Extraordinary general meetings in November will have the final say
Community umbrella organisations Bassac and the Development Trusts Association are consulting members over proposals to merge.
Bassac, a membership body for community organisations, and the DTA, a network of community practitioners, will both hold extraordinary general meetings to consider the proposal on 10 November.
The move is backed by trustees of the two organisations but a formal decision requires members’ approval. A spokeswoman for the DTA said if members gave the go-ahead, the new organisation would come into existence in April.
She declined to comment on the potential structure of the new body or the possibility of job losses.
The organisations already work closely with each other and were both founding members of England-wide partnership Community Alliance, with Community Matters. The pair have worked on programmes including the £70m Communitybuilders investment fund and the £6m Safer Homes Fund.
Steve Wyler, director of the DTA, said both organisations were in good shape and did not need to merge.
But he called the proposal a very exciting development, adding: "A merger could create something even stronger – a new organisation, building on our combined track records, not only to support community organisations nationwide but also to shape national and local policy."
