What we’re about
Our Group:
Although badged as an 'Over 40s' group, we welcome over 35s, and are a group of like-minded social people who enjoy going out and meeting up with others to do a whole range of activities.
What We Do:
Events will mainly take place in the Hastings area, though our countryside walks and other one-off events may be further afield. Our events include countryside and coastal walks, going out for dinner, coffee mornings, park walks, craft events, board games evenings and catching local bands etc. We make sure we have a laugh on the way! Please have a look at our 'past' events as well as our upcoming ones to get a better idea of the types of events that we put on.
Rules:
We do have Group Rules that we expect our members to adhere to and these can be found at the end of this section.
Application Requirements:
Please ensure that your ‘Profile Name’ includes your first name. The use of initials only, such as TC, BLT, JR, or similar, is not acceptable in this group. You can edit your Profile Name in 'Edit Profile' if needed.
Please ensure that your profile displays a recent photo of yourself alone that includes your face, head, and shoulders. Images of your pet, a cartoon, or a group photo (two persons or more) are not acceptable, as the Event Host and other members need to be able to identify you. You can load a new profile photo in your profile ‘Settings’.
Event Fees:
A few of our events, such as countryside walks where site recces are required to assess the feasibility of a walk and to determine the route, may result in the Event Organiser incurring costs. While we are very grateful to our Event Organisers for giving up their time to organise events, we do not expect them to be out of pocket. As such for some events the organiser may choose to charge an 'Event Fee' to cover their costs. This will be payable on the day to the Event Host and will not normally exceed £1 per person. If such a fee is applicable this will be clearly stated in the event's 'Details'. This fee will be in addition to any personal costs that an attendee may incur such as parking fees, and food and drink costs etc.
Safeguarding:
Please behave appropriately when interacting with other members, and note that this is a social group and not a dating site!
We reserve the right to remove from our group any members who harass or bully other members. We also recommend that members report any such instances to Meetup. The following link refers:
https://help.meetup.com/hc/en-us/articles/360001673631-Harassment-and-bullying-offline
Please note that while our team do everything possible to create a safe environment for our group's members, we are not responsible for experiences that members have in other Meetup groups.
Group Rules
- Your Profile
a) Please ensure that your ‘Profile Name’ includes your first name. The use of initials only, such as TC, BLT, JR, or similar, is not acceptable in this group. You can edit your Profile Name in 'Edit Profile' if needed.
b) Please ensure that your profile displays a recent photo of yourself alone that includes your face, head, and shoulders. Images of your pet, a cartoon, or a group photo (two persons or more) are not acceptable, as the Event Host and other members need to be able to identify you. You can load a new profile photo in your profile ‘Settings’. - Fees
a) Event Fees - Event Organisers can choose to charge an 'Event Fee' to cover their costs if they so wish. This will be payable on the day at the start of the event and will be detailed in the Event ‘Description’. This fee will be in addition to any personal costs that an attendee may incur such as parking fees, and food and drink costs etc. - Reserving a Place at an Event
a) Only reserve a place on an event if you have a clear intention of attending it. If you are unsure whether you will be available, or you think there is a possibility that you may not want to go, then please do not reserve a place until nearer the time. If you require transport to get to an event then use the event 'Comments' to request this, stating your whereabouts. If you are fortunate enough to be offered a lift by another member, then please offer to contribute to their costs. Do not directly approach another member requesting a lift. Do not RSVP to the event until your transport has been confirmed. There is an option in Meetup to add an event to a list of 'Favourites', which enables you to have a record of an upcoming event without having had to commit to attending it.
b) Having identified an event that you are able to attend and wish to do so, select the event ‘Attend’ or RSVP button to reserve your place. Your status for the event will then be ‘Going’, unless the event is already full in which case you may be placed on a ‘Waitlist’. Persons on the ‘Waitlist’ will automatically have their event status updated to ‘Going’ if a vacancy appears, and you should receive a notification of this. Please note in some cases the Event Organiser may disable the ‘RSVP’ option until nearer the date of the event.
c) If you have chosen to attend an event, or added yourself to a ‘Waitlist’, but exceptional circumstances have occurred and you are no longer able to go, then select the ‘Edit RSVP’ button on the event and select the ‘Not Going’ option. If the event is less than 48 hours away, in addition to updating ‘Edit RSVP’, it is also courteous to use the ‘Comments’ feature on the event to leave a brief message regarding your non-attendance. If you have paid a deposit for the event, this may not be refundable.
d) Some events may provide a member with the opportunity to bring 'guests' with them. Only persons who have not previously been a member of this group are permitted to attend with the member as a 'guest'. Anyone who has previously been a member of the group who wishes to attend must reapply and have their application approved before being permitted to attend an event. Members are responsible for the behaviour of their guests at the event. - Event ‘Comments’
a) The Event ‘Comments’ feature should be used to request information about the advertised event, to provide short notice advice that you are no longer able to attend (also update via ‘edit RSVP’), Request transport to an event, or should you wish to do so to make positive comments about the event after it has taken place.
b) Under no circumstances is the ‘Comments’ feature to be used to give criticism, advice, sarcasm, abuse, or to make any other remark that might be considered offensive, however humorous the intention.
c) Do not use ‘Comments’ to request alterations to any aspect of the event. The content of an event is the decision of the Event Organiser, and if you feel that any part of it does not accommodate your requirements then please refrain from attending the event or commenting on it.
d) Regardless of whether it relates to 'Meetup' or not, do not use 'Comments' to advertise items or services that are for sale, other groups or organisations, or other events or activities. - During the Event
a) You are responsible for your own safety and wellbeing throughout the event. The group accepts no responsibility for any injury or loss that you may incur while attending our events. You are attending the event as a like-minded person, and the Event Hosts and/or Event Organisers are to all intents and purposes another attendee at the event and they hold no legal responsibility for any difficulties that may arise during the event.
b) If you are attending a walk, always bring an adequate amount of water with you in a suitable drinking container.
c) You must adhere to government legislation at all times.
d) Ensure that you have with you the means to purchase any items or services that you may need during the event, including any that have been specified in the event description, such as food, drink, entry fees etc. Do not expect any other member of the group to fund any requirements that you have during the event.
e) If you have any concerns during the event, then please refer them to the Event Host. - After the Event
a) If you have any concerns after the event then please send a personal message to the Event Host in the first instance. If the Event Host has not been able to resolve the concerns to your satisfaction, please send a personal message to the Group Organiser who will do their best to resolve them.
b) If you enjoyed the event, and others that we host, then please mention our group to your friends. - General
a) Great effort is made by the Leadership Team to organise events and to ensure members enjoy being in this group. Members are expected to act in a manner that eases pressure on the Leadership Team and anyone else involved in the organising and hosting of events. Any form of abuse aimed at members of the Leadership Team will lead to a member's instant dismissal and barring from the group.
b) Please act in a friendly manner towards other members, both at events or in communication outside of the events. You should not however harass, stalk, pester, or give any other form of unwanted attention to other members. This is not a dating site, it is a social group. It is important that all members can feel safe.
c) Any person making comments at an event that are liable to cause offence will be warned of this behaviour by the Event Host. Should the warning be ignored, the Event Host may ask the person to leave the event.
d) By all means mention your interests when talking to others at events, but campaigning, haranguing and fulminating must be avoided. Discussions about politics and religion are strictly off-limits at all events.
e) Unforeseen situations occur which may necessitate members cancelling their attendance of an event at the last minute. The practice however of members regularly reserving places on events and then changing their event status to ‘Not Going’, or not showing up at events when their event status is ‘Going’, is not welcomed. This inconveniences Event Organisers, and also has an impact on venues where the nature of the event has required the Event Organiser to provide confirmation to the venue of the number of attendees. Members are likely to be removed from the group if they have reserved places but withdraw from, or do not show up at, four (4) consecutive events, or their overall attendance record of events that they have initially reserved places on drops below 30%.