| All Anglers.
We have just received notification from the Angling Trust regarding the running of our waters following the lockdown announcement. The full detail can be read here:
https://www.facebook.com/AnglingTrust/photos/a.129197857149397/3525777427491406/?type=3&comment_id=3525789324156883¬if_id=1609872610076885¬if_t=comment_mention&ref=notif
In short, we need to close club venues with immediate effect and once again we find ourselves in a period of lockdown, with serious repercussions for members, the club, and our venue landlords.
The club needs to strike a balance and attempt to make decisions that sustain us in the short term whilst underpinning the longer-term plan and the improvements we have made, whilst being aware of the hardships being imposed on some members.
Many of the club costs are fixed ie they don’t change given the level of angling – for example, our rental agreements, club insurances, accountancy costs, etc, etc.
Some costs can be flexible (to some degree) such as stocking and within the boundaries of our contractual agreements, we can make adjustments to balance the restrictions.
Other costs such as venue improvements are discretionary. These activities can be stopped in order to save money. The club has invested heavily in venue improvements in the last 2 years and had detailed plans for further improvements this year.
Any expenditure has to be balanced against income. The club has 3 primary sources of income:
- Membership
- Day Tickets
- Grants
The latter 2 have been heavily and directly reduced by the lockdown and the wider Covid-19 impacts.
The latest lockdown comes directly on top of our membership renewal period. The club, conscious of the impacts of 2020, had already committed to minimizing any cost increases for this year.
Taking into consideration the latest lockdown, the club has made some important changes to try and minimize the financial impacts for both members and club alike:
Where members feel comfortable and able to do so, we would ask that membership renewals are completed in alignment with the original January 31st cut-off date. This helps enormously not only with the short term cash position but also with confirming plans for this year.
Additionally, though we have accepted a significant number of new members off the 2020 waiting list, we have already built a substantial new 2021 waiting list. Depending on the renewal situation, we’ll make a decision regarding admitting these additional anglers. One risk of a large number of late renewals is we end up with a big increase in angler numbers and venue over-crowding.
However, whilst encouraging anglers to renew as early as possible, we realise there are hardships and as such the current cut-off date of the 31st January will be relaxed where necessary.
Additionally, if there are any members who are financially struggling to complete their renewal, the club will provide as much flexibility as possible regarding payment to support. Please get in touch with the club directly if we can help.
The club will also explore further cost-cutting opportunities, if necessary, over the course of the next month.
In summary, whilst our primary aim is to provide as best an angling experience as possible whilst operating as a ‘not-for-profit’ organization, we are also a fairly substantial business with significant commitments. In simple terms:
‘renew as quickly as you can, tell us if you’re having difficulties’
We’re determined to get through this as best we can and look forward to some excellent angling in Spring.
Above all, stay safe and stick to the guidelines. We’ll give further updates to members as soon as we have them. |
