[DOC] Contributing readme and other contributing updates (#2445)

* contributing readme and request to not @ devs

* contributors bot

* reword

* Update contributing.md

---------

Co-authored-by: Tony Bagnall <[email protected]>

.github/PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE.md

@@ -1,11 +1,16 @@
 <!--
 Thanks for contributing a pull request! Please ensure you have taken a look at our
-contribution guide: https://www.aeon-toolkit.org/en/stable/contributing.html.
+contribution guide: https://www.aeon-toolkit.org/en/latest/contributing.html.
 
 Feel free to delete sections of this template if they do not apply to your PR,
 avoid submitting a blank template or empty sections.
 If you are a new contributor, do not delete this template without a suitable
 replacement or reason. If in doubt, ask for help. We're here to help!
+
+Please be aware that we are a team of volunteers so patience is
+necessary when waiting for a review or reply. There may not be a quick turnaround for
+reviews during slow periods. While we value all contributions big or small, pull
+requests which do not follow our guidelines may be closed.
 -->
 
 #### Reference Issues/PRs
@@ -34,9 +39,7 @@ to a minimum.
 #### Any other comments?
 
 <!--
-Please be aware that we are a team of volunteers so patience is
-necessary when waiting for a review or reply. While we value all contributions big or
-small, pull requests which do not follow our guidelines may be closed.
+Any other information that is important to this PR or helpful for reviewers.
 -->
 
 ### PR checklist
@@ -48,7 +51,7 @@ not applicable. To check a box, replace the space inside the square brackets wit
 -->
 
 ##### For all contributions
-- [ ] I've added myself to the [list of contributors](https://github.com/aeon-toolkit/aeon/blob/main/.all-contributorsrc). Alternatively, you can use the [@all-contributors](https://allcontributors.org/docs/en/bot/usage) bot to do this for you.
+- [ ] I've added myself to the [list of contributors](https://github.com/aeon-toolkit/aeon/blob/main/.all-contributorsrc). Alternatively, you can use the [@all-contributors](https://allcontributors.org/docs/en/bot/usage) bot to do this for you after the PR has been merged.
 - [ ] The PR title starts with either [ENH], [MNT], [DOC], [BUG], [REF], [DEP] or [GOV] indicating whether the PR topic is related to enhancement, maintenance, documentation, bugs, refactoring, deprecation or governance.
 
 ##### For new estimators and functions

README.md

@@ -131,6 +131,17 @@ clu.predict(X_test)  # Assign clusters to new data
 For enquiries about the project or collaboration, our email is
 [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]).
 
+## 🔨 Contributing to aeon
+
+If you are interested in contributing to `aeon`, please see our [contributing guide](https://www.aeon-toolkit.org/en/latest/contributing.html)
+and have a read through before assigning an issue and creating a pull request. Be
+aware that the `latest` version of the docs is the development version, and the `stable`
+version is the latest release.
+
+The `aeon` developers are volunteers so please be patient with responses to comments and
+pull request reviews. If you have any questions, feel free to ask using the above
+mediums.
+
 ## 📚 Citation
 
 If you use `aeon` we would appreciate a citation of the following [paper](https://jmlr.org/papers/v25/23-1444.html):

docs/contributing.md

@@ -54,8 +54,11 @@ sure to include an appropriate [title tag](contributing/issues.md). **Do not jus
 text.**
 6. A Core Developer will review your PR and may provide feedback, which you can then
 address. If you are unsure about any feedback, please ask for clarification. Please
-be patient, as Core Developers are volunteers and may be busy with other tasks.
-7. Once your PR is approved, it will be merged into the `aeon` repository. Thanks for
+be patient, as Core Developers are volunteers and may be busy with other tasks or life
+outside the package. It could take a while to get a review during
+slow periods, so please do not rush to @ developers or repeatedly ask for a review.
+Consider opening the PR as a draft until it is ready for review and passing tests.
+8. Once your PR is approved, it will be merged into the `aeon` repository. Thanks for
 making a contribution! Make sure you are included in the [list of contributors](contributors.md).
 
 Further guidance for contributing to `aeon` via GitHub can be found on the
@@ -77,8 +80,8 @@ recognise various types of contributions. Take a look at our past and current
 If you are a new contributor, make sure we add you to our list of contributors. All
 contributions are recorded in [.all-contributorsrc](https://github.com/aeon-toolkit/aeon/blob/main/.all-contributorsrc).
 Alternatively, you can use the [@all-contributors](https://allcontributors.org/docs/en/bot/usage)
-bot to do this for you. If the contribution is related to a PR, please only create this
-when the PR has merged. A list of relevant tags can be found [here](https://allcontributors.org/docs/en/emoji-key).
+bot to do this for you. If the contribution is contained in a PR, please only @ the bot
+when the PR has been merged. A list of relevant tags can be found [here](https://allcontributors.org/docs/en/emoji-key).
 
 ## Further Reading