Archery GB is introducing a range of changes to membership to put you, the member, at the centre of our offer, refreshing the features and benefits, whilst ensuring that the sport can grow and prosper. Here we respond to your questions you've asked since the announcement of the changes.
You can read about the membership changes here or scroll on for further updates. We held two webinars on Monday 15 July and Thursday 18 July for members and club officials. Both included a set of slides, there may be some changes in the delivery but the content is the same.
Prior to the webinars questions were welcomed in advance, and the slides for the webinars were built on these topics. The series of questions below capture the overall context. In the resources you can find an additional PDF with answers to specific questions provided on the webinar.
Membership renewals can still be processed by the club in September 2024. So, if the club has already collected fees or wants to provide this service to their members, the club carries on as normal. The process will be the same as 23/24 memberships.
We have made the membership tab in Sport:80 streamlined for both clubs and members. We will be encouraging all members to log into their accounts and make sure that their details are correct.
However, from 2 September each member can process their own memberships, so if the club are happy with handing this process over to their members, then individuals can renew and purchase Archery GB membership and associate themselves with the club. We will leave it for the club to decide whether they are happy for this to happen.
In the webinars we did mention that we will migrate fully to “direct” memberships for 2025/26; however we will monitor the situation and let members and clubs know what they need to do for 25/26 in spring 2025.
Club and membership secretaries renewing any member in September or October, will have the end of September 2025 as their renewal date. Members paying clubs still get the cover from the point of payment. So, the bulk of your members will stay on the usual annual renewal and can remain like this every year.
We know that there sometimes is a delay in members receiving their membership confirmations and e-cards, and we do receive many enquiries about membership which is payment pending or incomplete – by going directly to Archery GB, new or renewing members will have membership instantly on payment, and as membership secretary you could be relieved of some of the administration of doing this.
Everyone will be asked to update their own profile in August ready for September renewals. This means all the inactivated accounts will be activated and users given access to their own details.
You can tell members that you will do it all, should you wish. Or you can encourage all members to look after their own Archery GB memberships.
There are multiple ways of checking who is a member:
One of the big challenges here is the common issue that people think that our fees are simply a tax, with benefits "that nobody wants or needs" – that is until someone shoots someone else, or there is a safeguarding issue that they have to pay for legal support for as a club –either of which will invariably cause the club to go bust.
As an archer you are part of a wider community – we have tried to demonstrate in our membership offer what all members collectively receive. As an organisation we must be financially sustainable and we have built the price point around that.
To provide a quality service and fulfil the obligations on us by Government, Sport England, UK Sport and other bodies, and of course our obligations to our members, Archery GB has to focus on ensuring the sport operates in the most effective way.
When members join, someone has to process your payment, DBS check, provide support for club development or safeguarding advice. We have built a minimum price point for membership, and we will be doing the same for the instructor and coaching courses and competitions, to ensure that the costs are covered by our income. Just the same as we recommend clubs do.
We continue to look for alternative sources of revenue, hence the reason we have launched a new offer for instructors. We are also seeking commercial opportunities but these are hard to come by.
We have presented a three-year pricing plan (with caveats against forces beyond our control) so that members are aware of what is coming.
If you have not watched it, please refer to Ruth Hall’s statement here:
Feedback from the sport indicates that more clarity is required over the structure of regions and counties, how they are established and where the money is spent. We will be talking to the regions and counties in the coming months to discuss how we can tackle this challenge collectively, to provide clarity to you.
Archery GB already collects the Archery NI fees, and we hope to have additional discussions with regions and county associations about how we can put the archer at the centre of the financial discussion.
We know that AGB fees are not the only fees members pay. Collectively can AGB, regions and counties do something together that saves archers money? Following the roadshows we attended in 2022, many people told us that county and regional associations are only there for coaching and competitions. We know much more goes on, including the support for safeguarding and disciplinaries across all levels, so we need to collectively come up with a solution.
Abolishing the pro-rata system means new members can join immediately, and would join for 12 months. They will not join in April or July and pay £60, and then another £60 in Sept/Oct. They will pay one fee, for 12 months membership.
We are reducing the wait for people to join. Often, we are told that new members do not want to wait but clubs tell them to wait until 1 April or 1 July or even 1 October. Let’s get people into the sport as quickly as possible.
Please visit the Archery GB/Howden Microsite here.
Members should not be shooting alongside non-members, except as detailed in the insurance schedule. This is to protect the members as they are all benefiting from the Archery GB insurance, at the same limit of indemnity.
Should one member accidentally injure another and an allegation for negligence is made, the aim of the liability insurance policy is to defend the member if it is clear they have not breached their duty of care. Where there is a breach of the duty of care the liability insurers would manage the claim and any award for compensation set by the courts or out of court settlement up to the limit of indemnity.
Members who knowingly are shooting alongside those who are not members or the clubs who are knowingly allowing members to shoot along side non-members could be invalidating their insurance as this would be in breach of the Archery GB Rules of Shooting.
It is also important to remember that how a liability claim will be reviewed and managed is not black and white, as every claim would be looked at independently and be dependent on the type of allegation being made.
Only the member is insured should an allegation for negligence be made against the member. Any non-member (whether they have insurance with another provider or not) would have to manage any allegation or claim for negligence against them personally. This may mean their personal assets are at risk to pay for the defence costs and any award the courts set against them.
Claims for public liability awards have exceeded £10m in the world of amateur sport and recreation in recent years. By being included in Archery GB's Insurance policy there is a consistent approach to the insurance and the cover, for all members. There are significant limits which apply to all members – £15,000,000 for public liability exposures and up to £10,000,000 for management liability, that being the personal liability of the committee.
Where clubs make their own insurance arrangements, they run the risk of buying limits below these recommended levels. This could leave clubs and committee members exposed.
Archery GB and our insurance advisors spend a lot of time negotiating the cover and it is very comprehensive. As with your car and home insurance, cover and cost changes rapidly, and we want to ensure that the sport remains safe and is governed well, and we negotiate this cover on your behalf.
As we have shown there are multiple ways in which to check who is a member. Every club has different procedures on how to access the club’s facilities and it is hard for Archery GB to know how to mandate this – however, the club should have knowledge of who is at the range and when.
We are not saying that you need to check every 5 minutes who is at the range, but in case of an incident or a claim, there should be a sign-in book, QR code or booking-in system. Any claim that is put to the insurers would require this information.
Any new or renewing archer that pays in September or October will start on the current 12-month period ending September 2025. From 1 November 2024, any new or renewing archer’s membership will renew 12 months from the date they join. So it is not until November 2025 when this starts. Members will receive renewal reminders at 30, 7 and 1 day prior, the day of and 7 days and 30 days after their membership has lapsed if they do not renew.
Clubs currently accept members at all times of the year. This admin may not change – but could change if you ask the new member to complete their own Archery GB membership. Clubs could prevent new members joining until a certain date – for example September/October and April – therefore keeping all members on two specific dates throughout the year. Or clubs could let members join at any time and keep the lapsing members report to hand to remind members to renew alongside the email reminders they will get from Archery GB.
Clubs and members should not allow non-members to shoot alongside Archery GB members, as we cannot be confident that the insurance cover limits are the same levels. Members who knowingly are shooting alongside those who are not members or the clubs who are knowingly allowing members to shoot alongside non-members could be invalidating their insurance as this would be in breach of the Archery GB Rules of Shooting.
Further emails will be sent in August instructing clubs on how to affiliate ahead of renewals opening for members on 2 September.
