Membership

Promoting education and re-creation for recreation in South East London

Some of the Members at the Easter Steam-up 2019

Membership of the Welling & District MES is open to all those who are genuinely interested in model and experimental engineering and furthering the objects of the Society defined in the Articles of Association.

Potential applicants are welcome to come along to a few of our meetings before completing an application form, so that they can see if the Society suites them and we can get to meet them and introduce ourselves.

As the Society meets on a secure site, entry needs to be arranged, so if you are thinking of joining us, please complete a contact request on this web-site, and a Committee Member will contact you and sort out some initial visits.

All applications for membership must be made on the current pro-forma. All such applications are reviewed by the Society Directors, and may involve an interview of the applicant - especially if they haven't been seen at a meeting. Once an application is approved, the applicant becomes a Provisional Member for six months, after which ongoing membership is either ratified or refused.

Full details of this process and fees will be made available to you during your initial visits to the Society, however, you need to know that there are five Membership Classes as follows:-

Full Member

Who pay an Annual Subscription of £50 due on – or before – 01 January each year and a joining fee of £10 on first application which pays for their site entry key.

The minimum age for Full Membership is 18.  Such members may use the Society’s tracks and workshop, subject to current rules and safety regulations posted on the Society’s notice-board.

Full Members become Eligible Members of the Society – when their ongoing membership is confirmed – and may, once entered on the Society’s register as an Eligible Member, Propose, Second and Vote on motions at General Meetings Propose or Second applicants for Membership and be elected as Directors or Committee members of the Society.

The minimum age for Retired Membership is 65 and the member shall not be in full-time employment.  Such members may use the Society’s tracks and workshop, subject to current rules and safety regulations posted on the Society’s notice-board.

Retired Members become Eligible Members of the Society – when their ongoing membership is confirmed – and may, once entered on the Society’s register as an Eligible Member, Propose, Second and Vote on motions at General Meetings Propose or Second applicants for Membership and be elected as Directors or Committee members of the Society.

Retired Members

Who pay an Annual Subscription of £40 due on – or before – 01 January each year and a joining fee of £10 on first application which pays for their site entry key

Honorary Members

Who do not pay an annual Subscription

Honorary Membership is awarded – at the recommendation of the Directors of the Society – to those Members who were previously Full Members or Retired Members and who were aged 80 years or more on 01 January and who have, in the opinion of the Directors, rendered exceptional service to the Society.

Honorary Members are Eligible Members of the Society and may Propose, Second and Vote on motions at General Meetings, Propose or Second applicants for Membership and be elected as Directors or Committee members of the Society.

Junior Members are aged between 9 and 18 – or up to 23 if still in full-time education.  They can only be considered for Membership with express agreement of a Parent or Guardian – who must be a Full, Retired, Honorary or Associate Member – and if under 18 years of age must be accompanied at all times when on the Society’s premises by a Parent or Guardian.

Junior Members are not Eligible Members and may not, therefore, Propose, Second or Vote on Motions at a General Meeting nor Propose or Second applicants for membership and cannot be elected as Directors or Committee members.

They can use the Society’s Track and Workshop subject to the rules governing such use.

Junior Members

Who pay an annual subscription of £12 due on – or before – 01 January each year, however, they do not pay the joining fee on first joining and do not get issued with a site entry key, so can only be admitted by a key-holder.

Associate Members

Who pay an annual subscription of £8 due on – or before – 01 January each year, however, they do not pay the joining fee on first joining and, like Junior Members, do not get issued with a site entry key.

The minimum age for Associate Membership is 18 and this class is open to relatives of Full, Retired, Junior or Honorary Members who wish to participate in Society activities – such as assisting at Public Running and social events.

Associate Members are not Eligible Members and may not, therefore, Propose, Second or Vote on Motions at a General Meeting, nor Propose ir Second applicants for membership.

They may not use the Society’s track or workshop.