9 replies to this topic

[chrismdunford]

There seems to be some confusion about joining/membership of the UKPS so I have started this thread to try and clarify the process and answer some of the questions asked elsewhere. I have asked for this to be discussed at the next management meeting to see if any changes can be made.



To join the society you are required to fill in a form (name, address, dob, contact details etc.) and supply a passport sized photograph; proof of address and proof of age. If you are under the age of 18 the form will also need to be signed by your parent/guardian. You will also need to make a payment of £20 for full membership or £15 for junior membership if you are under 18. This can be done by bank transfer, cheque or paypal (we ask you to add £1 to paypal payments to cover the high charges).



We ask for photocopies rather than originals as they could be lost in the post. We realize that these could be forgeries (although I cannot imagine why a terrorist, or anyone else, would go to such lengths to join the society) but feel that this is a reasonable compromise.



It is not necessary to submit a birth certificate, a passport or driving license will do (if you are under 18 you do not need to provide proof of age).



Contrary to what it says on the membership form (I will ask for this to be corrected) membership does not run for a calendar year, but for a year from the 1^st of the month after the date you join; for example, if you join on 5^th September 2010 your membership will run from 1^st October 2010 till 30^th September 2011. A renewal reminder will be sent before your membership expires.



I wish it were possible for the form to be filled in online but this is not yet an option, but if you wished to avoid the post then it would be possible for you to send the necessary information and proofs to me by email (membership@pyrosociety.org.uk).



Among the other benefits of the society are copies of our newsletter “Spark”, occasional email bulletins, discounts on fireworks from some suppliers and discounts on UKPS organised training courses so even if you do not yet feel able to come to UKPS events it is still worth joining.



Any constructive comments or suggestions are welcome.

[Night Owl]

I understand we all need to keep it to "respectable" people for want of a better word but as this thread is now started ill just have a small say, I was slightly put off by the amount of security you need to become part of a magazine subscription and to say I make fireworks not B++++, lets face it a person with evil intent is probably not going to go to a pyro demo night, and there are plenty of places he could go to do his evil.

I was not put off because I have anything to hide, I do pyro and pyro only, I simply though it is slightly intrusive to need more security than some banks require.

Edited by shell shooter man, 06 September 2010 - 04:14 PM.

[chrismdunford]

I understand your concerns and they will be raised at the next meeting. The four founder members of the society decided on the documentation required for security reasons and compliance with the law.

The photo is necessary as all members are issued with a photo ID card, proof of address is, I think, reasonable. Is it proof of age to which people object?

[Peret]

I don't have any problem with sending information, and I apologize for stirring it up in the other thread. It's just that I come on the forum at night and think to myself, "Time I became a member", and then, "Oh but I don't have any pics and photocopies", and then in the morning I forget about it. Then another time I see a post like Crystal Palace's appealing for people to join and it pricks my conscience, but again, it's night time...

[Candle]

What a fuss, rules are rules and personally I am delighted that there is a degree of rigour in joining the society. Like it or not our naivety must be tempered with a robust sanity check of the materials that we embrace in our hobby. Of course we are all decent folks without a malicious bone in our body but we live in a dangerous world.

Lets give the society and those who run it on our behalf the credibility and gravitas of people who are serious to protect our passion, even it involves tedious forms and photographs!

[fruitfulsteve]

Pyro is time consuming, you'd spend a week(a month in my case) making and pasting a shell, surely an hour filing out a form is not much to ask:P

[BrightStar]

We did discuss membership processing briefly earlier this year. The management committee was concerned to ensure that members' data are kept sufficiently securely.

Currently, under the Data Protection Act 1998 we hold member details purely for the purposes of maintaining a role of active subscribers. By law, we cannot do anything more with this information and would not seek to do so.

Given the nature of our work within the society, we do however need to know who our members are. If there ever was to be a problem (and there have been none so far) we would be negligent in our basic due diligence if this had been neglected.

I believe that we are running the society for the long term gain of our membership and a basic level of verification would seem to help us all.

We will however revisit the topic in conference this week to see if any improvements can be made.

Edited by BrightStar, 07 September 2010 - 08:52 PM.

[Candle]

Improvement............. why? The membership process is so straightforward and easy. Lets not forget the UKPS is a wonderful concept and it enables us the opportunity to exchange ideas, passions and experiences within the confines of a reponsibly constructed society that currently enjoys, I imagine, a high degree of respect and reassurance from those distractors who would see our passion.... snuffed out!
In my mind it is these doubters for whom we must be whiter than white and yes it galls us all but sometimes we have to go that extra mile to retain what is precious to us, I cannot imagine a world without this forum and its members; actually yes I can, shady pops and flashes in the gardne shed next to the garden mower and no one to tell or ask.

Lets keep it going and if you require a cutting of my greying hair, so be it!

[nihc]

Hi,

Just my 2 cents worth.

Why not have 2 levels of membership - say, a "public" membership and a "full" membership, with certain society benefits only available to full members.

This gives people an easy way in and they can then decide to be a full member if the society is right for them.
It would also give people the confidence in the society to supply all of their personal details for full membership at a later date.

This would be an easy way to increase membership and interest. You can then work on increasing full membership.


Regards, Chris.

[Candle]

I have just noticed that my joining date is listed as May 2010 when in fact I joined, I believe April 2009. I know it seems picky but I am a proud member of some longevity.........only joking but I have been fully paid up since 2009.

There seems to be some confusion about joining/membership of the UKPS so I have started this thread to try and clarify the process and answer some of the questions asked elsewhere. I have asked for this to be discussed at the next management meeting to see if any changes can be made.



To join the society you are required to fill in a form (name, address, dob, contact details etc.) and supply a passport sized photograph; proof of address and proof of age. If you are under the age of 18 the form will also need to be signed by your parent/guardian. You will also need to make a payment of £20 for full membership or £15 for junior membership if you are under 18. This can be done by bank transfer, cheque or paypal (we ask you to add £1 to paypal payments to cover the high charges).



We ask for photocopies rather than originals as they could be lost in the post. We realize that these could be forgeries (although I cannot imagine why a terrorist, or anyone else, would go to such lengths to join the society) but feel that this is a reasonable compromise.



It is not necessary to submit a birth certificate, a passport or driving license will do (if you are under 18 you do not need to provide proof of age).



Contrary to what it says on the membership form (I will ask for this to be corrected) membership does not run for a calendar year, but for a year from the 1^st of the month after the date you join; for example, if you join on 5^th September 2010 your membership will run from 1^st October 2010 till 30^th September 2011. A renewal reminder will be sent before your membership expires.



I wish it were possible for the form to be filled in online but this is not yet an option, but if you wished to avoid the post then it would be possible for you to send the necessary information and proofs to me by email (membership@pyrosociety.org.uk).



Among the other benefits of the society are copies of our newsletter “Spark”, occasional email bulletins, discounts on fireworks from some suppliers and discounts on UKPS organised training courses so even if you do not yet feel able to come to UKPS events it is still worth joining.



Any constructive comments or suggestions are welcome.