Frequently Asked Questions: more information on proposed affiliation fees

FAQS

• My group is new, and I don’t know how many members I will have yet?  Do I still need to pay?  Yes, if you are a new group that hasn’t recruited new members yet, then you will have to pay the minimum set up fee of £25.  A minimum of 2 named contacts (where possible) are required to set up your group who can act as admins.
• Does my group now need to have a constitution and a bank account?  No, if your group doesn’t have its own agreements and policies in place, you can adopt jogscotland’s versions at the point of registration.  We do not insist on groups having bank accounts but if you handle group fees and cash, then it is good practice to have a group bank account in place.
• My group operates as part of an athletics club affiliated to scottishathletics.  Do we need to pay?  Yes, you will register your group as a jogscotland group and pay the relevant registration fee. You will not need to pay for these members through club affiliation unless they are also competing members.
• How do I register my group in the new system?  A step-by-step guide and training will be available to leaders before the affiliation system begins in August.
• How is the group registration fee calculated?  Annually, the leaders will complete the group registration process. The fee will be calculated based on the registered number of members assigned to the group. This will be a snapshot of the group’s membership at the point of the annual registration
• When do we pay the fees? Fees will be payable on an annual basis, with groups registering in August each year.  This will be done through our JustGo system.  Two named contacts will have admin rights, and they will assign their members to their group.  This will be done based on honesty and will be a snapshot of their current attendance at sessions.  The fee will be calculated by the number of members they attach to their group.
• My group runs more than 1 session a week.  Do we need to register for each session we deliver? No, you will only need to register your group once, however you can create multiple sessions to sit under your group.
• My group doesn’t take session fees.  What do we do? If your group does not wish to take weekly session or membership fees from participants, there are lots of other ways to generate income for your group to cover affiliation fees such as setting up one-off fundraising events, asking a local business to sponsor you, asking 30+ members to take out Premium memberships instead or asking people for a one-off donation annually.
• My group is very large, but I think we will struggle to meet the group fees.  What can we do?  If your group has 30+ members who all take out jogscotland Premium memberships, then your group fee will be waived.
• If a jog group ceases, is a refund issued?  No refunds will be given if a group ceases activity.
• There are already several jogging groups in my area.  Does that mean I can’t affiliate my group?  We welcome new groups to affiliate to jogscotland.  What we do suggest is scoping out what provision is currently in your area and try to meet local demand.  If there’s a group that meets on a Tuesday, then set up your group on a different weekday.  This widens the opportunity for the community to be active or to attend more than one group. Alternatively, support a pre-existing group or reach out to a local athletics club and speak to them about including a recreational running group if they don’t currently have one.
• Do workplace groups need to affiliate?  Yes. We suggest having a discussion with your employer about how they can support the workplace group to affiliate.
• Was there a consultation process when this decision was made? Yes, we consulted with a Jog Leaders Forum, a representative group of 12 leaders from different groups, whom we spoke with over several months to get their views and opinions on how any structural changes to membership and group fees would impact them and their members.  We also carried out discussion groups with various internal staff members such as the Inclusion Impact Team, Membership and National Club Managers. We also consulted with an expert in group governance who gave jogscotland guidance on what policies, agreements and structure groups should adopt going forward.
• What is the Jog Group Education programme that is offered to affiliated groups? This will include webinars, guest speakers, conferences and networking opportunities on themes such as membership recruitment, group development, menopause, mental health, conflict resolution and other topics of interest relevant to recreational running, leadership and health. The programme will be made available to leaders from affiliated groups and their members.
• If my group chooses not to affiliate to jogscotland, am I as a licensed leader still insured as long as I hold a valid license? Yes, as long as you hold a valid license, you are covered by insurance. However, the joggers within your group will no longer be able to register with jogscotland as a member of our group and will therefore no longer be covered by the Public Liability insurance Insurance for athletes
• New members join my group throughout the year; do I pay for them when they start? No, if they are still with your group when groups are due to reaffiliate, you would pay for them then.  This will be done once a year.
• What support do groups currently receive by being a registered jogscotland group? Registered jogscotland groups currently receive support with governance queries, support to deal with complaints, help with license renewals, Stride magazine, support with group development, Leaders Facebook group, various webinars such as menopause and mental health, the Conference, Award nominations and Awards Evening. These will all remain available to the affiliated group.