Edinburgh Professionals

# Welcome to Edinburgh Professionals

Edinburgh Professionals is a friendly social group for people who want to meet new people, make friends and enjoy getting out and about in Edinburgh and the surrounding area.
We organise a wide variety of events throughout the year, including walks for different abilities, nights out, meals and drinks, cinema trips, theatre and cultural events such as the Edinburgh Fringe, as well as getting together to watch sporting events.
Whether you're new to Edinburgh, want to expand your social circle, or simply fancy getting out and doing more, you're very welcome to join us.
We aim to:

• Organise regular events, usually every week.
• Have active members and organisers.
• Offer a good variety of social activities.
• Keep the group friendly, welcoming and enjoyable.

We've had some brilliant meetups over the years and hope to have many more.

## A Few Things We Ask of Our Members

### Profile Photo

Please have a clear photo of yourself on your Meetup profile.
This makes it easier for organisers and other members to recognise you, particularly when you're attending your first event.

### Supporting the Group

Edinburgh Professionals is funded by voluntary donations from members.
Meetup now costs us more than $350 per year to keep the group running. Rather than introduce a compulsory membership fee, we'd prefer to keep the group accessible to everyone and ask members who enjoy the group to contribute if they can.
Around £5 per year is a suggested contribution, but there is no compulsory amount — please simply give whatever you are comfortable with.
Even a small contribution helps towards the cost of keeping the group running, and we really appreciate the support.

Donate online:
https://buy.stripe.com/6oUdR8cqOfdhdkybhVfUQ02

Bank Transfer:
If you'd prefer to donate by BACS, please message me for the bank details.

### Keep Your RSVP Up to Date

If you've RSVP'd YES to an event but can no longer attend, please change your RSVP to NO as soon as possible, preferably at least 2 hours before the event starts.
This is especially important for events with limited spaces, as it gives someone else the opportunity to attend.

### Bringing a +1

The +1 option is mainly for friends who are visiting or someone who would like to try the group before joining.
If someone enjoys attending and wants to come regularly, we'd ask them to join the group themselves rather than continuing to attend as a +1.
For events with limited availability, priority may be given to group members.

### Be Friendly and Respectful

We want Edinburgh Professionals to remain a friendly and welcoming group.
Please treat other members and organisers with respect. Abusive, offensive or inappropriate comments may be removed, and serious or repeated problems may result in removal from the group.
Comments and friendly discussion about events are always encouraged.

### Event Invitations

If you receive an invitation to an event that you don't plan to attend, there's no need to RSVP NO.
You only need to change your RSVP if you've previously selected YES and can no longer attend.

### Check the Event Details

Please read the event description before attending, particularly the meeting location and start time.
Organisers will include any important information you need to know in the event details.

### No-Shows and Late Cancellations

We understand that plans sometimes change.
However, if you RSVP YES, please either attend or update your RSVP if you can no longer make it.
Three no-shows may result in removal from the group.
Repeated last-minute cancellations may also result in restrictions on attending events, particularly where places are limited and other members have missed the opportunity to attend.

### Inactive Members

To keep the group active, members who haven't attended an event for more than 4 months may occasionally be removed.
Don't worry if this happens — you're welcome to rejoin when you're ready to start attending again.

### Contact from Organisers

Please make sure Meetup allows our Event Organisers to contact you.
Sometimes we need to message members about changes to an event, meeting locations, bookings or other important information.
If your privacy settings prevent organisers from contacting you, we may ask you to change them.

## Fancy Organising Something?

We're always looking for new event ideas and members who would like to get involved.
If there's somewhere you'd like to go, something you'd like to do, or you'd be interested in hosting an event yourself, please contact one of the organisers.
This is your group too.
The more members who suggest activities, attend events and occasionally organise something themselves, the better the group becomes.

We look forward to meeting you at an event soon.
Paul and the Edinburgh Professionals Event Organisers