Agenda for 3rd December board meeting
Meeting to be held at 4:00 pm on Saturday 24th September 2022 at irc.starlink-irc.org #autscape
1. Approvals
1.1 Final draft of the Minutes of the Board meeting held on 24th September 2022 posted to the list again on 29th November 2022
2. Ratifications
No Ratifications
3. Proposals
3.1. The Company secretary proposes that the board adopt the job description for the new role of Communications officer - as posted to the list on 18/10/22 (see appendix A)
3.2. The Company secretary proposes that the board approves the amended Booking policy - as posted to the list on 18/10/22 (See appendix B)
3.3. The Company secretary proposes that the board approve the amended Complaints policy - as posted to the list on 31/10/22 (See appendix C)
4. Follow-ups
4.1 Training for IRC meeting facilitators (Martijn)
4.2 Code of conduct for Board Members (Elaine)
4.3. High Net Worth (Richard)
4.4. Minutes to be uploaded to website (Martijn)
4.5. Radio Producer (Elaine/George)
4.6 Fundraising Coordinator job description (Elaine)
5. Role reports
5.1 The Chair
5.2 Company Secretary
5.3 Treasurer
5.4 Tech coordinator
5.5. Membership secretary
6. AOB
7. Closed part of Meeting
7.1. Follow up - Response to Complaint
(confidential item redacted)
7.2. Election of List co-ordinator
Nomination: David
8. AOB
Appendix A: Job description - Communications officer
COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER The Communications officer is responsible for all communication with the public on behalf of the board. They will liaise and act under the direction of the board when necessary. The Communications officer is delegated responsibility for 1. Setting up and administrating all social media platforms approved by the board The board should approve all social media platforms that come under the Autscape Organisation eg. Twitter, facebook The Communications officer should ensure our details, company logo and registered info is accurate and clearly visible Where passwords or access is restricted, the Company secretary should be given the access information in case the Communications is absent 2. Monitoring and responding or reporting to the board any issues which might arise on the platforms. The board should determine the level of monitoring e.g. moderators and assign people to the roles. The Communications officer has responsibility for training and supervision of the individuals in these roles. The Communications officer should report any issues of concern to the board 3. Liaising between the board and the public When issues come to the attention of the board, the Communications officer should liaise with the board to deliver responses or take action as deemed by the board 4. Coordinating all requests for research to be conducted at Autscape as per our policy The Communications officer should deal with all requests to conduct research at Autscape events in line with our *[title of] policy 5. Coordinating all journalist and film requests to be conducted at Autscape as per our *[title of] policy The Communications officer should deal with all requests to conduct journalism or film at Autscape events in line with the policy 6. Monitoring emails to info@autscape.org, answering these where possible, and referring to the appropriate role holder or the board as indicated, e.g. complaints, offers of services The Communications officer should either answer or be responsible for any person they delegate to answer the first line info@emails. Any person delegated must also be a board member. 7. Making announcements and advertisements on behalf of the board The Communications officer is responsible for drafting and sending all public announcements and advertisements on behalf of the board. These should be approved by the board prior to being sent Note: We need to complete a new research and journalism requests policy which will be inserted at * when complete.
Appendix B: Booking policy
Rationale and details of amendments was made on list on 18/10/22
Booking policy
We understand that participants of Autscape events may have many questions
before booking. As our events often have restricted numbers and are
generally over subscribed it can help to know in advance about our Terms and
Conditions.
Our policy is:
To provide a fair booking policy
To publicise the existence of our booking policy
To gather information which helps us to improve what we do
This policy includes information about:
The Terms and Conditions
Payment
Cancellations
Transfer of places
Responsibility
Monitoring and Learning
1. Terms and Conditions
Who can book?
Anybody over the age of 18 may book a place at an Autscape event. You do not
have to have a diagnosis of autism. We require that you are aware of, and
respect, the fact that this is an autistic organisation, and all its events
are therefore autistic space.
Children and young people - Unless the event is specifically designated for
over18s children and young people under the age of 18 are welcome to attend
with an adult. The adult will be responsible for the child or young person
throughout the event, except when they attend a crèche or childcare facility
if one is provided at the event. There may also be some content at an event
which would be unsuitable for children and young people and age restrictions
may apply to those parts.
Carers/support workers/personal assistants - Autscape does not provide care
or support workers for participants. You are welcome to bring a person for
support if you need it. However, please note that Autscape does not offer
free places to carers, but we often have a reduced rate for Personal support
workers. Before booking a reduced rate Personal support workers place, we
ask that you consider the following:
Autscape’s position on carers
Reduced fee Personal support workers places, where available, are only
intended for those who attend Autscape only to facilitate an autistic
persons attendance. This would normally be a paid support worker or Personal
Assistant (PA).
Many of Autscape’s participants may have support in daily life; however,
Autscape creates space that is centred around the needs of autistic people
which often reduces or eliminates the need for additional support. As a
result, many people who may need support in daily life find that they do not
need support at Autscape. In addition, venues charge per person for food and
accommodation, and as Autscape is entirely funded by participant fees and
private donations, Autscape cannot afford to give free places. We understand
that some people would not be able to attend Autscape events without any
formal support, so when possible we offer subsidised Personal support
workers places.
If a carer is participating in the Autscape programme e.g. attending
presentations for their own interest, we ask and trust that they pay the
full participant rate. Those who come as Personal support workers are still
welcome to attend or participate in some activities when they are not needed
by the supported individual.
Journalists and Researchers
We wish to preserve an environment where autistic people are free to be
themselves without the feeling of being scrutinised; therefore, we strictly
limit the number of individuals attending our events to learn about autistic
people. All such activities must be in the interests of autistic people and
must be approved in advance by our Board of Directors. If you wish to
conduct research or any aspect of journalism eg. Filming, then please
conduct the board for approval at secretary@autscape.com
Accessibility
For further information on accessibility please see the venue information
and our Accessibility policy. The registrar can also answer questions if you
have specific concerns re accessibility at registrar@autscape.com
How to book
Booking will always be on-line, and a link will be published on the Autscape
website when registration is open. Information about the dates registration
opens and closes, along with fees, will also be given at that time.
Information on the type of booking system used for that event e.g. first
come first served or booking pool will also be given by the time
registration opens.
For popular events which are likely to be over subscribed, Autscape will
have a booking system which balances autistic traits such as the need for
certainty, difficulty making decisions and the need for support.
For residential events, full details of the types of rooms available and
dietary options will be given by the time registration opens.
If you are unable to book on-line, please contact the Registrar by
telephone, by post or by email to registrar@autscape.org. Postal address and
telephone number can be found on our website www.autscape.org.
Insurance
We recommend that you take out insurance in case you have to cancel.
2. Payment
Deposit/Booking Fee
When you book you may be asked for a deposit. The deposit will secure your
place for a set period.
A deposit will be due immediately.
Deposits are also non refundable except
if the Registrar cancels your booking because we are unable to meet your
accessibility or other needs relating to the venue eg. Diet
if full payment of your place was dependent on a bursary and you have
not been successful in gaining a bursary.
C. In extenuating circumstances, if agreed by the Management team
The deposit is non refundable because it also serves as an
administration/booking fee.
If you are asked to pay the full amount on booking you will be told what
amount would be a non refundable booking fee.
Full Payment
When the Registrar accepts your booking, you will be asked to make the full
or remaining payment by a set date. If you do not pay the full payment by
the date set you will lose your place and any deposit or booking fee you
have paid.
If you lose your place you are welcome to apply again.
How to Pay
Full details on how to pay will be given at the time.
We prefer payments to be electronic e.g. by PayPal, but we also accept
cheques. Regretfully, we are unable to accept cash.
3. Cancellations
If you cancel your place before the end of registration you will be
reimbursed your payment less the deposit or booking fee
If you cancel your place after registration closes, you may be reimbursed
your payment less the deposit or booking fee if we are able to fill the
place.
If Autscape has to cancel your place due to unforeseen circumstances, you
will be reimbursed full payment including any deposit or booking fee.
The board reserves the right to cancel any booking made and accepted
automatically via an electronic booking system, provided it has good reason.
In these cases the full amount paid will be reimbursed.
If you incur a loss due to having to cancel you may appeal to the Management
team AFTER the event by writing to the secretary@autscape.org.uk. This must
be within 60 days of the event ending.
4. Transfer of places
If, after you have booked and paid you find you are unable to attend you may
transfer your place to somebody else providing:
The person or persons taking your place have the same requirements, e.g.
if you booked a single standard room the person taking over cannot
request a single en-suite.
You inform the Registrar and the Registrar agrees.
5. Responsibility
Overall responsibility for this policy and its implementation lies with the
Board of Trustees.
6. Monitoring and Learning
The board will monitor our Booking policy periodically and amend this policy
if necessary
Review
This policy is reviewed regularly and updated as required.
Adopted on 23rd April 2022
Appendix C: Complaints Policy
Rational and full details of amendments as posted on list on 31/10/22
Complaints policy
Autscape views complaints as an opportunity to learn and improve for the
future, as well as a chance to put things right for the person that has made
the complaint.
Our policy is:
To provide a fair complaints procedure which is clear and easy to use.
To publicise the existence of our complaints policy
To make sure everyone on the board and the organising Management team knows
what to do if a complaint is received
To make sure all complaints are investigated fairly and in a timely way
To make sure that complaints are, wherever possible, resolved and that
relationships are repaired
To gather information which helps us to improve what we do
This policy includes information about:
The Definition of a Complaint
Where Complaints come from
Confidentiality
How to make a complaint
How we deal with complaints. See also Appendix 1 - Complaints procedure
and Appendix 2 and 3 - Practical Guidance for Handling Verbal
Complaints and Guidance on Investigating and resolving a Complaint
Responsibility
Monitoring and Learning
1. Definition of a Complaint
A complaint is any expression of dissatisfaction, whether justified or not,
about any aspect of The Autscape organisation.
2. Where Complaints Come From
Complaints may come from members and non members who have a legitimate
interest in The Autscape organisation.
A complaint can be received verbally, by email or in writing.
3. Confidentiality
All complaint information will be handled sensitively, telling only those
who need to know and following any relevant data protection requirements.
Where a complaint contains information that suggests a child or vulnerable
adult is at risk of harm, we will follow our Safeguarding Policy, which
requires that that matter is reported internally and externally where
necessary to protect the child or vulnerable adult from harm.
4. How to make a complaint
Complaints may arrive through channels publicised for that purpose or
through any other contact details or opportunities the complainant may have.
Complaints can either be made verbally or in writing.
Written complaints may be sent to The Honorary Secretary, Autscape, 101
Broad Park Road, Henley Green, Coventry, CV2 1DB or by e-mail to
secretary@autscape.org. We prefer to receive complaints by email as post may
be delayed.
For complaints at events, a note can be placed in the organisers action
needed box. Alternatively verbal complaints may be made in person to any of
Autscape's Management team.
You may make a complaint with the help of a friend, family member or
advocate. We are happy to correspond with another person at your request.
All complaints will be treated seriously but we will not process complaints
which:
Are unrelated to our work
Are jokes or pranks
Are abusive, prejudiced or offensive in their manner
Are harassing of Trustees
Are incoherent or illegible (and attempts to work with the complainant to
make the complaint coherent or legible fail)
Are part of a bulk complaint, e.g., the same complaint has been sent to
other organisations
Are made anonymously unless they relate to a serious issue on which there is
reasonable initial evidence to allow us to investigate the complaint.
5. How we deal with Complaints
In many cases, a complaint, particularly at events can be easily resolved
and we will try to deal with complaints informally where possible.
The Management team will have responsibility for dealing with complaints
received at events and for up to 60 days following an event, about events,
except those which are either:
not able to be solved following informal intervention
not related directly to the event but to other aspects of the Autscape
organisation
of a serious nature eg. Involve safeguarding or the possible sanctioning
of participants
The Honorary Secretary has delegated authority to process all complaints
sent to the board unless the complaint is about them in which case the chair
will take responsibility.
All complaints will be investigated taking into account the most relevant
policies, procedures or guidance.
Complaints dealt with by the board will be processed as quickly as possible
and the complainant should receive a definitive reply.
For information about the Complaints process see Appendix 1- Complaints
procedure
A record should be kept of all complaints resolved by the board. For
complaints resolved informally or at events a record should be kept and/or
the board notified only in cases whereby it may impact on future events or
policies.
6. Responsibility
Overall responsibility for this policy and its implementation lies with the
board of trustees.
7. Monitoring and Learning from Complaints
Complaints are reviewed periodically to identify any trends which may
indicate a need to take further action.
Review
This policy is reviewed regularly and updated as required.
Adopted on 27th June 2015
Reviewed on 27th March 2018
Appendix 1- Complaints procedure
It is expected that the majority of complaints will be resolved informally,
particularly at events.
This procedure relates to complaints that are not able to be resolved and
have been passed to the board or sent directly to the board.
As a small charity we do not have enough board members to convene a separate
Complaints committee and therefore formal complaints should only be
considered when all other avenues have been exhausted in trying to resolve
the matter.
On receiving a complaint at an event which the organisers are not able to
resolve, or they believe it is serious enough that the board should be
involved, or relates to Autscape in general, the full details should be
recorded, including the complainant’s name, contact details and any action
already taken to resolve it, and passed to the Honorary Secretary (or
another board member in their absence), who will bring it to the attention
of the board at the earliest opportunity.
If a complaint relates to the Honorary Secretary then the complaint should
be brought to another board member who will pass it to the Chair who will
then delegate another board member to lead the investigation and the
Honorary Secretary will be excluded.
If a complaint relates to a member of the board or on-site team they may be
questioned for information and included in any informal attempt to resolve
the complaint but excluded from any formal investigation of a complaint.
All complaints will be investigated taking into account the most relevant
policies, procedures or guidance.
A copy of this complaints procedure should be given to anybody who makes a
formal complaint along with the name and details of the person who they
should contact in relation to the complaint.
For further information on how to investigate a complaint see Appendix 3 -
Guidance on Investigating and resolving a Complaint.
The board must agree by a majority vote on a course of action including any
sanctions that may be imposed on a member or participant.
Complainants should receive a definitive reply as soon as possible.
Whether the complaint is deemed justified or not, the reply to the
complainant should, (if possible without breaching confidentiality),
describe the action taken to investigate the complaint, the conclusions from
the investigation, and any action taken as a result of the complaint.
The decision taken at this stage is final, unless the Board decides it is
appropriate to seek external assistance with resolution.
Note: In reaching a decision about external assistance with complaint
resolution the Board will have in mind their fiduciary duties and their
objects. As a small charity it isn’t appropriate for a large proportion of
our resources to be spent on external assistance to resolve complaints,
because this will reduce the funds available for our core purposes.
The Honorary Secretary or the person delegated to handle the complaint is
responsible for ensuring the complaint is handled in accordance with this
policy and taking any action resulting from the above.
The Charity Commission is the independent regulator of charity activity and
therefore the
complainant can complain to the Charity Commission at any time about the
conduct of The Autscape Organisation. E.g. If they believe Autscape is
misusing funds, falsely advertising, harming people or involved in illegal
activity. However, the Charity Commission cannot not involve itself in
complaints which are not of this serious nature or act as mediator to
resolve a complaint. For further information about the types of complaint
they can be involved with see their website under
www.charitycommission.gov.uk - ‘Complain about a Charity’.
The Board may also need to vary the procedure for good reason.
Appendix 2 - Practical Guidance for Handling Verbal Complaints
This appendix does not form part of the policy and may be revised from time
to time.
Remain calm and respectful throughout the conversation
Listen - allow the person to talk about the complaint in their own words.
Sometimes a person just wants to "let off steam"
Don't debate the facts in the first instance, especially if the person is
angry. Show an interest in what is being said
Obtain details about the complaint before any personal details
Ask for clarification wherever necessary
Show that you have understood the complaint by reflecting back what you have
noted down
Acknowledge the person's feelings (even if you feel that they are being
unreasonable) - you can do this without making a comment on the complaint
itself or making any admission of fault on behalf of the organisation e.g "I
understand that this situation is frustrating for you"
If you feel that an apology is deserved for something that was the
responsibility of your organisation, then apologise
Ask the person what they would like done to resolve the issue
Be clear about what you can do, how long it will take and what it will
involve
Don’t promise things you can’t deliver
Give clear and valid reasons why requests cannot be met
Make sure that the person understands what they have been told
Appendix 3 - Guidance on investigating and resolving a complaint
This appendix does not form part of the policy and may be revised from time
to time.
Try to find as much evidence as possible relating to the complaint. E.g. Did
somebody say something, see something, hear something?
Are there any witnesses?
Do other people share the view/opinion of the complainant? Have they
complained too?
If the complaint is about a person or persons, if appropriate ask the person
or persons complained about what happened.
Check complaints against our articles, constitution, policies and
guidelines.
Bring the evidence to the Board with a summary of your findings.
For written complaints brought to the board list: Inform the board you would
like their opinion and state a deadline for giving it. After the deadline
summarise the replies and send to the board with either of the following:
If the consensus is that the complaint is not justified - make a proposal to
the board that the complaint is not upheld set a deadline for the vote.
If the consensus is that the complaint is justified - make a proposal to the
board that the complaint is upheld setting a deadline for the vote.
If there is no consensus ask the board to discuss further. Set a deadline
then make one of the above two proposals to the board again.
After the proposal if the vote is a majority decision that the complaint is
not upheld, inform the complainant.
After the proposal if the vote is a majority decision that the complaint is
upheld, if appropriate, decide by vote and a majority decision if any
disciplinary action or change in policy/procedure is necessary. Inform the
complainant of the outcome and take any necessary action against the person
or persons complained about.
After the proposal if the vote is a majority decision that the complaint is
not upheld, inform the complainant.