PILOT LEADS STRUCTURE MERSEYSIDE TRANS+ COUNCIL (FOR SEPTEMBER 2026)

Outline

Having taken on the consensus from prior meetings; organisers - Safe Space Merseyside and Trans Forward NW - have considered and decided on a lead model for the Merseyside Trans+ Council. We believe this would be conducive to the running of the council, promote our shared community outcomes, as well as create opportunities for members which will encourage and develop trans+ leadership in Merseyside. From September 2026, we are launching a 6 month pilot, which will consist of 7 lead roles. Of these, 2 will be co-organisers (SSM and TFNW), and 5 working group lead roles. The lead pilot will test our structuring model, and identify any areas for change to the system. Ahead of launching a long term structuring in March 2027.

Proposed Merseyside Trans+ Council Leadership Structure

Proposed Merseyside Trans+ Council Leadership Structure
Co-Organisers Safe Space Merseyside & Trans Forward North West.	Members Hold the right to vote, elect leads, and inform our agenda.	Working Group Leads As elected by our members, to lead working groups.

Figure 1. (above) This is a lateral leadership model, which recognises responsibilities without placing any one individual above others.

Co-organisers, Meetings, and Working Groups / Lead Positions

Firstly, the responsibilities of the co-organisers will be to facilitate meetings, including operations and administration, support working group leads, and run the communications of the Merseyside Trans+ Council. Over time, we may look to include further co-organisers, where there is a need for additional support in running the trans+ council. In the instance that a co-organiser were to step away from organising, then we would have a process in place to identify a new co-organiser if there was a need for this.

Trans+ Town Hall meetings (public) will now run on a bi-monthly schedule, alongside Leads Meetings (private) in the alternating months to the Trans+ Town Hall. The decision for Trans+ Town Hall meetings to run bi-monthly, is to make committing to regularly attending more accessible for those interested, as well as to allow for more time in between meetings for actions to take place.

The five working groups for the pilot, which will each require a lead, will be: 1. Trans Masc, 2. Trans Fem, 3. Non-Binary, Gender Fluid & Intersex, 4. Global Majority & Migrant and 5. Disability & Neurodiversity. Anyone who belongs to any of the identities may be a part of these working groups. Co-organisers recognised these five areas for working groups as being of primary interest to the community, and representative of key identities. We appreciate that some identities have been grouped together, and this is on a practicality of reasonably launching a number of groups at one time. We may expand the number of working groups in the future, based on demand and feedback. Starting with five sets us up in good stead to build a dynamic team from there.

	Trans+ Town Hall Meetings	Private Leads Meetings
When will meetings take place?	Bi-Monthly on Odd Months: Jan, Mar, May, Jul, Sep, Nov	Bi-Monthly on Even Months: Feb, Apr, Jun, Aug, Oct, Dec
Who will attend these meetings?	Open to Anyone: individuals (incl non-stakeholders), reps from groups and orgs, allies.	Closed to only organisers and working group leads.
What is the intended purpose of the meetings?	Agenda items, follow ups from previous meetings, proposing new actions for working groups, open forum discussions.	Updates on actions in the time in between meetings to ensure good progress, as well as planning for public meetings.
Who can add an agenda item and / or speak at these meetings?	Anyone in advance of the meeting, and anyone in attendance.	Any lead can add items put forward on behalf of their working group, and speak on behalf of.
Who is leading the meeting?	A rotating meeting chair, rolling between the working group leads.	Co-organisers, as they are responsible for facilitating MTC, admin and operations.

Figure 2. (above) Table listing the differences between the two types of meetings with rationale.

The Role of Trans+ Town Hall Leads

As of July 2026, the Merseyside Trans+ Council is a newly established and emerging organisation, but one that we hope will become an invaluable and necessary entity within our region. The adversities currently experienced by the trans+ community will likely be faced for years to come, and we can look to challenge and overcome these through best practice, solid organising, and effective leadership. This is what we aim to achieve through running this council. In order to do so, this requires individuals to hold responsibilities to work together collaboratively towards our community goals. To achieve positive outcomes, that benefit the lives of those living within our region, as well as both nationally, and globally. Leads within the council will be expected to fulfil a number of duties whilst holding their elected positions. These are outlined below.

Duties of Merseyside Trans+ Leads (essential) - Over 6 months (from September 2026):

• Leading their specific working groups - communicating with members of the working group, delegating tasks for members to carry out, ensuring that agreed actions from town hall meetings are taking place, feeding back during town halls on behalf of their working group.
• Attending ALL meetings (where possible) - this includes both the bi-monthly town hall meetings, and the private leads meetings (6 total).
• Chairing one of the Trans+ Town Hall meetings (optional) - This involves reading through the agenda items, moderating discussion, and facilitating fair participation from attendees.
• Potential for further responsibility - As a new organisation, we cannot yet determine how our leads might additionally serve within our council. In the future, we might look to include leads in other ways, which involve the operations of the Merseyside Trans+ Council. This would be subject to suitability, proven excellent standards and relevant contribution to organising.

We want to create a team of dedicated, collaborative and creative individuals with a shared vision to improve the lives of our people. This does not require prior experience, simply a desire to make change, and a belief that you would be able to contribute effectively towards doing so. There is no explicit criteria to be eligible for a lead role within the Merseyside Trans+ Council, besides being a member of our trans+ community. But we have a list of desirable traits, which might help you to decide whether you would be suitable for a lead role, as well as more info on responsibilities:

• Good communication and interpersonal skills - you do not have to be an extrovert, but you will be responsible for leading a working group, delegating tasks, and feeding back information during meetings.
• Problem solving mindset - there will inevitably be challenges for us to work through as a local community, and within specific working groups. A lead should be someone who others can look to for input and ideas, potential solutions, and accountability.
• Lived experience within your role - consider whether you hold a significant amount of lived experience before putting yourself forward. A lead should be able to draw from their knowledge to help inform discussion and decision making. There is no fixed amount of time which this should equate to, however, if you feel there may be others more suited to leading a working group concerning this identity other than you, perhaps delay running until a future election.
• Knowledge and or expertise - a competent lead would likely be someone who is informed, stays up to date with trans+ issues, and has a background in a discipline which they can draw from as reference for the work which they might carry out within their working group. This might be from a wide variety of backgrounds, from education to career to artistry etc.

Elections Process (Pilot)

1	Self-Nominations: Elections for the Merseyside Trans+ Council will be held during the September Public Meeting. To become a candidate, individuals can self nominate by completing an application, instructions will be available online after the July Public Meeting (Monday 20th July). The application will be straightforward, asking you to outline the position(s) that you are interested in running for, your reasons for, and any relevant skills or experiences that you may have. Completing the application involves sharing some personal data with co-organisers (Safe Space Merseyside and Trans Forward North West). This is for internal use only, as pertaining to the Merseyside Trans+ Council, and will be essential data only to ensure the smooth running of the elections process as well as upholding safeguarding policies. Data will be handled securely and according to the Data Protection Act 2018. The deadline for self-nominations will be Monday 24th of August. Nominees will not require a sponsor for the pilot elections, but likely will do so in future elections. Nominees MUST be someone belonging to the trans+ umbrella (any gender/sex other than cis). As well as within the identity of the group which you are looking to lead the working group. Each candidate can run for no more than TWO roles, examples: A disabled trans man could run for both Trans Masc and Disability & Neurodiversity. An able bodied white British trans woman, would only be eligible for Trans Fem. A non-binary trans fem migrant, could run for either Trans Fem, Non-Binary, Gender Fluid & Intersex, and Global Majority and Migrant. BUT, could only run for two of these three.
2	Shortlisting Process: After the deadline, organisers will review applications. Organisers reserve the right to complete some form of informal background checks on potential candidates for safeguarding purposes. If there is an issue around an application, such as being overly vague, difficult to comprehend, or otherwise not completed to an appropriate standard, this may disqualify a self-nomination. Co-organisers would try to contact an applicant if there was an issue before disqualifying. In the instance that there are a large number of potential candidates for one role, we may have to shortlist a number of candidates based on merit (we hope to avoid having to do so). In the instance that there is only one candidate for a role, then on the day they will still stand. Those present will be given the opportunity to self-nominate themselves as a candidate. If no other candidate presents themselves, the standing candidate will be therefore considered elected.
3	Elections: We will announce candidates on Tuesday 1st September, to give the community time to research these further in order to make an informed vote. Candidates may submit a statement to be shared on the Merseyside Trans+ Council Instagram (likes and comments will be turned off). During the first half of the September Public Meeting, lead role elections will take place. Candidates will be given 90 seconds to address attendees prior to voting, during the meeting. Once all sets of candidates for each of the five lead roles have given their addresses, we will then ask attendees to cast paper ballots voting for only ONE candidate for EACH LEAD ROLE.
4	Results: During the break, organisers and volunteers will count the votes for each lead role. Each vote will be independently verified by two individuals. The results will be determined by a Relative Majority (the candidate with the most votes). In the instance of a tie, we will ask attendees to recast their votes for one of the tied candidates. If this were to result in a tie a second time, we would look to find a suitable resolution. In the instance that an individual secures a Relative Majority for TWO roles, then they would privately be asked to choose their preferred role. A revote between all other candidates would then take place for their defaulted role (their none chosen role). Results will be announced during the second half of the meeting. Elected candidates will have a short opportunity to thank those who have voted for them.
5	Post Election: As stated, successfully elected candidates will serve for 6 months in their lead role. Leads are expected to attend both the bi-monthly Town Halls and the bi-monthly private Leads Meetings, which would total 6 meetings throughout their 6 month pilot term as a lead. Failure to attend 2 meetings without valid reason would likely result in discussion with organisers around suitability, and failure to attend 3 meetings would default on their position, and would be put to re-election. We also expect those elected in lead positions to be of good standings. Anyone elected is not exempt from the same Code of Conduct as any other member or attendee. Failure to follow Code of Conduct would likely result in defaulting on their lead role. Leads may have the opportunity to chair a public town hall meeting during their pilot term. This involves reading through the agenda items, moderating discussion, and facilitating fair participation from attendees. Once an individual has served their 6 months in their lead position, then they will likely be put forward for re-election in the March Merseyside Trans+ Council elections, against new candidates.

Pre-Existing Authority Clause

Co-organisers wish to acknowledge a clause, known as Pre-Existing Authority Clause, which we look to enact as part of Merseyside Trans+ Council lead positions.

• To ensure the fairness of the electoral system, we want lead positions to be held by individuals without pre-existing authority (established or perceived). Meaning, we ask potential candidates to reflect on whether their standings within the community would disrupt a fair process taking place.
• Example: If someone were to have a significant platform, this would likely compromise the democratic process where members may vote for them based on popularity. Similarly, if someone holds a position with a community organisation or group, where they are likely known by a significant percentage of the community or already connected within the community, this would also likely compromise the democratic process.
• Consider: If Connie were to run for Trans Fem Lead, there is a chance that her existing standings within the community would advantage her against other candidates, based on members potentially already being familiar with her existing work. If elected, this would deny an opportunity to an individual who is looking to become involved in community organising, who otherwise has not previously been. In practice, it might then also result in a lack of authentic dialogue within the Trans Fem working group. Where individuals might refrain from voicing their opinion, from not wanting to disagree with her due to her perceived authority.
• Enacting the Clause: If when reviewing candidates, if co-organisers identify a potential candidate as having pre-existing authority to which there is reason to believe that their running might comprise the democratic process, we may look to speak to the applicant and come to a decision as to whether it is suitable for them to run.

Proposed Membership System

Co-organisers look to create some form of membership system implemented from January 2027. This could be finalised in the November town hall. We believe that this would help with the running and legitimacy of the Merseyside Trans+ Council as an organisation for the following reasons:

• Invites all to feel involved in the organisation, besides simply being an attendee.
• This allows future democratic electoral votes to be exclusive to members, which incentivises attendance and engagement.
• Also for public votes on other matters where the council might make a public statement on behalf of members. Example: if Merseyside Trans+ Council were to call out a local organisation or body, being able to state “the members of” versus “those in attendance” strengthens the weight of our voice as a collective. It is indicative of good organising.
• Captures a small amount of data about our organisation, which allows us to understand our demographics to inform our practice.
• From a safeguarding perspective, it protects us all from knowing who is accessing this as a shared space. If an incident were to occur, we would be better able to respond to and then monitor this.

If we were to implement a membership system, following consultation with our present attendees, our organisers are trained around data protection and safeguarding and would be in compliance with both of these sets of legislation for organisations. Membership would also be FREE.