This is our first newsletter for over a year! There have  been many changes to co-op structure and processes in this time; refinements, innovations, personnel switches, and the good news is that the catalyst has been an increasingly engaged membership. That’s you!
Now we just need More members - so go recruit! Gem & Helen x

To be held at the Co-operative Education Centre,
11 Fore St, IP4 1JW, at 7pm each time.                  Map
Routine matters discussed at the meetings are the Rota - ie. filling it, so if you want to put your name down bring your diary - and updates on decisions and actions from the Working Groups (WGs).
All members are welcome - please try to attend because nothing will get done without your input.
Especially encouraged are projects you have in mind for the food co-op that you want to run past other members, or if there’s an adverse issue you want to raise and solve.
The agenda is open for your suggestions! Contact for the venue is Pam Walker, Education Development Officer, who is allowing us to use it for free. 01473 280316 p.walker@eastofengland.coop

Wed 10th Dec - G room
Mon 9th Feb 09 - Heinz room
Thurs 9th April - G room
Tues 9th June - Heinz room

Map
What is the food co-op? The past few months have seen alot of discussion about our aims; the co-op’s history and future. Some members comment that we seem to be at a transitional moment, with a flurry of activity tightening up the organizational parts of the co-op e.g working groups, the legal infrastructure, new stock system, membership renewals...

These changes are brilliant. During this period it's vitally important that we discuss the co-op as a concept and ponder it's role in our broader community. Through the discussions at the AGM and by working groups, it's been decided that a ‘Visioning Meeting’ is necessary.

This meeting is for is to shape a vision of what co-op members want. It will be a chance to get together, put aside the day-to-day parts of the co-op and find out what it means to each of us. What are our hopes and fears for the co-op? Do we have a wider remit than food? If so what is it and how do we work towards it? What is Ripple?

Obviously the founders of the co-op had their own opinions about what the co-op would be back in April 07 and they're keen to talk about the original ethos, and how this feeds into it’s current incarnation.

Many of these questions have come about as a result of members querying their place in the co-op. What are we members of? What powers do we have? It is essential that when people pay their membership fee, they know what they're signing up for.

The meeting will run all afternoon because we never have enough time or energy at evening meetings, and the encroaching darkness can sap our creativity. We’ve asked First Question, the worker’s co-op, to facilitate the event in order to get the most out of it, so expect interactive and unusal methods!

We hope to see lots of you there, but if you can't make it email/ phone with your thoughts. (Yes there will be refreshments - bring & share)

The content for this is being uploaded by the Website working group (WG), contact: webmaster@ipswichfoodcoop.co.uk if you want to join/ enquire.
You can find the Member’s Area by clicking ‘Member’s Login’ at top-right of the home page. You will need to request log-in details; username, password, from the above email address.

 On it can be found newsflashes, minutes of meetings, helpful info and jobs that need doing, plus working groups contacts. This is a communication tool for us to use, take a look and suggest content!








Along with the Members’ Area of the website, we still use the Documents facility in our Googlemail account for ‘inprogress’ collaborations. Like a WIKI.
For instance, John F posts all the product price change lists and SUMA invoices up there, and meeting minutes, and an ‘Issues’ log has been created, so members can raise problems and people contact one another in order to brainstorm solutions.
The Members’ Register is also kept here as it needs to be accessed by different volunteers in the course of their tasks. Instructions to enter the Google Docs are on the Members’ Area!

Ipswich Ripple CIC’s Annual General Meeting was held 03-09-08 at the Salvation Army Hall. We had a long Agenda which prompted lively discussion so we didn't make it through all items - these will be carried over to the next general meeting. However all formal business was transacted, in keeping with company legislation. The full minutes from the AGM, containing ‘07-08 accounts, questionnaire results and changes to the membership renewal system, can be found in the member's area of the website.

As the co-op has grown, the administration and decision-making has necessarily required more supervision. At first different roles were intended to revolve around different volunteers, but this lead to inconsistencies and was unworkable. As a result some people were left with too much work, whilst others, who were willing to get more involved, were unsure how to go about this.

Working groups are small groups of members with an interest in a specific area, willing to discuss issues within that remit and find and implement solutions. So far we’ve got:        

Feedback: a mechanism to take on board comments about the co-op - Debbie L

Volunteer policy: a temporary group to discuss a proposal for a volunteer and non-volunteer based pricing structure - Steve, John, Joy, Dave and Mary, Debbie

Stock: to address all issues around ordering, stock taking, pricing, VAT - Helen M, Nigel L, Ian St-J

Membership: updates members details and sends out renewal reminders - Joy B,Megan T membership@ipswichfoodcoop.co.uk

 

Rota: to ensure enough people are volunteering to keep the co-op open - Dave D

Health and Safety: to monitor H&S and implement changes to further promote it - Steve, Margaret

Finance: to form the accounts and scrutinize the cash flow - Diane S (Accountant), Nigel M, Gemma S

Development/ Marketing: to promote the co-op and facilitate advancement - Simon Saunders, John B

Website: to maintain and update the website and members area - John F, Dave D, Nick G webmaster@ipswichfoodcoop.co.uk

The groups welcome more members so consider contributing to their discussion. A list of ‘groups without members’ is in the Members Area.
Working group meetings are arranged informally between members but minute taking is still required, and whilst they have executive decision-making power the results must be presented to and reviewed by members at the general bi-monthly meetings.
Minutes will be posted on the website and made available at co-ops.
To contact any of the WG’s, leave a message with the Till-person at a co-op and it can be transmitted internally, use the Google Docs to find members’ details or email the general email address asking for them. There are also sign-up sheets being used at co-op opening hours if you want to join.

On the 16th of October the directors of the co-op passed a resolution to change the wording in our constitution to reflect the current state of membership. Full minutes of that meeting are in the Members’ Area
and at co-op.

What this means in terms of members’ and directors’ legal responsibilities is explained in Chapter 9.1 of the CIC Guidance Notes on Corporate Governance, a copy of which is on the co-op noticeboard, and the CIC Regulator’s website. AGM Minutes online and at co-op Working Groups (WGs) and their activities

From the members point of view, the technicality of changing to ‘large’ membership aligns our paperwork with our reality, in that there are more directors than members of the co-op, and not all members are directors.
The Volunteer Policy working group brought this discrepancy to light.

September saw three of our membership go to the capital of Ireland on a tour of green initiatives within the city. Their report is a laminated set of A3 displays which can be read at the co-op itself, because it’s too lengthy to reproduce here! I’ll be content to use images from the trip to brighten these pages.  (Actually available in HTML form: Dublin Report JF)

A couple of weeks ago the inaugural meeting of Transition Town (TT) Ipswich was held at the Citizens Advice Bureau, which drew 25 keen people wanting to respond locally to the urgencies presented by climate change and peak oil. A power-point by John Taylor; who called the meeting, on the history of the TT movement can be found here, along with more info on the fledgling group and it’s aims:
 www.greenlivingcentre.org.uk/ttipswich.htm
One couple who came along are attending a TT training event on Mersea Island and will be feeding back to the group about that experience in early November (4th) at the Apricot Centre, Lawford. If you want to come along or be involved further email:
 ttipswich@googlemail.com

* Our margin has had to go up to 5% to remain viable as an organisation. So we now cover our rent each opening, just through sales. Instructions for purchase discounts have been revised on the till-table. Also, the membership fee has risen to £12.

* There was a mishap in the summer when a session’s sales money wasn’t banked and cannot now be traced - this made a dent in our reserves which made it difficult to pay invoices on time for a while. The account signatories are seriously looking into how this could have happened, and designing controls to prevent it occuring in future. The financial hiatus has also made it clear we need a dedicated Finance Group to keep better tabs generally on money in and out, ensuring we’re covering our costs, and make it easy for the end-of-year collation that goes to Companies House. Would you be on it? As a first step, we downloaded a piece of software which should help us stay up to date each fortnight. www.diyaccounting.co.uk/companyaccounts.htm

Another outcome from this is a greater effort to garner membership fee renewals and also recruit more members, as this would help our income stream. So please don’t be offended if you’re contacted by someone wanting your year’s fee!

* Anyone making a Personal Order at the co-op will now need to leave a contact email or mobile number in case their item is out of stock and needs to be substituted, and so we can contact them to confirm delivery of the item. The Order Book has morphed into a more sophisticated folder, and everything that needs to be taken away after an opening session is labelled on a folder at the till. Personal Orders are also subject to the increased markup of 5%. The Suma invoice is also being copied to John F for bringing into the Friday shift, so Personal Orders can more easily be sorted from stock, even if the Order book doesn’t appear through mishap.

*Communications have been identified as requiring some attention - especially where keyholders for opening up are concerned. Too many members have been frustrated after turning up to do a shift and not being able to get in.
At the moment it is everyone's responsibility to ensure if they're on the rota, they put down their contact details - other members take these upon signing up, so all can get in touch with one another and decide a keyholder, then arrange who picks the key up for the shift.
It was agreed that a box be constructed at 165 Burrell Rd for the storage of a spare key so any volunteer can access it, and the idea for leaving it with a shopkeeper on Bramford Rd is still being investigated.
In meantime, the bunch of keys for both front door and storage container are at the above address: 01473 684 449 / 07816 146 567, a spare front door key is held by Joy B, and Helen M also has one.

*The Salvation Army captains are reviewing our keyholder capacity and may revoke it to tighten up their own security - we will argue against this because it would make operating very difficult. They are also considering increasing our rent. If these measures pass and become inhibiting we will have to look for another venue, so put your thinking caps on! We need a place with a big hall and storage of a secure, dark, cool nature - about 4m² will do.

 

We’ve not had a physical whip round for the rota since August, and Dave D has had to email out desperate missives for volunteers the week of a session. This doesn’t mean we’re about to collapse, just that we haven’t had that all- mportant sit-down with diaries.
Look at the rota pictured and if you can do any of the dates that are volunteer-short, please sign up at a session or by email (or Contact form)- make sure you leave contact details in full! This requires commitment from all of us. The next meeting is Dec 10th and we will be collecting members names then for the coming quarter’s shifts.
One of the great things about Dublin Food Co-op was their ‘Failte’ policy; monthly inductions for newbies. Ripple Food Co-op volunteers should try their best to ensure continuity of learning during their shifts, ie. put themselves down for a friday one fortnight and a saturday the next, and actively speak to other volunteers about the responsibilities involved on each day.
Peer-to-peer learning like this will have the effect of tightening our network and placing responsibility for the co-ops running on a wider number of shoulders, thus making it more sustainable.

So - act as if nobody else will sort out your shift for you: you need a keyholder, the keys, the order book and any special instructions from the Till-file.

Dave P has an orchard, whose trees he has been thinning out this year ready for apple selling, juicing and bottling. He brought some of his wares along in early October - how local can our juice range get?

We are only ordering James White Beetroot and Vegetable and the Great Uncle Cornelius lines now, because the other companies can supply us with the rest and they’re more local.

Maple Farm at Saxmundham are now supplying us with their organic Spelt, Wholemeal, and Unbleached White flour in 25kg sacks. Members price per kg for these are 1.65, 0.71, 0.79 respectively. We’re going with Maple Farm over Doves Farm and Watermill as positive discrimination for a local grower, but you can still order the other brands in bulk.

New products on trial:  Fairtrade Orange juice,    Artichoke Tapas Spread, Zapatista Coffee Grounds & Beans,   Aspalls Balsamic Vinegar,    Zaytoun Palestinian Olive Oil,   Buckwheat & Spelt Pasta,    Shoyu Soy Sauce,  
Sosmix in 5kg sacks.

Discontinued products are on the website.

 

Random Camel Housing Co-op are looking to take advantage of current market conditions to purchase a property, and are looking for investors! If you want to contribute to a long-lasting community ownership scheme for those who need a stable base for social change activism, please contact randomcamel@phonecoop. coop or 01473 684 449 - all amounts welcome!

Independent Film Showings at CAB
Screenings to be resumed shortly - we are awaiting a shipment of DVDs from Brighton to form a programme running over a six month period, so bear with us!