Dear TDCC Colts Member
Firstly we hope that you and your family are well in these difficult times.
We are writing to you in line with our promise to keep you up-to-date with what is happening at the club, in particular the treatment of membership fees given the limited access to cricket so far this Summer for your children.
So, let’s start by grasping a rather large nettle – we would like to immediately thank you for paying your membership fees promptly.
Obviously as a club we have been asking ourselves how we should treat those who have paid their fees in the current situation where children have had limited access to cricket. We are extremely grateful to you for your patience as the situation at club has developed.
In this email we aim to set out the options available to you, please be assured that we have spent a great deal of time and energy weighing up the options and our commitments and hope you agree with the way forward we have chosen. We hope to provide you with as much information as possible so that you can make an informed decision for you and your family.
Unfortunately, this means that this email is quite long, but we do have a lot of information to share with you!
After reading this email we would ask you to complete and submit the form on the link below, to let us know what you would like us to do. Please do not email your answer to the TDCC website. Please submit before June 15th.
Our guiding principles
As we set out in our previous email, we aim to address the membership question under these guiding principles and please understand that in these serious times we are trying our hardest to do the right thing:
- Transparency and Fairness – we will be open with you and aim to treat all member fairly
- The financial health of the Club – as custodians of our 187 year old club we feel we must protect the club’s future
- Official Guidance – we will follow the guidance provided by the administrators of Surrey Cricket, the English Cricket Board (ECB) and wider Governmen
Good News
However, before we address the issue of membership fees we would first like to start with good news.
Cricket is now taking place on the Green and we should be very grateful for this.
As you will have seen in the last week that under strict guidelines laid down by the ECB we are able to offer 1:1 Coaching.
In line with these guidelines we immediately offered sessions with our senior Coaches Chris and Jack. This 1:1 coaching is offered as part of membership and all 54 slots were booked up within the first 5 minutes.
Further during the time of drafting this correspondence the Government has announced that members from 5 different households can take part in exercise which would appear to pave the way for small group Coaching. We await the ECB guidance. As I am sure is clear the more people that leave their fees the more our finances will allow such activities. In short we need more money to do more with smaller groups!
As a club this is heartening to us, but you may well be asking. . .
How much cricket will my children be able to play in 2020?
The short answer to that is that we do not know at the moment, no one does. The Government comments on exercise with members of 5 different households would appear to allow small group Coaching and maybe more in the future.
But at the moment we don’t know, we just hope.
We do plan to extend the Colts season beyond the usual end-date of July if that is possible, to give Colts members as much access to Cricket as the ECB and Government allows.
What is happening at the Club?
Before setting out the membership options we are able to offer, we would like to update you with the work that our volunteers have been doing at the club.
The roof is fixed – you may be pleased to learn that the club has repelled a co-ordinated attack by the local squirrels who chewed through an old chimney outlet. The clubhouse is dry again, but there is no news on the squirrels, so we suggest you keep your eyes on your chimney outlets.
All those that purchased coloured shirts have now had the money refunded.
The Committee continues to meet on a regular basis to plot our way forward through frankly unchartered and difficult issues.
Thanks to prompt payment of subs we moved into this season with a strong Financial balance sheet.
But with income streams such as the bar and the ball unlikely to bring us much money this year, we do have to be very, very careful about what we can offer members.
Which brings us to the big issue…
2020 TDCC Colts Membership Options
After much work and scenario planning by the Committee we are able to set out below the membership options open to you.
We hope these options are good news to you and show that we are fulfilling our promise to be fair to all, while safeguarding the future of the Club.
The options include a full refund – Option 3.
But, (and we hate to say this), if everyone chooses Option 3 on the form, we do have to be honest and say that will face significant financial challenges moving into the Winter months and surviving into 2021. But we felt we have to offer this as an option.
Membership Options
We are aware that in the current environment each family is in a different situation and therefore hope that the choices below give you an option that suits you.
Please indicate the option you would like to select on this form.
If you have more than one child with us, you can select a different option for each child.
Option 1
I/we are happy for the Club to retain my 2020 Membership fee.
Choosing this option means that you allow us to accept the full payment you have made to the club, this will obviously give your children full access to the cricket we are able to provide in 2020.
As a thank you for selecting this Option the Club has agreed to give you a 20% discount from next year’s Membership Fee and a guaranteed place.
This is available up to June 15th 2020 and will not be available for any other choice or beyond that date.
Option 2
I / We would like to wait and see what happens
Choosing this option means that the Club keeps the fee you have paid for now, but as the amount of cricket we are able to offer becomes clearer, we will consider a partial refund in line with what the club can afford to ensure survival into 2021.
You will therefore retain access to all of the colts cricket we are able to provide over the Summer but will obviously not receive a discount for next season.
Option 3
I / we would like a full refund of the Membership fee
Choosing the option, means that you get your money back.
The Club fully understands that families are in different financial situations and therefore may need to exercise this option. The selection of this Option would naturally mean that you are no longer a member of the club and therefore could not use the facilities or be involved in any cricketing activities offered by the Club during the 2020 season because unfortunately, our insurance does not cover non-members of the club. We hope you understand why we would have to do this.
We would be very grateful if you could complete and submit the form by June 15th. This will enable us to understand our Financial situation as soon as possible and make any adjustments required.
Should you for whatever reason not complete the form by the agreed date we will assume Option 2 as a default.
Thank you for your help in this matter. As schools return and the lockdown eases, we hope that cricket will continue to return to the green in a meaningful way over the next few months.
Stay safe and go well.
Jonathan Sealy
Head of TDCC Colts
Jon Buckley
Deputy Head of TDCC Colts