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MNHQ

Fancy being a Mumsnet Local Tsar? (or should that be Tsarina?)

30 replies

carriemumsnet · 11/06/2007 12:43

Are you the source of all local knowledge and gossip? We're looking to recruit committed Mumsnetters to take charge of each Mumsnet local site. The role involves galvanising other local Mumsnetters to make your section as up to date, full of listings and useful as possible, editing new postings for accuracy and checking out new places for possible inclusion.
It's a voluntary post but you can make as much (or as little) of it as you like, stick it on your CV if that would help and/or share it with another Mumsnetter if you're worried about time commitments. If it sounds like something you?d be interested in, sign up here and we'll send you some more info.

If the area you'd like to cover isn't mentioned, please feel free to add it in the "other" box at the bottom.

Thanks
MNHQ

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MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 11/06/2007 13:39

Tis OK MamaG, there's no three line whip (well not yet anyway )

Thanks to all who've signed up so far, how very speedy you are...still room for a few more though....

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 11/06/2007 16:11

Would think that would make you all the more suitable Little Lapin...having to find lots of new stuff all the time? Don't if you don't want to, but if you feel you know your current area, sign up. You can always pass the mantle on when you move on.

Thanks again to everyone for signing up so far... keep the sign ups coming.

The Tsar (Tzar?) was supposed to be a, well, you know, joke, but we also feel it has a bit of a better ring than citizen X of Islington mumsnet... or then again, maybe not....

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 11/06/2007 16:13

Actually if anyone knows if it's Tsar or Tzar I'd be grateful. Was sure there was a z in there somewhere, but the spell check kept sending me back with Tsar...

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 11/06/2007 16:45

Oh you know, power, glory, the good of the people...Don't think it can guarantee competition winner status I'm afraid

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 11/06/2007 17:14

Rhubarb

Well as we said, you can make it as big or small a deal as you want. It's not supposed to be too onerous, but it is supposed to be something you'd enjoy so if you're worried about taking too much on having just finished work, maybe leabe it. Or do it with a friend if that takes the pressure off? Or wait and see if someone else volunteers for your area and offer to help them (or not!)

Completely up to you..

Califrau - yes we're currently limited to these shores, but if you'd like to volunteer for Tsar of the rest of the world I can certainly see if tech can oblige!

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 11/06/2007 17:15

...or even leave it

MNHQ

OliviaMumsnet · 11/06/2007 21:07

Hello MrsWho - the from MNHQ bit is new yes. It's to ensure everyone knows who's genuinely from Mumsnet Towers as there's been a lot of rather mischievous namechanging of late.

Rhubarb, Carrie is probably better placed to answer than me but I was going to say hat it is unlikely that people taking on "tsar qualities" will be able to stay anonymous - but given you've just blown your own cover...

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 12/06/2007 20:44

Hi all

Huge thanks to everyone who has signed up so far, it's been a fantastically encouraging response.

Re anonymity, Tsarinas would be known by their Mumsnet nicknames so I suppose in terms of knowing where Rhubarb or Tigermoth lives folks would have more of an idea, but the areas are pretty broad and we're not talking real names and addresses.

Manictigger, you can do as much Egon Ronaying as you like, the more the better, and have a search for the Ironbridge gorge museum and do add - sounds fab.

Mercy we'd be really interested to hear what you find confusing in the listings. We're adding improvements (we hope!)all the time so do let us know what you think is wrong.

Hope that answers some questions. I'm off out for a date with the dh so if you ask and I don't get back, I'm not ignoring you.

Thanks again and there's still room for more volunteers so don't be shy
Hope that

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 12/06/2007 20:54

whoops ignore the rogue "hope that", will do my lines later... must preview before posting, must preview...

Anyway promise to add restaurant to local to make amends.

Have a good evening!

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 12/06/2007 20:54

am now officially late to meet him... who said MN was addictive?

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 18/06/2007 21:25

Hi all

Back again to say an enormous thank you to the 70 or so folks who have volunteered so far. I promise we'll be in touch soon with more information. Thanks too for the suggestions of other places you'd like to cover, we'll make sure they are added to the list. We now have lots of the country covered (sometimes by several people, Sheffield and Greenwich currently top of the Tsarina pops ) but there are still quite a few areas where we're still looking.

So, no naming and shaming - yet - but if you live in or near one of these places below please have a think about whether you'd like to be the Mumsnet Tsarina of your local land and if you think you might be interested sign up here

Go on, you know you want to...
Stockport, Derby, Leicester, Lincoln, Nottingham, Peterborough, Chelmsford, Colchester, Norfolk, shrewsbury, Telford, Worcester, walsall,llandrindod, Newport, Swansea, Dorchester, Exeter, Gloucester, Plymouth, taunton, Torquay, Bournemouth, stalbans, Guildford, Hemel Hempstead, Luton, medway, miltonkeynes, Redhill, Stevenage, tonbridge, Watford, Westminster, barking, Camden, Croydon, hackney, hammersmith, harrow, Havering, Hillingdon, hounslow, Kensington, Kingston, lewisham, merton, newham, redbridge, Richmond, Sutton, towerhamlets, Waltham forest, Belfast

Thanks
MNHQ

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 21/06/2007 11:55

Yes West of Ireland would be fine (someone already volunteered for South of Ireland) As for geography, we're happy to be corrected - just tell us where you think your town should be and if there's a consensus we'll move.. we did agonise over a few and were surprised by a few when we saw their actual position on map so do let us know.

Latest update on which areas we still need covering to follow...

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 21/06/2007 12:13

Joint Tsarinas is fine - so do ask your friend and do sign up.

Ok here's the latest roll call. The more eagle eyed amongst you will notice that there are actually more places listed than last time. This is completely due to my ineptitude , I'd missed a few off when cutting and pasting BUT the good news is that if you were gutted that Glasgow had gone or heartbroken that Huddersfield had slipped through your grasp then now is your chance to check the list and sign up here

Dundee, Dumfries, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Galashiels, Kilmarnock, Kirkwall, Kirkaldy, Motherwell, Paisley, Perth, Inverness, Outer Hebrides, Co Antrim, Co Armagh, Co Down, Co Fermanagh, Co Londonderry, Co Tyrone, Newcastle, Sunderland, Bradford, Harrogate, Huddersfield, Halifax, Leeds, Wakefield, Bolton, Chester, Crewe, Oldham, Stockport, Derby, Leicester, Lincoln, Nottingham, Peterborough, Chelmsford, Colchester, Norfolk, Shrewsbury, Worcester, Walsall, Llandrindod, Newport, Swansea, Dorchester, Exeter, Gloucester, Plymouth, Taunton, Torquay, Bournemouth, Guildford, Hemel Hempstead, Luton, Medway, Milton Keynes, Redhill, Stevenage, tonbridge, Watford, Westminster, Barking, Camden, Croydon, Hackney, Hammersmith, Harrow, Havering, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Kensington, Kingston, Lewisham, Merton, Newham, Redbridge, Richmond, Sutton, Tower Hamlets, Waltham forest and Belfast

Thanks!

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 21/06/2007 14:46

Advertise for a partner in crime on Talk

Seriously there's probably someone else out there who lives in your area and also fancies doing it but doesn't want sole responsibility either, so as long as you can work out what you're each called (joint Tsarinas, Tsarina 1 and 2, deputy head tsarina...) you should be fine.

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 26/06/2007 16:55

Hi all

Well fortunately girlyshirley hasn't put too many of you off and we've had another fantastic response, with loads more volunteers. I've spent the day trying to collate lists of places, nicknames and emails so if you've volunteered or emailed us about this and haven't heard, huge apologies and please bear with us!
Thought we should also publish an updated list of the areas still lacking a Local Tsarina. If you think you might be able to take charge of one of these places, please sign up here

Big thanks

MNHQ

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 26/06/2007 16:55

And this would be the list
Galashiels
Kilmarnock
Kirkwall
Kirkcaldy
Paisley
Perth
Inverness
Outer Hebrides
Co. Antrim
Co. Armagh
Co. Down
Co. Fermanagh
Co. Tyrone
Newcastle
Sunderland
Bradfor
Huddersfield
Wakefield
Chester
Oldham
Leicester
Chelmsf ord
Colchester
N Norfolk
Shrewsbury
Telford
Worcester
Walsall
Llandrindod
Swansea
Exeter
Plymouth
Salisbury
Taunton
Torquay
Guildford
Hemel Hempstead
Luton
Medway
Milton Keynes
Redhill
Watford
Westminster
Camden
Hackney
Harrow
Havering
Hounslow
Kingston on Thames
Lewisham
Merton
Newham
Redbridge
Richmond upon Thames
Sutton
Tower Hamlets
Waltham Forest

MNHQ

JustineMumsnet · 27/06/2007 12:21

Hi girlyshirley,
Thanks for raising these issues ? thought we ought to respond just to clear up a few bits and bobs?

Yes MN is a business and we would like to make some money one day, I don?t think we?ve ever pretended otherwise. Despite our growth it?s still not easy to balance the books but the good news from our point of view is that we can now afford to pay ourselves a proper wage. (MN is essentially still here because the folks who worked on it did so without pay for many years).

We do not believe in profits at all costs though, and chasing profits is not our primary aim. Our primary aim is to build a great community that make?s parents? lives easier. If that coincides with making a profit then hoorah ? if it doesn?t, then we won?t (as indeed we haven?t since we begun). We?ve never had any investment bar a tiny bit of seed capital from a friend ? our growth has been entirely fuelled by word of mouth and we have and do operate on a shoestring. We don?t have an office (if I?m honest we don?t even have a shed) ? we all work from back bedrooms and the like.

We did indeed put out a magazine, Mumsnet Best ? a compilation of our product reviews distributed by Mothercare ? which was much acclaimed by readers but sadly not a financial success. RE the Gina Ford dispute being a publicity stunt, well we certainly got some publicity but that doesn?t mean it was a stunt. It was a stressful time and we?re very glad it?s behind us.

We are committed to being an ethical business ? that?s why we turned Nestle away and that?s why we don?t allow a bunch of others guys to advertise either. We are always open to suggestions/debate about who those disallowed advertisers should be.

Re Netmums ? we don?t really want to get into a slanging match because in short we have great respect for what they do and for the people who work for them ? like us they work hard with the aim of making mums lives easier, and there?s no doubt they do that very well. I?ve no idea if they are not-for-profit ? they say they are a social enterprise - and I guess in the sense that our sole aim is not to make profits then so are we. We would salute anything they do to enhance what they offer their community ? be it forums, local listings, product reviews etc. After all how could we say we want to make parents? lives easier and at the same time view another site with a similar function/ aim as a rival? That?s why we?ve never disallowed links to any other parenting/womens? sites. If someone finds another site more helpful/ comfortable than MN then why on earth would we try and stop them? It?s horses for courses innit?. Anyway I digress?

In short we don?t think asking people to voluntarily organize local listings that will hopefully be of use to others is unreasonable or sneaky. We are a community ? people put things in and hopefully at the same time get things back. It?s not all about pay and money. Hopefully and judging by the list Carrie?s got, Mumsnetters on the whole agree.

Anyway thanks again for raising these issues. We do passionately believe in openness and debate ? so we hope it?s been useful to clarify all this stuff.

Best,
MNHQ

MNHQ

AbbyMumsnet · 29/06/2007 11:06

Soupy: I know, I know, I called it a shed when, actually, if I'm being honest, it's more of a lean-to. That said, it does provide Tech with a soupcon of cover from the torrential rain and biting wind. Plus, we got him a puffa-jacket off Freecycle, so he'll be ok. We're nice like that.

MNHQ

AbbyMumsnet · 02/07/2007 11:35

Ah, about that chair...

MNHQ

AbbyMumsnet · 02/07/2007 11:36

... and plastic children...

MNHQ

AbbyMumsnet · 02/07/2007 12:37

I think park exchanges sound like a good idea. "Come on children, we're off to the swings." Subtext: he he he.

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 02/07/2007 18:33

Gorgeousgroovygreenie - you would definitely be eligible, so please get in touch once you've moved. Starrystarrynight - hope you've had an email from me by now - strangely I can't find you on my master list (but it's quite an unweildy document so that doesn't mean you aren;t on it ).

Please do email me again if there's still confusion.

Cheers

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 05/07/2007 12:29

Hi all

Well the new list of vacancies may look very similar to the last lot, but that doesn't mean we haven't had a fantastic response to last week's newsletter call out, it's just folks have volunteered for places where we already have Tsarinas - which is great, the more the merrier - OR they've suggested new areas (look out for the Chicago and the Isle of Man sites - to name a couple - coming soon...).

Anyway - there are still quite a few vacancies just waiting to be grabbed, so if you think you could help at all, please sign up here

Here's the list
Galashiels
Kilmarnock
Kirkwall
Kirkcaldy
Perth
Inverness
Outer Hebrides
Co. Antrim
Co. Armagh
Co. Down
Co. Fermanagh
Co. Tyrone
Sunderland
Bradford
Huddersfield
Wakefield
Oldham
Leicester
Chelmsford
Colchester
N Norfolk
Shrewsbury
Telford
Worcester
Walsall
Llandrindod
Swansea
Exeter
Plymouth
Salisbury
Taunton
Torquay
Hemel Hempstead
Luton
Medway
Milton Keynes
Redhill
Watford
Westminster
Camden
Hackney
Harrow
Havering
Hounslow
Kingston on Thames
Lewisham
Merton
Newham
Redbridge
Sutton

MNHQ

carriemumsnet · 13/07/2007 17:24

Ok because I know you've spent the last week wondering if anyone has indeed claimed the outer Hebrides yet (sadly the answer is no - surely there must be some mumsnetters there?) or whether you've been pipped at the post for Plymouth we thought we'd publish the latest list. Again it may look a tad familiar but a few crucial areas have been claimed since last week along with some interesting suggestions for new local sites, so progress is always being made.

Meantime though, these are the Local sites still in search of a Tsarina to call their own...

Galashiels
Kilmarnock
Kirkwall
Kirkcaldy
Perth
Inverness
Outer Hebrides
Co. Armagh
Co. Down
Co. Fermanagh
Co. Tyrone
Sunderland
Bradford
Huddersfield
Wakefield
Leicester
Chelmsford
N Norfolk
Shrewsbury
Telford
Worcester
Walsall
Llandrindod
Swansea
Exeter
Plymouth
Salisbury
Torquay
Hemel Hempstead
Luton
Medway
Milton Keynes
Watford
Westminster
Camden
Harrow
Havering
Hounslow
Kingston on Thames
Merton
Newham
Redbridge

MNHQ

OliviaMumsnet · 09/08/2007 13:21

Hi StarryNIght, I'm not sure if this is something we can do straight away but it seems like a good idea.
We'll let you know.
Thanks
MNHQ

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