September 2024
Dear Members and Supporters,
Welcome back to the start of the new season. The website is starting to be populated with a plethora of exciting and varied events that we’re sure you’ll find interesting.
Our Programme
Eight more of the sought-after Philosophy Forums are planned across the year. With this more participatory format being so popular, we are talking to the event programming groups about running similar events in their subject areas.
Moving forward, our focus is to review and evolve our program of activities, to increase awareness of Manchester Lit & Phil in the North West, and to increase the number of people attending our events. This will support our charitable purpose and allow us to run the society sustainably.
We will keep much of our core offering but add “showcase” events, ideally one per term, where we will recruit high-profile speakers, choose popular and relevant topics and host more significant events in large venues.
Our informal theatre group will now be expanded and will start to be advertised as part of our program.
There will also be partnerships focused on raising the awareness of Manchester Lit & Phil, where we are part of larger events, so we can showcase our offering to new and bigger audiences. A great example of this last year was our contribution to the We Think Big talks at the “We Invented the Weekend” festival held in Salford Media City.
The Program Planning Group will also engage with our existing audience to solicit new ideas, formats, and themes.
AGM / Moving towards sustainability
Behind the scenes, the Trustees are busy operating as a charity and a registered company. These governance activities are often seen as less appealing than those connected with the program, but are very rewarding, and they are the foundation and enabler for all of our activities. Volunteers bring their skills, passion, and time to ensure that the society is well-run.
There has been a lot of change over the last 12 months. We will bed down the new operating model in the next few weeks. Still, for the first time in many years, we have reduced the operating deficit and reviewed most of our external costs to ensure we are getting value for money.
Our AGM is planned for Tuesday 17 September. We have changed the format for this year; previously, the AGM was combined with a lecture. The impact of this was that the business of Manchester Lit & Phil was compressed into a short period. As several of the challenges facing us need to be explored with the members at an appropriate level, this year’s session will be very interactive. I would ask members to attend and make their voices heard, ask questions, and offer possible solutions. Members can register here.
Trustee Elections
Our trustees are critical to our governance, strategy, and operations. Several of our existing trustees have reached the end of their terms or have decided to step down.
We need to fill a couple of key roles, and we have the opportunity to add elected members to the board of trustees.
The roles are:
President-Elect – This gives our next president 12 months to understand the workings of the Lit & Phil so that they can have an impact before their term and develop and evolve the strategy.
Honorary Secretary – Along with the treasurer, I see this as one of the most critical roles. It needs a person who is good with structure and process. The role-holder needs to lead, drive the council to make decisions, and ensure we are always compliant. This role also plays a broader part in supporting the President.
Elected Members – These are responsible for representing the views of the wider membership to the council and taking an active role in the daily operations.
With all of these roles, we need people who can invest time and “own” part of the operation – including event teams, membership management and volunteer recruitment. What we need are people who can improve our performance in these areas.
If any of these roles appeal to you, please write to secretary@manlitphil.ac.uk to express your interest.
Thank you all for your past and future support and I look forward to seeing you all shortly.
Peter Wright
President
