19 February proved a cold, wet, snowy day, yet 19 members of the UKPCO descended on Nottingham University Hospital for the UKPCO AGM. And what an interesting day it was as Adrian Batty, in his own words, reports.
Editor”s note. This was their first AGM since the confusion following UK Pest Controllers Organisation or UK Pest Controllers – click here for a Pest report on the confusion.
| The first item on the agenda was the dissolution of UKPCO ”the partnership”. Goodbye UKPCO. Hello UKPCO Ltd! Yes, UKPCO is now a limited company, ensuring its assets are now secure and providing a legal footing for UKPCO to move forward as a ”not for profit company”. Officers were then elected: Slight changes to the requirements for membership were made. Public liability insurance requirement was raised to a minimum of £5 million, along with RSPH/BPCA Level 2 Award/Certificate in Pest Control as a minimum qualification and agreeing to undergo CPD. Associate membership remains at two years, but they must show a commitment to taking the RSPH Award/Certificate in the first year. Members will also be more committed to mentoring associate members where possible. Local authority members are welcome but they must comply with the membership requirements, and a new membership category of ”specialist” member is to be considered so as to include those who specialise in one particular area only, e.g. bedbugs or wildlife management. A decision is expected within three months for those pest controllers that do not use pesticides in the course of their business. UKPCO is no longer a buyers” consortium and a committee newsletter is to be produced quarterly to improve communication. Ian Woods was roundly applauded for the speed and skill with which he set up the new UKPCO Forum, and the design of the forthcoming UKPCO website, which will advertise to potential customers the benefits of using UKPCO members and the members themselves. |
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Members agreed unanimously to continue to use BASIS PROMPT as the register of CPD, despite some failings. Following a request from BASIS, members must apply for membership individually, confirming they are members of UKPCO. The secretary will now require members to forward copies of member’s insurance and BASIS membership for the company records annually to confirm compliance with UKPCO membership criteria. Subjects for future discussion included a Code of Conduct, or Code of Best Practice, Office of Fair Trading Trade Mark Scheme and finally members were asked to study and comment on a forthcoming Code of Practice on bedbug control. A pleasant, friendly day finally came to an end, with the most contentious item being when to eat lunch! A vote of thanks was offered to Martyn Belcher for organising the meeting room at the hospital and Tony Baker for organising the lunch. Interested? Why not pop in to the UKPCO Forum for a chat – click here
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