Criteria for becoming a DTA Member

The Development Trusts Association has two categories of membership:

• Full Members
• Associate Members

The criteria for membership differs for full and associate members, please see below:

FULL MEMBERS:

Full membership of the Development Trusts Association is open to development trusts. These are defined as organisations which are:

1. Engaged in the economic, environmental and social regeneration of a defined area
   
2. Independent, self-sufficient or aiming for self sufficiency, and not for private profit
   
3. Community based, owned and managed
   
4. Actively involved in partnerships and alliances between the community, voluntary, private and public sectors

For full details on the criteria for full membership please click here.

There is no standard organisational form for a development trust. Most register as a company limited by guarantee and in a few cases as an industrial and provident society. Many register as charities.

Please note:
We will also offer ‘emerging development trust’ membership to organisations that have a real potential to become a development trust within 12 months, but which may need support on one or more of the above criteria. In this case our regional staff will assist the organisation in drafting an action plan based on the results of the Membership HealthCheck. The organisation's membership status will be reviewed after 12 months. During that year, the organisation would have access to most full member benefits, including DTA products such as the Knowledge & Skills Exchange.

ASSOCIATE MEMBERS:

If you are not a development trust but support our aims and would like to become a partner in our movement we would be delighted to welcome you as an associate member.

Our associate members include local authorities, national businesses, intermediary lenders, regeneration partners in the voluntary sector, rural community councils, voluntary action councils, community foundations, co-op development agencies, enterprise agencies, consultancy practices, academic institutions and individuals.

In building the community enterprise movement we are expanding our membership to include Community of Identity organisations alongside our member development trusts. This new category is for BME, faith, disability, gender and other identity specific organisations who tackle discrimination which are setting up or supporting community enterprise activity. We believe such organisations have a lot to offer to our movement and equally have a lot to gain from membership of the DTA.

To find out more about the Community of Identity membership package click here.