Membership Fees 2015
Dear Members,
At last year’s AGM, members agreed that the club should implement a new membership fee structure in time for the 2015-16 membership round and debated an increase in fees that would be linked to that new structure. This email explains the reasons for the increase that the tennis and general committees of the club have agreed and includes details of the new rates.
Over the past few years the club has done a great job in managing its facilities and services with the finances at its disposal. The club earns its income from a variety of sources such as tournament fees, coaching and camps, but the majority comes from the membership that we all pay on an annual basis.
When the recession started in 2008 the club decided to not increase membership subscriptions and we held them at £220 until 2011 when they were increased to £240.
Later increases have taken place at small increments as expected, but we decided not to restore subscriptions to the value they would have been had they not been frozen for three years. Therefore, we have been playing catch-up as a result. Having given members the benefit of this reduction during the recession we have now taken the decision to increase subscriptions to the level they would naturally be at, had the fees not originally been frozen.
Further, over the past few years many members have contributed to the club in other ways, supporting the redevelopment of the school courts and the upstairs of the club house. The club has also recently changed some significant elements of its tennis programme and we were conscious that these changes needed time to bed-in and for the members to see the benefits before increasing membership rates.
The committees feel that now is the time to implement an increase. There are a variety of reasons why we have taken this decision. Firstly, in order to maintain and improve our current facilities for members we need to build up our reserves (for example, to carry out periodic court repainting and resurfacing) so work can be planned and carried out when needed. These reserves are low at present, delaying maintenance work. Secondly, as well as investing in facilities for members’ benefit we also need to do so to ensure that we meet our Tennis Clubmark requirements, which include having courts of a certain standard and maintenance. Thirdly, based on the subscriptions charged by our local competitors and the facilities we offer we feel that we are currently under-pricing our subscriptions.
Finally, although we have increased the number of courts we have by developing the school courts, we have never adjusted the membership fee to reflect this increase in facilities. We feel it is unsustainable to continue with increased expenditure without increasing our income.
We are, and will continue to be amazingly good value for money. Members receive a great deal for their membership, including access to 12 courts most of the year, free balls and lights during social play, a very well-managed club that organises tennis activities, competitions and coaching and other tennis activity across a 12 month period, access to a great club house, licensed bar and café (which is the envy of many clubs) and unique surrounding grounds. And, we are the only club in the area that provides discounts for under 25s, 30s and the over 65s!
It is for these reasons that we are asking full adult members to pay a new membership fee of £300 from April 1 2015. Other categories are listed on the website for information and further detail can be provided from Tracey, our administrator at membership@highgate-tennis.co.uk
Saying all that, the club also recognises that it needs to think innovatively and do more to extend its sources of funding. Therefore, we are looking for a volunteer fundraiser who might be able to help the club in activating alternative sources of funding and we will be developing a Financial Plan and Club Strategy that will take us forward to 2020, which we hope to have ready later this year.
The club has not taken this decision lightly but if we want to ensure that we have the finances in place to maintain our courts, develop our club house, continue to advance our programme and invest in the club, then this increase in membership fees is necessary to help meet both our short and long term goals.
We hope all of you will support this decision but if you have any concerns or questions, please email mikilentin@fastmail.co.uk, newton_andrew@hotmail.com or coaching@highgate-tennis.co.uk
Details of how to pay your subscriptions this year are below
Best wishes
Miki Lentin (HCLTC Tennis Section Chair)
Richard Tusting (HCLTC Chair)
Andy Newton (Hon. Treasurer)
How to pay for your membership subscription:
• By invoice – you will receive an invoice from membership@highgate-tennis.co.uk and will then be asked to pay your subscriptions online through our payment gateway. Please make payment by debit card which costs the club 22p, rather than the prohibitive charges the club incurs when credit cards are used.
• By cheque – made payable to ‘Highgate C<C’ for the amount payable and leave behind the bar for the attention of Andrew Newton.
• By bank transfer – Barclays Bank plc – Account number: 40472743 / Sort code: 20-58-51
As a minimum please ensure your payment is identified with your initial, surname and reference SUBS. When it’s done, please email me (membership@highgate-tennis.co.uk) to confirm that payment has been made.
