Membership Rules
Anyone wishing to become a new producer must contact the Shop Management sub-group requesting an application. A sample of produce may be requested by the Shop Management group before the application is approved & membership number supplied
1) Membership eligibility:
Anyone who is interested in supporting the aims and objectives of the SHPM can apply to become a member. See Constitution Section 4.
There are four classes of membership, two of which require residence within the Sheep's Head Peninsula area*
*The area covered by Kilcrohane and Durrus Community Councils’ electoral register.
See Constitution Section 6)b) for details
The relevant membership form will need to be completed and passed to the Membership Secretary.
An interim membership will be applied until full membership is confirmed by the Steering Group and any other conditions required by the type of membership are met. See Constitution Section 6)b.
Applying for membership is considered acceptance of any responsibilities and duties regarding compliance with EHO / HSE, Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and any other government and local authority regulations appropriate to produce and goods offered for sale.
Applying for membership indicates an agreement with the Producer Guidelines and Membership Rules including Discipline Policy.
Applying for membership indicates agreement to pay any membership fees, commissions and / or market stall fees in force at that time, as agreed at the AGM / EGM. These charges will be amended as required and attached to this Appendix.
3) Rules of Membership:
a) Members support the aims and objectives of SHPM.
b) It is understood that all members support the high standards required by the SHPM and that they show due regard towards the produce, pricing & presentation of fellow producers in this respect
c)It is expected that, when actively linked to SHPM, members conduct themselves in such a manor that does not bring SHPM into disrepute.
4) Breach of Membership Rules and Producer Guidelines:
Any breach of the Membership Rules or Producer Guidelines will result in the implementation of the Disciplinary Policy.
Membership Fees
All fees and payments will be decided by the Steering Group and current fees will be displayed in the SHPM shop and on the SHPM website
Disciplinary Policy
The Disciplinary Policy of the SHPM applies to all members of the SHPM with regards to their conduct in relation to any and all policies, procedures and guidelines as adopted by the SHPM and in force at that time.
All members have a duty to ensure that they abide by the Membership Rules and Producer Guidelines.
If a member believes that there has been a breach of either the Membership Rules or the Producer Guidelines, they have a responsibility to raise the issue with a member of the Steering Group.
The route taken depends on the type of breach, severity and strength of evidence.
1) Informal Report:
a) If there is a vague suspicion that there may have been a breach, then an informal report should be made to a member of the Steering Group, outlining the type and severity of the breach and how the information has been acquired.
b) The Steering Group member should note this information and pass it on to the Investigator (Steering Group member delegated to act as an investigator).
c) The investigator will investigate further and decide if further action is required. If the breach involves produce, they may decide to suspend sales of the produce whilst the investigation is underway.
d) They will inform the member under investigation (the appellant) of the suspicions held and any action taken so far. The member can give their version of events.
e) Using the information gathered the Investigator will decide:
i ) if there was a breach of membership rules or Producer Guidelines
ii) any action that needs to be taken i.e. problem solved or Formal Report
f) The Investigator will note the outcome and inform the appellant and the person making the initial report of this outcome.
2) Formal Report:
a) A Formal Report is made in writing to the Chairperson, detailing the breach of Membership Rules or Producer Guidelines and the evidence of this breach. It is signed and dated by the person(s) making the report.
b) A copy of the Formal Report is sent to the appellant, along with a letter detailing a date, time and place for a formal hearing not less than seven days and not more than fourteen days from the date the information is sent to the appellant.
c) The letter will also inform the appellant of whom to contact and how to contact them if the date, time and place is inconvenient and the timescale in which the change of date, time and venue can be made. The final date MUST be within the original fourteen days or the hearing will take place with the appellant being absent, unless there is an exceptional reason for their absence, in which case a mutually convenient date, time and place will be set. The hearing may be rescheduled due to exceptional circumstances a maximum of two times. On the third date the hearing will take place.
d) The letter will also inform the appellant that they may make representation in writing, including questions to be asked of the investigator and / or any witnesses called.
e) The letter will also inform the appellant of their right to have a person accompany them to the hearing. The accompanying person is there as a friend and observer.
f) A panel comprising of one Steering Group member and two other members will conduct the hearing. (Details of how disciplinary panels are achieved are detailed in Section 5 below).
g) If the appellant disputes the written evidence the following procedure will be followed:
h) The decision and the reasons for it are noted, along with any penalty if the appellant is found to have breached Membership Rules or Producer Guideline.
i) The appellant and the person(s) who made the Formal Report and the Steering Group are informed of the outcome.
j) The outcome is noted on the relevant membership records
k) If the appellant is found to have breached Membership Rules or Producer Guidelines, they have the right to appeal against the decision.
3) Appeal against the decision:
a) Any appeal against a disciplinary panel decision must be made within seven days of the decision being sent to the appellant.
b) A second panel will be appointed, comprising of the Chairperson, another Steering Group member and one other member. (Details of how disciplinary panels are achieved are detailed in Section 5 below).
c) The hearing will proceed as in 2) above with regards to date, time and venue, timescale, hearing the evidence and the decisions made.
d) If the appellant disagrees with the outcome of the appeal hearing they may make their appeal to the next AGM. The appellant cannot ask for an EGM to discuss their case.
4) Appeal to AGM:
a) The appellant must inform the Chairperson at least twenty one days before the AGM that they want their case to be heard by the entire membership.
b) The appeal will be placed on the AGM agenda, as a sub-section under the Membership Secretary report. The Membership Secretary will read out the decision made and the reasons given at both hearings.
c) The appellant will put their case to the membership at the AGM.
d) Members present at the AGM may question the appellant and the Steering Group in place at that time with regards to the case.
e) A card vote will be taken.
f) The decision made by the card vote will be final.
5) Composition of Disciplinary Panels:
a) The Steering Group will compile a list of members who would be willing to serve on a Disciplinary Panel, the pool.
b) All members of the Steering Group will be expected to take part in a Disciplinary Panel if required.
c) If a Disciplinary Panel is needed to hear a case there will be a random draw of five members from the pool. The member who made the Formal Report or the appellant cannot be part of the panel.
d) These members will be contacted in the order in which their name was drawn to check their availability for the hearing. The first two who are available will be part of the panel.
e) A similar draw is made to select the Steering Group member, except that the Chairperson and the investigator are excluded.
f) If the date, time or venue is changed, the members of the panel will be contacted to check that they will still be available. If they are unable to attend the revised hearing then the next member from the original draw will be contacted. If required, a new draw of names can be made.
g) If a panel to hear an appeal is required there is a draw for the Steering group member and the ordinary member. These members must not have been part of the first panel. The appellant and investigator are excluded from this panel.
6) Possible penalties that can be imposed:
Penalties imposed may include:
* At least three members should be involved in the 'quality check' of a product or products. They must be able to make judgements based on quality not personal preference e.g. turning down a painting because they don't like the subject matter or style, refusing a coconut cake when they don't like coconut etc. The members may be on the Steering Group.
** Suspension of membership is a break in membership and will affect the right to be nominated for and taking up a post on the Steering Group. A Non-producer member will not be entitled to a refund of fees if their membership is suspended.
7) Recording the decisions made:
a) The results of all hearings and, where applicable, the penalty imposed must be kept with the membership records.
b) The name and membership number of the member accused of breaching membership rules and or Producer Guidelines must be recorded.
c) The name and membership number of the person(s) instigating the enquiry must also be kept.
d) The Membership Secretary will check the records at least four times a year to look for any patterns of malicious reporting of breaches of Membership Rules or Producer Guidelines.
Anyone wishing to become a new producer must contact the Shop Management sub-group requesting an application. A sample of produce may be requested by the Shop Management group before the application is approved & membership number supplied
1) Membership eligibility:
Anyone who is interested in supporting the aims and objectives of the SHPM can apply to become a member. See Constitution Section 4.
There are four classes of membership, two of which require residence within the Sheep's Head Peninsula area*
*The area covered by Kilcrohane and Durrus Community Councils’ electoral register.
See Constitution Section 6)b) for details
- Market Shop Producer Membership – residential requirement
- Sunday Market Stallholder Membership – residential requirement
- Non-Producer Membership which includes Founder members
- Guest Membership
The relevant membership form will need to be completed and passed to the Membership Secretary.
An interim membership will be applied until full membership is confirmed by the Steering Group and any other conditions required by the type of membership are met. See Constitution Section 6)b.
Applying for membership is considered acceptance of any responsibilities and duties regarding compliance with EHO / HSE, Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and any other government and local authority regulations appropriate to produce and goods offered for sale.
Applying for membership indicates an agreement with the Producer Guidelines and Membership Rules including Discipline Policy.
Applying for membership indicates agreement to pay any membership fees, commissions and / or market stall fees in force at that time, as agreed at the AGM / EGM. These charges will be amended as required and attached to this Appendix.
3) Rules of Membership:
a) Members support the aims and objectives of SHPM.
b) It is understood that all members support the high standards required by the SHPM and that they show due regard towards the produce, pricing & presentation of fellow producers in this respect
c)It is expected that, when actively linked to SHPM, members conduct themselves in such a manor that does not bring SHPM into disrepute.
4) Breach of Membership Rules and Producer Guidelines:
Any breach of the Membership Rules or Producer Guidelines will result in the implementation of the Disciplinary Policy.
Membership Fees
All fees and payments will be decided by the Steering Group and current fees will be displayed in the SHPM shop and on the SHPM website
Disciplinary Policy
The Disciplinary Policy of the SHPM applies to all members of the SHPM with regards to their conduct in relation to any and all policies, procedures and guidelines as adopted by the SHPM and in force at that time.
All members have a duty to ensure that they abide by the Membership Rules and Producer Guidelines.
If a member believes that there has been a breach of either the Membership Rules or the Producer Guidelines, they have a responsibility to raise the issue with a member of the Steering Group.
The route taken depends on the type of breach, severity and strength of evidence.
1) Informal Report:
a) If there is a vague suspicion that there may have been a breach, then an informal report should be made to a member of the Steering Group, outlining the type and severity of the breach and how the information has been acquired.
b) The Steering Group member should note this information and pass it on to the Investigator (Steering Group member delegated to act as an investigator).
c) The investigator will investigate further and decide if further action is required. If the breach involves produce, they may decide to suspend sales of the produce whilst the investigation is underway.
d) They will inform the member under investigation (the appellant) of the suspicions held and any action taken so far. The member can give their version of events.
e) Using the information gathered the Investigator will decide:
i ) if there was a breach of membership rules or Producer Guidelines
ii) any action that needs to be taken i.e. problem solved or Formal Report
f) The Investigator will note the outcome and inform the appellant and the person making the initial report of this outcome.
2) Formal Report:
a) A Formal Report is made in writing to the Chairperson, detailing the breach of Membership Rules or Producer Guidelines and the evidence of this breach. It is signed and dated by the person(s) making the report.
b) A copy of the Formal Report is sent to the appellant, along with a letter detailing a date, time and place for a formal hearing not less than seven days and not more than fourteen days from the date the information is sent to the appellant.
c) The letter will also inform the appellant of whom to contact and how to contact them if the date, time and place is inconvenient and the timescale in which the change of date, time and venue can be made. The final date MUST be within the original fourteen days or the hearing will take place with the appellant being absent, unless there is an exceptional reason for their absence, in which case a mutually convenient date, time and place will be set. The hearing may be rescheduled due to exceptional circumstances a maximum of two times. On the third date the hearing will take place.
d) The letter will also inform the appellant that they may make representation in writing, including questions to be asked of the investigator and / or any witnesses called.
e) The letter will also inform the appellant of their right to have a person accompany them to the hearing. The accompanying person is there as a friend and observer.
f) A panel comprising of one Steering Group member and two other members will conduct the hearing. (Details of how disciplinary panels are achieved are detailed in Section 5 below).
g) If the appellant disputes the written evidence the following procedure will be followed:
- the investigator puts their case
- the appellant can only ask questions of the investigator
- the panel can only ask questions of the investigator
- the appellant puts their case
- the investigator can only ask questions of the appellant
- the panel can only ask questions of the appellant
- the investigator and appellant withdraw
- the panel has a discussion regarding the evidence so far
- the panel recall the appellant and investigator
- if no decision has been reached they can ask further questions of both or either the appellant and investigator
- the investigator and appellant withdraw
- the panel has further discussion until a decision is reached or it is agreed that they cannot reach a decision, in which instance the case has ended without resolution.
- the appellant and investigator are recalled and informed that a decision has been reached and will be sent out within two working days.
h) The decision and the reasons for it are noted, along with any penalty if the appellant is found to have breached Membership Rules or Producer Guideline.
i) The appellant and the person(s) who made the Formal Report and the Steering Group are informed of the outcome.
j) The outcome is noted on the relevant membership records
k) If the appellant is found to have breached Membership Rules or Producer Guidelines, they have the right to appeal against the decision.
3) Appeal against the decision:
a) Any appeal against a disciplinary panel decision must be made within seven days of the decision being sent to the appellant.
b) A second panel will be appointed, comprising of the Chairperson, another Steering Group member and one other member. (Details of how disciplinary panels are achieved are detailed in Section 5 below).
c) The hearing will proceed as in 2) above with regards to date, time and venue, timescale, hearing the evidence and the decisions made.
d) If the appellant disagrees with the outcome of the appeal hearing they may make their appeal to the next AGM. The appellant cannot ask for an EGM to discuss their case.
4) Appeal to AGM:
a) The appellant must inform the Chairperson at least twenty one days before the AGM that they want their case to be heard by the entire membership.
b) The appeal will be placed on the AGM agenda, as a sub-section under the Membership Secretary report. The Membership Secretary will read out the decision made and the reasons given at both hearings.
c) The appellant will put their case to the membership at the AGM.
d) Members present at the AGM may question the appellant and the Steering Group in place at that time with regards to the case.
e) A card vote will be taken.
f) The decision made by the card vote will be final.
5) Composition of Disciplinary Panels:
a) The Steering Group will compile a list of members who would be willing to serve on a Disciplinary Panel, the pool.
b) All members of the Steering Group will be expected to take part in a Disciplinary Panel if required.
c) If a Disciplinary Panel is needed to hear a case there will be a random draw of five members from the pool. The member who made the Formal Report or the appellant cannot be part of the panel.
d) These members will be contacted in the order in which their name was drawn to check their availability for the hearing. The first two who are available will be part of the panel.
e) A similar draw is made to select the Steering Group member, except that the Chairperson and the investigator are excluded.
f) If the date, time or venue is changed, the members of the panel will be contacted to check that they will still be available. If they are unable to attend the revised hearing then the next member from the original draw will be contacted. If required, a new draw of names can be made.
g) If a panel to hear an appeal is required there is a draw for the Steering group member and the ordinary member. These members must not have been part of the first panel. The appellant and investigator are excluded from this panel.
6) Possible penalties that can be imposed:
Penalties imposed may include:
- being barred from selling produce for a specified time period
- submitting produce for a 'quality check' before it is allowed to be sold*
- a verbal or written warning that unacceptable behaviour has occurred
- suspension of membership for a specified period**
- any other penalty that the Steering Group judge to be reasonable
- Expulsion from SHPM***
* At least three members should be involved in the 'quality check' of a product or products. They must be able to make judgements based on quality not personal preference e.g. turning down a painting because they don't like the subject matter or style, refusing a coconut cake when they don't like coconut etc. The members may be on the Steering Group.
** Suspension of membership is a break in membership and will affect the right to be nominated for and taking up a post on the Steering Group. A Non-producer member will not be entitled to a refund of fees if their membership is suspended.
7) Recording the decisions made:
a) The results of all hearings and, where applicable, the penalty imposed must be kept with the membership records.
b) The name and membership number of the member accused of breaching membership rules and or Producer Guidelines must be recorded.
c) The name and membership number of the person(s) instigating the enquiry must also be kept.
d) The Membership Secretary will check the records at least four times a year to look for any patterns of malicious reporting of breaches of Membership Rules or Producer Guidelines.