MAJOR CHANGES TO ROYAL BRITISH LEGION SCOTLAND NATIONALLY – THIS INVOLVES THURSO BRANCH!

In 2014 the organisation had 33,211 members and over 170 Branches; now we are down to ~20,000 across 138 Branches (and 58 Clubs).  More than 80% of our membership is linked to Branches with Clubs and less than a third are ex-service members.  We have gone from 9 geographical Areas to 5, and come through many challenges including a global pandemic and cost of living crisis.

A lot has changed over the last ten years or so, but what has been consistent is a decline in membership and increased demands on our costs and services.

Royal British Legion Scotland has built an excellent reputation in Scotland, for service delivery and support to the Armed Forces Community. We are well respected as the Custodians of Remembrance, for comradeship and commemorative event activities, our Pensions & Advocacy Service and Veterans Community Support.

However, to maintain the current level of service provision the organisation is functioning with a six figure deficit annually and this is not sustainable. At the current rate, we have 2 years left to survive. However, for 2 years now, RBLS has extensively consulted its’ members, established the Strategic Transformation Committee (STC) and produced a comprehensive Change Management Plan (CMP) and an accompanying programme of all tasks that are being considered and implemented to reverse this situation (click here for details). These are the controlling documents for the project and show progress to date. The STC meet monthly to discuss progress against this programme.

For the work to progress and positive changes to be implemented EVERYONE in the organisation will need to be engaged in the detail of these changes as you will be asked to vote on them.

Regular updates and ongoing communication will be provided through the following mediums:

  • The Head Office Month End Report will have an STC update every time it is circulated.
  • The Membership Bulletin will be used to communicate directly with all members who have provided an email address.
  • The Legion Today magazine, now in electronic format.
  • Webinars

The latest update on progress can be viewed on this video – it’s produced by Simon Middlemas and narrated by Claire Armstrong, RBLS CEO.

Each Area has a representative on the Strategic Committee; yours is Simon Middlemas, who can provide in-person updates on the work or conduct presentations – watch the TV in the lounge foyer for dates.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

There are a number of actions on everybody – these are the ones for Branches, ie. Thurso:

  • Increase gift aid – Thurso has seen a very small take up of this income opportunity; only about 20% have signed up. You can sign up if you pay tax and it costs you nothing apart from 5 minutes of your time. See details on the home page of this web site or go to the bar or office.
  • When the Branch raises money, donate a proportion to the Legion Scotland, who after all are our parent charity. Run a separate event for them. The more we raise, the smaller our membership contributions in the future.
  • The Legion Scotland shop has been completely changed. We have a new supplier called Tailored Branding who can provide clothing and items branded with our Branch title on them. Every sale the supplier makes, he will refund 10% to Legion Scotland. When its up and running, please use it.
  • Legal fees in Legion Scotland have been far too high over the last few years. Anything less than £18k is probably about right for a national Charity of our size, but they have been up beyond £100k, mainly caused by members, Branches and Areas operating outside of the constitution or causing major disruption.

There are many other actions, most by Head Office regarding diversification of income. For details, see the Change Management Plan.

YOUR INPUT

Input from all members is welcomed and encouraged at any stage of this project. Please contact the office, bar or Simon Middlemas who will coordinate the feedback.