Who We Are
Living Rent is Scotland’s tenants and community union. We are a democratic organisation run by and for our members.
We fight for a society built, led by and organised for the people.
We are a mass-membership union of tenants, carers, workers and residents, rooted in working-class struggle. We organise collectively to build the power to secure material improvements to our daily lives and put power back where it belongs: in the hands of ordinary people.
We build this power to fight for better rights and better protections against rent increases, evictions, lack of public services, high energy bills, pollution and poor-quality housing. We know our current political system is failing ordinary people and we refuse to wait for politicians or charities to change things for the better.
We will organise across every aspect of our lives to win what we deserve.
We are not affiliated to any political party.
See more about our history here!
Living Rent is a fully mutual Company Limited by Guarantee
Our company number is: SC505467
Our Registered Office is: 617, 12 South Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1DD
Here is a copy of our Articles of Association
We are part of ACORN International
ACORN International is building a movement to take on the challenges facing poor and working-class people in developing economies and polities. We build community organizations in these countries to mobilize poor and working-class residents to fight for their rights and build democratic culture and institutions. Through local membership-based organizations in Latin America, Africa, and Asia, ACORN International fights for the basic rights of people – better security, health, housing, education, and employment conditions, and more responsive, truly representative government
On Est Ensemble - ACORN Cameroon
What We Do
Our mission is to build an organised, permanent mass-membership working class union.
- We organise and empower working-class and marginalised communities to secure a better quality of life, and to strengthen equality, solidarity and democracy across society. We do this by sustaining our victories through clear strategies and employing all available tactics, including direct action.
- We build community networks to struggle across scale: neighbourhoods, towns, cities, rural areas, regions and the country as a whole.
- We build the infrastructure and resources to begin taking power into our own hands.
- We combine and coordinate activities across the union and with allies in order to build a social movement to achieve our goals.
- We provide education for our members, developing the knowledge and skills needed to achieve radical change. We demystify politics by supporting our members to analyse and confront power at every level, learning through struggle.
- We fund and resource the union’s work through its membership in order to maximise our independence, sustainability and democratic accountability.
Our structure
We are organised from the bottom up. We build branches - usually in a neighbourhood - where people organise to take action on local issues. Branch members elect their leadership, a committee who is accountable to local members and to the wider vision of the union. When there are enough local branches in a town or region, they form a city or regional forum to coordinate their campaigns and actions.
Branches work together on national campaigns, through the national forum. The National Committee, which is composed of members elected by the annual general meeting as well as co-opted members, is legally responsible for the organisation and ensures that the organisation respects its values, the strategic directions given by its members and that it has good governance.
We have active branches across the country. You can check out the events near you and get in touch if you want to build you own branch.
How We Are Funded
As a union, we function through a dues model: our members support us and this means that we are accountable to members and put members' interests first. We feel very strongly about being democratic and member-run: your member dues keeps us working for you, our members. You can join here.
Trade unions have also supported our work by affiliating to Living Rent. We are grateful for such support and if you want to ask your union branch to affiliate, contact us!
We also seek external funding to support our activities and enable the growth of the union.
National Committee
Every year, members elect the national committee during Living Rent's annual general meeting.
The current committee i
- Zineerah Ali: Govanhill member, law student, NC Treasurer
- Annie Craig: Govan member and full-time carer.
- Caroline Cawley: Muirhouse member, End Poverty Edinburgh activist
- Ruaraidh Dempster: Gorgie Dalry member and adviser for energy charity, the Membership Officer of the NC.
- Ellinore Folkesson: Knightswood member and statistician, the Chair of the NC
- Ruth Gilbert: Govanhill member, trade union organiser, national campaigns officer
- Aditi Jehangir: Leith member, programme developement manager for a charity, Secretary of the NC
- Andrew Kellard: Dennistoun member, employment adviser trade union, Staff contact point NC
- Danny Pilkinton: Leith member, Trade union contact point NC
-
Joey Simons: Govanhill member and educator, who acts as the Chair of the National Forum.
Staff
We currently have a small number of staff who work alongside elected leaders to support the union's growth:
- Emma Saunders - National Organiser
- Ewan McLennan - Field Director
- Jon Black - Operations Manager
- Rufus Bouverie - Communications Officer
- James Roberts - Membership Organiser
Glasgow & West Coast
- Sonja Coquelin - Glasgow City Head Organiser
- George Lavery - Glasgow Organiser - Castlemilk
- Glenna Jones - Glasgow Organiser - Torryglen
- Gavin McLements - Glasgow Organiser - Govan
- Levi Mitchell - Glasgow Member Defence Organiser
Edinburgh & East Coast
- Sinéad McNulty - Edinburgh City Organiser
- Emily Donnelly - Research organiser
- Chris Cullen - Edinburgh Organiser Lochend
- Izzi Brannen - Member defence organiser
- Matthew Kirk - Edinburgh Organiser Leith
- Niamh McNulty - Edinburgh Organiser Saughton