English Chess Forum

I notice from the ECF papers for the council meeting that the board are proposing to hike game fee from 50p per half game (ie £1 per game) to 54p - another inflation busting rise of 8%.

How much longer will the Turkeys at council vote to flush further chess players cash down the ECF toilet?!

Having read the same papers, this will be voted on at the Finance Meeting in April. The Finance Director will presumably give a speech explaining why it is necessary. I'll reserve judgement until I hear that, but until then, I'm firmly in the nay camp.

Sean Hewitt wrote:I notice from the ECF papers for the council meeting that the board are proposing to hike game fee from 50p per half game (ie £1 per game) to 54p - another inflation busting rise of 8%.

At the last time of reporting, the ECF was spending more than its income on almost all its activities. Are there any reports/hints of how it has stabilised its financial position?

We live in difficult times. Not only is our national organisation trying to price us out of playing chess, but our national government is trying to stop us going for a beer after the game. So it's a trip to the supermarket and on-line chess as the way ahead.

Roger de Coverly wrote:

Sean Hewitt wrote:I notice from the ECF papers for the council meeting that the board are proposing to hike game fee from 50p per half game (ie £1 per game) to 54p - another inflation busting rise of 8%.

At the last time of reporting, the ECF was spending more than its income on almost all its activities. Are there any reports/hints of how it has stabilised its financial position?

I haven't downloaded the papers yet. I intend to do so over the weekend and I hope to see some significant cost reduction proposals.

EDIT : Turns out that the reason I haven't been able to download the papers yet was not because I am an IT Klutz (as I thought) but because the papers are not yet available and the web page URL distributed does not yet exist. I've suggested they put up a holding page since they've sent the URL out and they are now going to do that.

[quote="Sean Hewitt"]...the board are proposing to hike game fee from 50p per half game (ie £1 per game) to 54p - another inflation busting rise of 8%.[quote]

I know I'm going to get shouted down here, but to me that's pretty cheap to play a game of chess and personally I'd be prepared to pay more if it helped to stabilise the ECF's financial position providing I could be certain that it wouldn't be wasted on projects that are obviously failing like the Chess Sets for Schools fiasco.

David Lettington wrote:

Sean Hewitt wrote:...the board are proposing to hike game fee from 50p per half game (ie £1 per game) to 54p - another inflation busting rise of 8%.

I know I'm going to get shouted down here, but to me that's pretty cheap to play a game of chess and personally I'd be prepared to pay more if it helped to stabilise the ECF's financial position providing I could be certain that it wouldn't be wasted on projects that are obviously failing like the Chess Sets for Schools fiasco.

Would you pay the Game Fee for BUCA on my behalf then?

I'd rather just pay for my own games

David Lettington wrote:I know I'm going to get shouted down here, but to me that's pretty cheap to play a game of chess and personally I'd be prepared to pay more if it helped to stabilise the ECF's financial position providing I could be certain that it wouldn't be wasted on projects that are obviously failing like the Chess Sets for Schools fiasco.

A good point but I don't actually think its considered a dead project yet?

David Lettington wrote: I know I'm going to get shouted down here, but to me that's pretty cheap to play a game of chess

If it's £1 to play a game of chess I would agree with you. But it's not. It's £1 to grade a game of chess.

David Lettington wrote:personally I'd be prepared to pay more if it helped to stabilise the ECF's financial position providing I could be certain that it wouldn't be wasted on projects that are obviously failing like the Chess Sets for Schools fiasco.

I'm afraid that it's precisely because of losing money on things like Chess for Schools and spending £120k per annum on admin that this hike is being sought.

I can honestly say that, having read the papers and heard at length from our new Finance Director, that I have never been more confident that we are in a sound financial position. We have a positive and ambitious strategy for the coming year that will put us on a firmer financial footing, that is rooted in common sense, that is workable and that has the support of the Board and will probably get support from Council after some forensic examination.

Most of the searching questions to be asked are about where our money has been spent in the past, and I am looking forward to the meeting. The Board as I see it right now would not be party to future initiatives that were not reasonable, democratic, and value for money.

I have made enquiries about the papers not being on the site when I tried to download them last night, and I am assured that things are being sorted!

Adam Raoof wrote: Most of the searching questions to be asked are about where our money has been spent in the past, and I am looking forward to the meeting. The Board as I see it right now would not be party to future initiatives that were not reasonable, democratic, and value for money.

The past is history Adam. The most searching question is why the ECF need an 8% hike in game fee going forward.

Adam Raoof wrote:We have a positive and ambitious strategy for the coming year that will put us on a firmer financial footing, that is rooted in common sense, that is workable and that has the support of the Board and will probably get support from Council after some forensic examination.

So you won't be asking any questions about the past activities of the Board, Sean? That is a disappointment

The past is history Adam. The most searching question is why the ECF need an 8% hike in game fee going forward.

well it could be to cover the losses incurred in past history!

Adam Raoof wrote:

Adam Raoof wrote:We have a positive and ambitious strategy for the coming year that will put us on a firmer financial footing, that is rooted in common sense, that is workable and that has the support of the Board and will probably get support from Council after some forensic examination.

So you won't be asking any questions about the past activities of the Board, Sean? That is a disappointment

The actions of the current board (most of whom are the past board) are what matters. The only way to put the ECF on a firmer financial footing is to cut it's costs. If the ECF board were to look at the real world that's what every company in the land is trying to do. I hope that when we eventually get the papers we will see significant cost reductions being budgeted.

All the evidence from previous years shows that putting up game fee brings in no additional revenue. It will be interesting to see what assumptions to the revenue line this board believe an 8% hike in game fee will bring.