Code of Conduct

Trans Aid Cymru (TAC) is a mutual aid organisation and adheres to the principles of mutual aid: that people give what they can and receive what they need, though solidarity not charity. While volunteers and members of TAC may provide services for vulnerable Trans, Intersex and Nonbinary (TIN) people in Wales, we also encourage and facilitate, wherever possible, intra-community support.

We expect all members and volunteers to have respect for one another and our service users and to behave in a professional manner when carrying out responsibilities as a volunteer for or member of TAC.

We recognise that TAC is an informal, voluntary organisation that operates within a tight-knit community. Many of our service users are also our friends. We therefore do not have the same expectations of our members that businesses or charities with paid employees may have. However, professional boundaries are required for TAC to operate in a safe, consistent, and transparent manner. They are outlined in this Code of Conduct below:

Professional Behaviour

1. You will be expected to maintain a professional distance from our service users, which includes, and is not limited to:
   1. Using TAC social media or email rather than personal social media accounts to communicate with service users in a professional capacity relating to TAC.
   2. Not posting about service users and other volunteers/team members on social media 
   3. Passing on a service user and their query to another appropriate volunteer if you are feeling uncomfortable with providing a continued service, for any reason
2. You will be expected to refrain from engaging with any service users in a professional capacity (relating to TAC) whilst under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol.
3. You will be expected to carry out the responsibilities of being a team member or volunteer that are outlined in the Team Descriptions [To be Added]
4. You will be expected to adhere to and uphold all other TAC policies, including but not limited to, the Safeguarding Policy, Equality and Diversity Policy, and the Privacy Policy
5. You will be encouraged not to push yourself beyond your ability, and set realistic limits for yourself on the work that you are capable of doing at any given time

Complaints or Concerns

1. It is important that you act in accordance with the Complaints and Concerns Procedure when dealing with any and all service users. We encourage team members and volunteers, where possible, to resolve minor conflicts or address minor concerns with each other. Where this is not possible, the Complaints and Concerns Procedure is set in place to facilitate dealing with any issues that arise.
2. As a group of likeminded people whose primary concern is the support of each other and our service users, it is important that we all strive to support each other if any concerns and complaints do arise. We aim to foster a healthy environment in which concerns can be dealt with in a fair, sensitive, and considerate manner. 

Meetings

1. While we understand that all TAC members are volunteers, it is important to attend regular meetings to remain updated about the running of TAC and its projects.
2. For general meetings, all members should be given a minimum of 3 days notice and meeting agenda should be supplied a minimum of 24 hours before the meeting.
3. In the case of emergency meetings, notice may be shorter, but will always be provided via email and the Element app. The same rules regarding Quorum to make decisions apply for emergency meetings
4. In every event, a member that is attending a meeting will be chosen to take minutes, which will be emailed out to all team members and volunteers in due course following the end of a meeting. 

Changes to the Code of Conduct

1. The Management Team may edit or update the Code of Conduct at any point, however:
2. TAC encourages cooperation and consensus decision-making, so where possible, other members and volunteers should be consulted about changes to the Code of Conduct. Any major changes should be discussed and agreed upon in a general meeting.
3. If the Management Team does make any edits or updates, all members and volunteers must be notified within 48 hours.

Last updated:	Version:	Changes made by:
10/03/21	1.0	General Admin team