How to get involved in the Independent Practitioners Network
Having read about the IPN, it may not be very obvious what you can do in order to become part of it. What follows is intended to spell out the implications of the constitution, and show you how the thing works practically.
Only a group can become a member of IPN. But anyone who attends a meeting is a participant , and all participants are on an equal footing. There are two kinds of meeting; everyone is welcome at both of them.
National gatherings happen whenever the previous meeting decides; we try to rotate them around the country. Normally, they are residential, and for a weekend; some are deliberately cheap and cheerful, others more expensive and comfortable. There is no set agenda, those who attend decide together what to do; but usually there is a section of the weekend devoted to administration and planning.
Regional gatherings happen on an ad hoc basis, whenever someone has the impulse to organise one. They are usually intended both as a place for people who want to find out about IPN, and as an opportunity for those already involved to meet.
You can find out about these meetings from IPN, or from your regional reference person. The other way to get involved is by forming or joining a member group. This is the basic unit of the IPN: a group of at least five, and usually less than ten, practitioners who are or who want to be willing to stand by each others' work. There is no set procedure for this: a group has to work out for itself how its members will reach this sort of mutual solidarity - which is a serious business: your own standing will depend on that of your co-members. Some groups use a procedure for Self and Peer Assessment; some focus on peer supervision as a way of learning about each others' work; some have a shared project, like running a therapy centre. Others are quite individual and eccentric in their approach!
You may already be in a group which is interested in joining IPN collectively; or you may be looking for other like-minded people. In the latter case, you might find useful the list of people looking for groups which we distribute (and you might want to go on it yourself). You might also be interested in organising a local meeting to find other people. In that case, or if you are already in a group, IPN can provide a speaker to come and talk about our work: contact your regional reference person, whose details you will receive when you contact us.
If you already have a group, IPN also has a list of groups looking for links (one of the conditions of membership is that you are linked to two other groups - see the IPN Principles and Procedures .) Your group might also want to go on this list.
Good luck, and we look forward to seeing you in IPN!
To receive information about IPN, and to become involved yourself, e mail us, giving a snail mail address. You will be asked to fill in a questionnaire and to send £10 as a one-off contribution. Future contributions are entirely voluntary.