The co-operative principles are common to all co-ops throughout the world and provide a set of guidelines that help us to put our values into practice. The principles are written into the rules under which we are constituted and inform the governance of Glasgow Student Housing Co-op as well as helping us to ensure our policies are in keeping with the core values of co-operatives.
The co-operative principles are:
- Voluntary and open membership
- Democratic member control
- Member economic participation
- Autonomy and independence
- Education, Training and Information
- Co-operation among co-operatives
- Concern for community
We have been told by a few wise and experienced co-operators that the first four principles are what makes a co-op, a co-op and the last three are what makes a co-op a good co-op. We strive to be a good co-op and think all seven are very important.
Over the next few weeks we will be looking at each of the principles in more detail and reflecting on how we put them into practice.
Here’s a cute poster from the Seeds for Change website about the Co-op principles & values.
Glasgow Student Housing Co-operative 