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'''Wikimedia UK''' is the regional chapter of the US-based Wikimedia Foundation, which runs [[:en:Main Page|Wikipedia]] and the other Wikimedia projects such as [[:Commons:Main Page|Wikimedia Commons]]. We are a registered charity in the UK dedicated to collecting, developing, promoting and distributing freely licensed knowledge. We do this by supporting volunteer editors and contributors – Wikimedians – and by working in partnership with cultural and educational institutions.


Welcome to the wiki for '''Wikimedia UK''' (WMUK), the local Wikimedia chapter covering the United Kingdom. Wikimedia UK is an organisation separate from the Wikimedia Foundation (WMF), but exists to support and extend the Wikimedia movement in the United Kingdom.
=== What we do ===
Wikimedia UK hosts outreach events, such as edit-a-thons and training sessions, around the country where experienced editors and newcomers can contribute to the Wikimedia projects together. We also work with institutions to improve the quality of content on Wikipedia. '''Learn about some of our initiatives:'''
*'''[[Cultural partnerships]]''' (GLAM partnerships) - We partner with cultural institutions up and down the country to help them share the information they hold on Wikipedia and its sister sites
*'''[[Expert outreach]]''' - We work with scholars and academics, involving them in contributing their knowledge to Wikimedia projects
*'''[[Education projects]]''' - We promote the use of Wikimedia sites as educational resources
*'''[[Training]]''' - We run numerous training events to help people learn how to contribute to Wikipedia and its sister sites


This page gives advice for editors of the wiki. If you are looking to contact WMUK instead see [[Contact us|here]]. Details about the exact structure of WMUK are on the [[Main Page|main page]].
=== How you can get involved ===
There are many ways to get involved in our work. '''Find out more about ways to contribute:'''
*'''[[Membership|Become a member]]'''- Members play a key role in shaping the future of the Chapter. Membership is open to all and costs just £5 a year.
*'''[[Events|Attend an event]]''' - We organise and support events all over the country, why not go to one near you?
*'''[[Project grants|Apply for a grant]]''' - We offer grants to support members' editing or outreach work.
*<span class="plainlinks">'''[https://donate.wikimedia.org.uk Donate ]'''</span> - Your donations go towards supporting our events and keeping Wikipedia free and open.


== The setup here==
=== Partner with us ===
'''Anyone''' can edit the wiki - [[membership]] of WMUK is not required but costs only £5 per year.<!-- Note that because this wiki subscribes to the [[meta:Help:Unified login|single user login]] (SUL) system, once you've made your account global, there is no reason to re-register here. Permissions are not carried over, however: rollback, sysop and so forth are left at the door.-->
We are always looking for like-minded organisations who want to work with us. '''Get in touch with us:'''
 
*If you represent a cultural institutions, please contact us on [mailto:glam@wikimedia.org.uk glam{{@|12px}}wikimedia.org.uk]
Editing this wiki is just like editing [[wikipedia:|Wikipedia]]. If you are unfamiliar with wiki-editing in general, you'll want to consult the thorough [[wikipedia:Help:Contents|help files there]]. Obviously, this wiki is much more focused, and also much newer (handy redirects may not always be available, for example). Virtually all editing is conducted in the main namespace; there are no editing policies here, but conforming to certain accepted standards - such as civility - is important. Though the wiki does not have a vandalism problem (or any tools to deal with it), [[Board|board members]], staff and some trusted users are given admin ("sysop") status, and are responsible for maintaining pages which denote policies of the organisation and other important pages - largely analogous to the pages residing on [[meta:|"meta"]], rather than on its constituent parts.
*If you represent an education establishment, please contact us on [mailto:education@wikimedia.org.uk education{{@|12px}}wikimedia.org.uk]
 
*If you don't fit into either of these, but are still interested in getting in touch, please contact us on [mailto:info@wikimedia.org.uk info{{@|12px}}wikimedia.org.uk]
Areas in which it is easy to contribute include our [[activities]] (particularly if you are able to donate your time to make a difference). The [[water cooler]] is the main place of discussion on-wiki at the moment, performing the same role as the village pumps of Wikipedia and Commons. It is strongly advisable to subscribe to [http://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikimediauk-l the mailing list], as you will receive news on which areas are most in flux and requiring your help. Attending [[Board meetings|board meetings]] is optional; they involve mostly working through internal business, but also get members together in one place so that ideas can be shared. For those wishing to take a casual role, the monthly [[newsletter]] is great for keeping up with developments.
 
This wiki hooks into [[Commons:|Wikimedia Commons]], the free media repository, so there is no need to copy files from there to here: just using the normal image syntax.
 
== Glossary ==
;Board
;:The [[Board]] are a statutory body, required under UK law, to ultimately decide the various expenditures and correspondence of Wikimedia UK. They voluntarily devote time (and often their own money) to make sure that Wikimedia UK moves in the right direction.
;Chapter
;:In [[meta:Wikimedia chapters|Wikimedia terms]], chapters are "'''independent''' organisations founded to support and promote the Wikimedia projects. Like the Wikimedia Foundation, they aim to 'empower and engage people around the world to collect and develop educational content under a free license or in the public domain, and to disseminate it effectively and globally'."
;Initiative
;:An [[initiative]] is a project run by the WMUK. Discussion, suggestions and proposals are welcomed.
;Meetup
::An informal occasion, when Wikimedians get together to discuss the latest developments. Though attended and promoted by WMUK's members, they are not within WMUK's control. See also [[meta:Meetup|Meta-Wiki's "meetup" page]].
;Staff
::The chapter currently employs a small team to handle administrative tasks. A full list of the current staff can be seen [[Staff|here]].

Revision as of 16:18, 18 February 2014

Wikimedia UK is the regional chapter of the US-based Wikimedia Foundation, which runs Wikipedia and the other Wikimedia projects such as Wikimedia Commons. We are a registered charity in the UK dedicated to collecting, developing, promoting and distributing freely licensed knowledge. We do this by supporting volunteer editors and contributors – Wikimedians – and by working in partnership with cultural and educational institutions.

What we do

Wikimedia UK hosts outreach events, such as edit-a-thons and training sessions, around the country where experienced editors and newcomers can contribute to the Wikimedia projects together. We also work with institutions to improve the quality of content on Wikipedia. Learn about some of our initiatives:

  • Cultural partnerships (GLAM partnerships) - We partner with cultural institutions up and down the country to help them share the information they hold on Wikipedia and its sister sites
  • Expert outreach - We work with scholars and academics, involving them in contributing their knowledge to Wikimedia projects
  • Education projects - We promote the use of Wikimedia sites as educational resources
  • Training - We run numerous training events to help people learn how to contribute to Wikipedia and its sister sites

How you can get involved

There are many ways to get involved in our work. Find out more about ways to contribute:

  • Become a member- Members play a key role in shaping the future of the Chapter. Membership is open to all and costs just £5 a year.
  • Attend an event - We organise and support events all over the country, why not go to one near you?
  • Apply for a grant - We offer grants to support members' editing or outreach work.
  • Donate - Your donations go towards supporting our events and keeping Wikipedia free and open.

Partner with us

We are always looking for like-minded organisations who want to work with us. Get in touch with us:

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