The Western Front Association: Membership subs

Dear fellow members

I am writing to advise you of a situation which has developed over the past few years and to ask for your views on the way you would like the WFA to go forward.

 As you probably know we have benefitted considerably from the very large sums of money which the charity has received from our Pension Card arrangements with Ancestry. The quarterly payments have allowed us to greatly expand the offer we make to members. Numerous additions to the on-line archive of magazines, now probably the best searchable archive available anywhere. A 33% increase in the number of Stand To! editions each year including an expanded Special Edition. For battlefield visitors the WFA's TrenchMapper allows members to accurately overlay thousands of Great War maps with modern equivalents to precisely locate individual trenches. We are currently working towards further development of this facility. There are many more additional member benefits that have been introduced including the popular webinars and our YouTube channel’s ‘I Was There’ series among many others.

The Executive Committee (EC) has not only used its increased funding internally. More education grants have been awarded to university students studying First World War subjects. More encouragement of younger students through annual competitions and the introduction of the WFA Excellence standard in the teaching of First World War history. The EC has provided grant funding for university special projects and supported other organisations providing First World War education aimed at audiences we would not normally reach. Grants have been given to charities dedicated to the upkeep of historic battlefield monuments and our own WFA memorials have been renovated.

The EC has worked hard to make our charity fit for the future. A sizeable investment has been built up. New web developers have been appointed and new staff recruited to take some of the load from Trustees. As an example, the EC has been obliged to buy in accountancy services as no volunteer has come forward to take on the role of Honorary Treasurer. The WFA in 2024 is as a result of this investment, more professional, more resilient and has a secure long-term future.

For those of you who are now expecting a but! here it is I am afraid.

We have also used the Ancestry income to artificially subsidise membership fees. The £29 per annum fee has not risen since 2016 despite a considerably expanded offer and what we all know have been significant inflationary pressures. This year the EC has been faced with the prospect of a deficit budget as costs rise and the income from Ancestry continues to decline.

There is no immediate problem with having a deficit budget as we will use some of the accumulated reserves to fund the deficit for 2024/2025 but clearly this cannot be an indefinite solution. No one likes to ask for an increase in fees particularly when the financial climate is difficult for many. For information, if the £29 subscription had risen with RPI it would today be over £40. Coincidentally that equates to less than 11p/day.

The EC will be making a decision shortly.

If you wish to express a view on this matter, please do so by completing this simple form>

Comments on Membership subs

The EC will of course keep you fully advised of its decision following this consultation.

Best Regards

Tony Bolton