What’s all this about independence – I hear you say?
Well unless you have been abroad for the last few months, and don’t look at our emails or WhatsApp chat platform, you may be forgiven for not knowing what it is all about.
Well for you – please let me explain…………
The club, ever since it was founded way back in 2011, and in fact even before then when founding members belonged to other clubs, AGB has always been well supported by us in the direction it was taking that was even when AGB was GNAS (Grand National Archery Society). However as the years have gone by many members, indeed even clubs, have been unhappy in the direction that AGB were and now are taking. Whilst the required membership to KAA and SCAS has never broken the bank as far as subscriptions are concerned, it is not for the want of asking, many times over the years for a representative to visit our club (indeed any club) and explain to the membership what their money goes towards, and even more important any offers of help, assistance, and guidance in club management. Unfortunately this has always been met with a wall of silence. Indeed, the KPAC has never ever been able to receive a receipt for the subscriptions it paid to the KAA, for KAA and SCAS, being told, it does not do receipts!!!!! Very strange.
Similarly AGB have always talked a good story, and always argue that the subscription paid to them covers 2 x Archery UK magazines, insurance, and paying to support grass roots archery. This argument has now worn very thin, and can no longer stand as reasons for their current increase, indeed we are now on talking to other clubs not even sure that the subscription pays for archers of such a standard to go to the Olympics when we now hear that these archers have to pay their own way!!. As a consequence of AGB’s identified increase, not only for this year but showing increases every year to 2027, the KPAC Executive and General Committees held an emergency meeting to discuss this.
As a result of this meeting the Committees took the unprecedented decision that we would discontinue our club membership with AGB, and this decision was put into action immediately, with the club Secretary contacting AGB and advising them that when the 2023/2024 membership period expired at the end of September 2024, then KPAC would disassociate itself with them at that time. AGB’s own decision to now advise all AGB members that from October 2024 they would now have the responsibility to arrange their own membership, and that this would no longer be a matter for membership Secretaries, helped KPAC to formulate the end date in line with the termination of the 2023/2024 membership period.
The club Chairman and Secretary, then with the agreement of other committee members set to and embarked on the mammoth task of ensuring that, everything was in place to ensure there was a smooth transition from being an AGB affilliated club to one that from October 2024 will be completely independent. The first most important matter to arrange was club insurance. AGB’s insurance with the insurer Howden’s is quite comprehensive, and the insurance that the club needed to choose had to be every bit as detailed. The new club insurance covers Public Liability, Professional Indemnity, Employers Liability, and also a new feature, that being Personal Accident cover, for our members travelling to and from any archery shoot venue that is arranged with or managed by the KPAC, such as our trips to Folkestone, when we shoot with CM&FB. For full details of our insurance, members may see the insurance schedule which is posted on the notice boards in shed 2 and 3, and there is a page set aside on the website with all relevant insurance details. As a result of this new insurance, the club is being required to provide club membership cards, for our full unrestricted members, and temporary membership cards for individuals attending any of our Have-a-Go sessions, and Beginner courses.
From July 2024 until the end of August 2024, the club membership renewal application process will be open to members to reapply for membership of the club under its new independent format. This then allows the whole of September 2024 to get the relevant and required documentation sorted for members and back to them by the end of September ready for the change in October.
Membership fee have been determined as follows – Full unrestricted Adult membership (Adult over 18 years of age) – £40.00 – Full unrestricted Junior membership (Over 10 years and under 18 years of age) – £35.00 and Full and unrestricted Para /Disabled membership (Adult and Junior) – £30.00 – Temporary membership fees for Have-a-Go and Beginner Courses will be included within the course fees, and are not relevant to the renewal process described here.
So when the change occurs, what will our members see that’s different,
Well to be perfectly honest not a great deal……we are keeping the archery format pretty much the same and the shooting bible that AGB members follow called the “Rules of Shooting” will be followed in a similar fashion. KPAC has now produced a document called “KPAC Shooting Regulations” which can be found under the club document area of our website, and members need to familiarise themselves with this. However as previously mentioned members familiar with the AGB Rules of Shooting will not see much difference in the KPAC document, except it will be a much more streamline document more specifically related to our target archery. It has been kept deliberately similar, so that KPAC members who also elect to sign up to AGB as a direct member will not have to consider different standards and rules when shooting at either an AGB or a KPAC event. Members will still be able to gain handicaps and classifications as they did before and classifications will be awarded up to Bowman level. Should members wish to gain classification awards above that then they will need to do so as an AGB member. The club will continue to run a number of “in-house” indoor and outdoor tournaments throughout the year, and will also continue to pursue outdoor event with other clubs who are also independent and non-AGB. (It appears that following the recent AGB changes there are an increasing number of clubs that have elected to break away) The Committee will keep members up to date with any external non-AGB events that they can take part in. The club will also continue to put on social events when members indicate an interest for this to be arranged.
As previously alluded to, the club will continue to run Have-a-Go ( x2) and Beginner Courses (x4) every year, and our certified coaches will continue to run these sessions, and our coaches will be covered under Professional Indemnity cover, and Employers / Club Officers Liability cover. Candidates on our courses will be required to take up a temporary membership cover with the club valid for the duration of their course.