Extraordinary General Meeting, Monday 5th June, 3pm - to wind up or not?
Cath M in Bentley (A Commune in the North/Radical Routes/Platform6)
Public
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The current directors do not have capacity to keep Platform 6 Development Co-op functioning.
Extraordinary General Meeting open to all, Monday 5th June, 3pm
Meeting link: https://de.meet.coop/b/gra-cpf-owy-a9s
We have around 30 members, including member organisations, but this meeting is open to everyone in the Platform 6 community.
Decisions/Proposals for the EGM, which need input from you lot in advance:
a) To dissolve Platform 6 Development Co-op, to pass the cash assets and the funds/brands of Ways Forward and of Breadfunds/Mutual First Aid on to (??)____ and to pass the fiscal hosting of our 30-odd Open Collectives to (??)_____ [Note - Graham is checking whether innovate.coop could take this on] - or to wind up once Open Collectives have found their own alternative fiscal hosting.
or...
b) to transfer assets and fiscal hosting as above, and to turn the company dormant with new named directors [Mx Y, Ms Z and Mr X - people would need to take this on before we could vote for it].
Why?!
P6 has been struggling for years now to create a culture of participation. The people putting in the graft have themselves been stretched over many projects and have not been able to put in the work of promotion, induction, outreach and organising which is necessary for an organisation of unpaid enthusiasts. When we surveyed to find more interested people, we didn't then have capacity to follow-up on the interest that was shown.
The fiscal hosting of Open Collectives has increased the administrative workload significantly, with constant issues over payment platforms and a vast amount more bookkeeping.
We really never got to the exciting position of having many members contributing to a fund for co-operative development, which was the original nub of the project, and would have created an engine driving inspiration and participation (in relative terms, at least).
We note that Development Co-op and the Young Co-operators Network have similarly struggled to survive/thrive and wonder what the similarities, differences and contexts are, what can we learn from this?
What we want from you now
respond below with any alternative suggestions for how we should proceed, or any questions
If you want to join Platform 6 in order to vote at the EGM or step into a directorship role, follow the link from https://platform6.coop/.
Suggest appropriate homes for the 'Ways Forward for the Co-op Movement' brand and seed fund for future events
Suggest appropriate homes for the Breadfunds/Mutual First Aid remaining moneys
Suggest appropriate homes for the Platform 6 Development Co-op fund
if you are considering taking on the responsibility for Platform 6, do express interest here or let us know. Happy to have conversations about what we think running Platform 6 entails/how it could be different.
RSVP
The work of re-homing Open Collectives will begin after the EGM - feel free to put questions here, but there may not be answers for a while.
We are very sad to have ended up in this position - all the challenges and opportunities that prompted the founding of Platform 6 still exist, it is no less necessary than it ever was, but we have run out of steam.
Cath, Graham & Austen
Cath M in Bentley (A Commune in the North/Radical Routes/Platform6) Mon 5 Jun 2023 8:31AM
Morning everyone, reminder that this is today at 3, https://de.meet.coop/b/gra-cpf-owy-a9s
I'm working on how much money there is in the various funds now.
Suggestions for good homes for the various funds welcome.
Chris Funnell Mon 5 Jun 2023 3:13PM
Grateful and humbled that even as it contemplates closure P6 has renewed commitment of funds to the online tools for co-operative development project. The project will soak up tens of thousands of pounds but the P6 monies will ensure CAN has the confidence to get it rolling. We have just entered our thirty fifth trading year and the tools that we use have had many hundreds of hours development work in them. If we can succeed in taking that work, further improving it and making it available for cost-free wider use on line then it will be a significant part of the substantial P6 legacy. If anyone is interested in playing a part, perhaps as member of expert feedback panel, please let me know. Thank you. In co-operation. Chris
Nathan Brown (Co-op Culture) Mon 12 Jun 2023 8:35AM
@Chris Funnell time willing would be happy to be involved in feedback panel. There is also a potential for us to use future cohorts of Barefoots (new to the trade, so arguably useful sets of eyes) to provide feedback when relevant tools are ready for testing (e.g. needs analysis tools). We currently get learners to look at and appraise the Bright Ideas diagnostic tool as an example of the sort of thing development workers may be asked by a project to use.
Cath M in Bentley (A Commune in the North/Radical Routes/Platform6) Mon 5 Jun 2023 7:50PM
Thanks to all who came along today - it is heartening that we are all so keen to make good use of the resources that we have.
Minutes/notes attached below. TLDR: we're not quite ready to let it go, would like to salvage bits for younger co-operators to take forward, a couple of people are going to spread the word in new places, we're reconvening on 31st July, 3pm, to review.
bob cannell Mon 5 Jun 2023 11:14PM
Thnx sorry for no show. Reeling from dentist appt. Bob
Martin Meteyard Tue 6 Jun 2023 8:48AM
@Cath M in Bentley (A Commune in the North/Radical Routes/Platform6)Thanks Cath - just to note that I was there too!
Cath M in Bentley (A Commune in the North/Radical Routes/Platform6) Tue 6 Jun 2023 9:20AM
oops ,sorry - mins amended x
Graham Mon 24 Jul 2023 10:54AM
Reminder: 31st July at 3pm - call to follow up and agree next steps.
Martin Meteyard Mon 24 Jul 2023 12:06PM
@Graham Yes, I'm planning to be there.
Graham · Fri 2 Jun 2023 11:45AM
A few thoughts on this situation. Reflecting on the thing, I'm sure we did lots of things wrong, and almost certainly didn't follow the advice that any one of us would have given to a start-up. We also did a good deal of interesting and useful things. We've enabled and supported https://social.coop and https://meet.coop along with a bunch of other nascent cooperative projects. We've kept the Cooperative Ways Forward wagon on the road in the face of the pandemic, and we've facilitated and been party to some great conversations that (still) don't seem to happening in other places. If there are people who could use the infrastructure we've built up to good effect to do stuff around cooperatives and cooperative development it seems sensible to hand all of that on rather than shut it down.