How to get there

By public transport

Bridge 5 Mill is in the Ancoats district just outside Manchester City Centre. The nearest railway station is Manchester Piccadilly Station (22 mins walk or 7 mins by tram).

It is served well by trams. The nearest tram stop to the venue is Holt Town (4 mins walk) which is two stops from Manchester Piccadilly station.

Bus numbers include: 76, 217, 216, 231

By bike

Secure sheltered bicycle parking available on site. Bikes are left at own risk.
Cycle hire is also available, go to beeactive.tfgm.com/cycle-hire/ to download the app.

By car/taxi

Visitors can be dropped off at the front entrance of the Mill. There is very limited road parking available on nearby streets (Branson Street, Piercy Street and Pollard Street).

To plan your journey visit tfgm.com/plan-a-journey/

How to vote

Voting is your chance to shape how your Society is run.  Vote in a way that suits you – online, by post, or at our AGM – and the voting process is quick and easy.

As an eligible member, you will have received an AGM voting pack via post or email.  The pack also contains our Annual Review and Notice of AGM which includes information relating to AGM resolutions.

Simply visit ecologyagm23.ukemeet.uk to vote online; or scan the QR code on your paper proxy voting form. Alternatively, you can complete the voting form in your AGM voting pack and post it back to us, free of charge.

This year’s voting will be administered by UK Engage, a leading election services provider.

We’ll donate 50p to environmental charity Trees for Cities for every member who votes online (20p for those voting by post). We’ll also donate £1 to if you choose to go paperless and receive future voting packs by email, which helps reduce our paper use.

Please ensure we receive your vote by 5pm on Wednesday 19 April 2023.

 

Register to attend our AGM and Member Meet-up in person

This year’s AGM and Member Meet-up takes place at Bridge 5 Mill in Manchester. At the event, you can hear from our experts discussing our shared aims of leaving the right kind of footprint together. We look at our common experiences, sustainable lending and agitation for change. There will also be plenty of time to meet other members, Ecology colleagues and directors.

You can find out more and register to attend by visiting our dedicated Eventbrite page at ecologyagm2023.eventbrite.co.uk.  If you're unable to register online, please contact us on 01535 650770.

 

Why attend?

We're owned by our members and put their interests first, so if you're a part of Ecology we want to hear what you think.

Our AGM is your opportunity to:

  • Meet the Ecology team and share your views on our work
  • Hear from our experts discussing our shared aims of leaving the right kind of footprint together. We look at our common experiences, sustainable lending and agitation for change
  • Meet other Ecology members in a friendly environment

See Details And Register:

About the venue

Bridge 5 Mill is Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut ac lectus a ex ornare fringilla laoreet a tellus. Cras viverra convallis nisi, quis tincidunt enim sagittis etc.

Accessibility: A stair lift is available for visitors and staff are on hand to assist. As the library is within a Grade II listed building, there are some constraints on accessibility adaptations. For more information, visit theleedslibrary.org.uk/access-statement.

 

REGISTER HERE

How to get there

Train: A six-minute walk or two-minute cycle from Leeds Railway Station, which is served by trains from across the country. There are cycle stands on the pedestrianised streets around the library.

Bus: There are bus stops within a few minutes’ walk, situated on nearby Boar Lane, Vicar Lane and Park Row. To plan your journey, visit firstbus.co.uk/leeds.

Car:  Leeds has a Park and Ride service operating from locations around the city. Pay and display parking is available within a 10-minute walk.

Schedule and speakers

Schedule and speakers
10:15

Registration and refreshments

Meet your fellow members.
10:30

Building societies for beginners

Optional session introducing the building society model and the workings of an AGM.
11:00

Annual General Meeting including Ask the Directors

Lunch

13:30

Footprints on the ground – Innovation for positive change

Panel discussion on the latest innovations in sustainable building and retrofit. Daniel Capstick - Product Manager - Mortgages, Ecology Building Society Marianne Heaslip - Co-founder and Technical Director, People Powered Retrofit Lynn Sullivan - Chair of the Good Homes Alliance and Interim National Retrofit Hub
14:15

Footprints in the ground – Sustainable lending in practice

Hear from Ecology borrowers who are building a greener future. Ele George - Former Ecology self-build borrower and sustainable construction specialist Chris Pyke - Founding member of Five Rivers Cohousing Gisela Renolds - Executive Director, Global link (Lancaster) Ltd
15:00

Break

15:15

Future footprints – Agitating for positive change

Hear from leading change-makers on how they are influencing policy and behaviours Colin Baines - Shareholder activist and ethical campaigner Sara Edmonds - Director of Studio Search and Co-ordinator at Architects Climate Action Network (ACAN) Rob Harrison – Editor, Ethical Consumer
16:00

Closing comments

Gareth Griffiths – Chief Executive, Ecology Building Society

REGISTER HERE

Speakers

img1

Gareth Griffiths, Chief Executive

img2

Louise Pryor, Chair

img2

Andrew Gold, Director

img4

Mary Ealden, The Leeds Library

img4

Carl Hutton, The Leeds Library

img4

Bill Phelps, Chapeltown Cohousing

What buildings qualify?

If you’re planning to build an energy-efficient off-site construction property through one of our supported suppliers, we’re here to help.

At Ecology, we’re not put off by the construction type; we’ll support many types of construction techniques. If we can see your build will be energy efficient using sustainable and locally sourced materials through one of our suppliers, we’ll consider lending.

This mortgage is only available where you are purchasing your build through one of our supported suppliers. Please see ‘Our suppliers’ section for further details.

Our mortgages are available throughout the UK (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland).

How does the mortgage work?

We’ll lend money to help buy the land and pay for the build.

We offer two types of mortgages within our mortgage range. Details of interest rates and charges can be found in the ‘Our mortgages’ section.

Off-site Build Mortgage – we’ll release up to 80% of the purchase price or value of the property and subsequently, the money required for the build.  As you continue with your build, flexible staged payments of up to 80% of your increased build value will be released – this will help you keep tabs on your budget and planning.

Off-site Build Mortgage (Advanced Payments) – We’ll release up to 80% of the purchase price or value of the property and subsequently, up to 80% of the final value of the property to help you cover your build costs.

We recognise that some customers experience cashflow issues when suppliers require high, upfront payments to pay for their property being built in a factory off-site with the property later mobilised on your land. With our innovative advanced payment mortgage, when your build manufacturer requires payment for the kit deposit, manufacturing, construction and delivery, this mortgage will provide payments up to 80% of the cost value. This ensures you have adequate cashflow to cover the cost of your build.

This type of mortgage may be suitable if you have limited deposit remaining after you have purchased the land and covered some of the infrastructure costs to the land.

 

See Details:

About the venue

For members who are not able to attend a meet-up in person or would prefer to attend online, we are holding an online meet-up.

 

REGISTER HERE

How to register your place

The easiest and quickest way to register is by following the link to our EventBrite page and selecting the 'Online Member Meet-up' from the list of events.

If you are unable to register online, please contact us on 01535 650 770.

 

 

Schedule and Speakers

Schedule and speakers
16:00

Welcome and introductions

Gareth Griffiths, Chief Executive, and Louise Pryor, Chair, Ecology Building Society
16:10

Sustainable lending in practice

Bill Phelps, founding member, Chapeltown Cohousing. Jeremy Kidwell, Ecology borrower
17:00

Building our sustainable future

Gareth and Louise share their thoughts on how we can accelerate and grow our commitment to sustainability. Includes Q&A.
17:45

Closing remarks

18:00

Close

REGISTER HERE

Speakers

img1

Gareth Griffiths, Chief Executive

img2

Louise Pryor, Chair

img2

Tim Morgan, Director

img4

Andrew Gold, Director

img4

Jeremy Kidwell,
Ecology borrower

img4

Bill Phelps, Chapeltown Cohousing

See Details:

About the venue

The Grassmarket Centre is home to the Grassmarket Community Project. Through social enterprise, mentoring and education, the project creates opportunities for those who might otherwise experience difficulties in accessing education and employment. The centre has won multiple awards for its architecture and community work.

Accessibility: All floors are accessible by lift with staff on hand to help. There are accessible toilets on site.

 

REGISTER HERE

How to get there

Train/Tram: Within a 15-minute walk of Edinburgh Waverley Railway Station and Princes Street tram stop. There is a bicycle park at the Grassmarket.

Bus: There are multiple bus stops within a few minutes’ walk. Find routes at lothianbuses.com.

Car: There are park and ride services around the city; visit edinburgh.gov.uk/parkandride. Pay and display parking is located nearby.

 

Schedule and speakers

Schedule and speakers

15:30

Registration and refreshments

 

16:00

Welcome and introductions

Gareth Griffiths, Chief Executive

16:05

Welcome to The Grassmarket Centre

Jonny Kinross, CEO, Grassmarket Community Project

16:10

Sustainable lending in practice

Peter Allen, Head of Assets and Sustainability, The Ethical Property Company PLC
Hugh Ross, Development Officer, Staffin Community Trust
Ronnie MacRae, CEO, Communities Housing Trust (CHT)

 

17.05

Break

17:15

Building our sustainable future

Gareth shares his thoughts on how we can accelerate and grow our commitment to sustainability. Includes Q&A.

18:20

Closing remarks

18:30

Close

REGISTER HERE

Speakers

img1
Gareth Griffiths,Chief Executive
img2
Gio D'Alessio, Director
img4
Peter Allen, The Ethical Property Company PLC
img4
Jonny Kinross, Grassmarket Project
img4
Hugh Ross, Staffin Community Trust
img4
Ronnie MacRae, Communities Housing Trust