Registration Fees

Someone on the club committee confirmed this (the increase) for me today.

We (the club, and more precisely me & my clubmate) are doing a beginners' running course at the moment. I am very worried that the increase - which will pretty much double the annual club membership fee - will just put everyone off from even considering joining the club. 

OK so it's "only" ten pounds if you stick to road races. Firstly, a lot of beginners (a lot of folk full stop) aren't going to do as many as five races a year. It just won't be worth their while. Secondly - so, want to take part in a summer track 5k, or fill in for someone in the vets league when we're short of a team member... sorry, that's an extra ten quid?

I guess I'm upset because I've been put in an invidious position - I want to encourage beginners to come into the sport and join their local club but now it's so much more expensive I'm not sure I can really make a case for it. I can afford it and compared to what I spend on races, travel etc it's a drop in the ocean but it's a very different story for new runners. 

Short of a wholesale rebellion this is probably going to go through - so I would be interested to hear about what other clubs are thinking of doing about this. Any ideas?  

You don't have to have the the EA Race Licence, as you say if you don't run 5 races a year then it's not worth it.  Just don't get one and pay the £2 levy at each race you enter.

5k Track is that an open race or one that your club puts on for its members? 

as effective revenue generating strategies go, increasing the runners tax is up there with removing the tea and coffee subsidy for nurses (my gf's current bugbear that there is no free milk in the fridge at work any more).

Fido2Dogs wrote (see)

Someone on the club committee confirmed this (the increase) for me today.

We (the club, and more precisely me & my clubmate) are doing a beginners' running course at the moment. I am very worried that the increase - which will pretty much double the annual club membership fee - will just put everyone off from even considering joining the club. 

F2D - we have a low membership fee, and then if people want to be Competing Members, they pay the fee for that separately.   That way only those who choose to, pay the extra.  There's no need for people to be competing members if they don't want to and won't benefit from the discount.

I think this increase will make a few members of my club choose not to come April.

The OP refered to the government and this being a tax, but UKA have assured me that the fees Including the increase) go only to UKA.

AG - it's not a tax, it's a voluntary payment which buys you a discount on race entries, and a discount in Sweatshop.  Save your tenner and use it to pay the unattached levy.

ah i see, thanks for the clarification. but what about my gf's tea kitty?

I work in a University, and we have to buy our own milk too!

I work at home and have to pay for my own coffee too.

jeez, the injustice. I blame thatcher (the milk snatcher)

I'm not sure UKA have thought this through - such an increase will invariably lead to less registrations. Currently all of our club members are registered out of their membership fee. I reckon that if we gave members the option, over half would not pay as they are not regular racers (less than half have participated in a race in 2012), hence UKA's income from our club would fall.