority vote at a Members' meeting.

. 2 Information Exchange
2.1. BrumLETS provides an information service through which members can exchange goods and services, and maintains a central account of that exchange for the benefit of members.
2.2. Membership information is distributed to members by way of two publications. The Directory is a list of goods/services, together with the membership numbers of the people who offer those services; it is a public document and can be shown to anyone. The Members' List provides name(s) and contact details for each membership number; it is a confidential document, and may not be shown to anyone outside the scheme.
2.3. Members agree to BrumLETS holding their details on computer, and distributing those details to other members for the purposes of LETS trading only. Members agree to keep details of other members confidential within the scheme. Members agree that they will only use data received from BrumLETS in accordance with these principles.
2.4. BrumLETS supports inter-trading with other local LETS through the West Midlands LETS Registry. Members agree to their details being made available to members of other local LETS via the Registry website, unless they have indicated otherwise by writing to the Directory Administrator.

3. Principles of Trading
3.1. Members may give or receive credit from each other in the accepted LETS units (Hearts), which are recorded on the BrumLETS central accounting system. Only the account holder can authorise the transfer of Hearts from their account to that of another.
3.2. One Heart has a value approximately equivalent to pound sterling.
3.3. No money is deposited or issued. Members may engage in any transaction entirely in Hearts or on a part cash basis, but only Hearts are recorded by the LETS scheme.
3.4. All accounts start at zero. Members are not obliged to be in credit before issuing another member with credit from their account, subject to any limit which may be set by the Core Group. No interest is charged on accounts.
3.5. No member is obliged to accept any particular invitation to exchange, or to engage in any transaction whatsoever with other members.
3.6. If a member leaves the LETS scheme, his/her account is retained in an "inactive" file for the purpose of balancing the scheme; members who leave the scheme with commitments outstanding may, in exceptional circumstances, be required to settle their account.
3.7. Any member is entitled to know the balance and turnover of another member's account. The Core Group may also decide from time to time to publish the balance and turnover of all accounts.
3.8. The BrumLETS Treasurer/Directory Administrator may decline to record an account or directory entry considered inappropriate for legal or other reasons.
3.9. No warranty or undertaking as to the value, condition or quality of services or items exchanged is expressed or implied by virtue of the introduction of members to each other. BrumLETS publishes a list of the resources or services made available by members, but cannot be held responsible for the actual goods or services on offer.
3.10. Members are individually responsible for their own personal tax liabilities and returns. BrumLETS has no obligation or liability to report to the taxation authorities or to collect taxes on members' behalf.
3.1.1 BrumLETS cannot accept liability for any injury, loss or damage to personal property sustained in the course of a LETS transaction; members must take responsibility for their own insurance arrangements, or for checking the insurance position of any member for whom they are carrying out a service.
3.12. The Core Group may act on behalf of BrumLETS in seeking explanation or satisfaction from a person whose activity is considered to be contrary to the interests of the membership. It also reserves the right to deny membership to an applicant or to remove a member from the scheme in exceptional circumstances at its discretion.
3.13. All LETS members have the right to equal respect from other members, regardless of age, gender, race, creed, sexuality or disability.


(1). Local reps should represent no more than 20 members each. There should be two or three co-ordinators for the scheme. One co-ordinator and one rep (a different one each time) are to attend Core Group meetings.
(2). eg. babysitting, transport, decorating, health practitioners, LETS Salut etc. A Special Interest Groups Co-ordinator is responsible for nurturing and developing these groups. Each group could have a member responsible for feedback to Core Group.
(3). There is no formal requirement for a proportion of Core Group to stand down each year. However, it is not considered desirable for all members of a particular team to retire at the same time, and this situation should be avoided wherever possible.

1st February 2005


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