English Chess Federation Strategy Statement

[Vladimir Drkulec]

https://www.englishchess.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/C31.7-Strategy-Statement.pdf

ENGLISH CHESS FEDERATION
DRAFT STRATEGY AND BUSINESS PLAN
STRATEGY
Furthering the Cause of English Chess
The ECF will lead the development and organisation of chess for all players in England and our
international teams. This will encompass:
• Extending the number of active competitive and social chess players.
• Increasing the number of juniors playing competitive chess and transitioning to becoming adult
competitive players.
• Encouraging the development of women’s and social chess as part of a wider commitment to
increasing the diversity of participation in chess.
• Increasing the awareness of chess and its wider social benefits outside the existing ECF
membership.
• Building the financial strength of chess and chess organisations.
• Developing the number of elite players and individual players of exceptional talent.


Priority areas
A Director for Women’s Chess has been appointed to the Board. Our ambition is to increase
participation in chess among women of all standards to 15% of ECF membership (including ECF
Supporters) within four years, and to facilitate the transition from junior, to adult, to senior.
We have already begun, and we will continue to develop and refine, programmes to encourage
participation among junior players and to help them achieve their potential.
We will continue, and improve, our support to English players taking part in international
competitions, with the aspiration of re-establishing England as a force in the chess world.
Our biggest asset is our membership. We will continue to improve the attractiveness of
membership through good communication and enhanced membership services and offerings. We
recognise that the ECF needs to grow its membership and improve the attractiveness of the game
in order to sustain a viable future. The Board will continue to focus on these targets.
We will work with member organisations, supported by the Development Officer, to grow chess
activity at all levels across England, focussing in particular on junior, women’s and social chess.
We will keep the operation of the membership system under review, ensuring the system is well
maintained, remains fit for purpose and provides additional benefits to members.
We will continue to provide support to chess organisers and we will keep under continuous review
all competitions organised for which we are responsible, including the British Championships, the
UK Open Blitz Championships, the County Championships and the Women’s English Championships.
Commercial sponsorship generates additional income that can help us to make extra investment in
areas such as junior, women’s and international chess. We will continue to seek out new sponsorship
opportunities and build on our relationship with existing sponsors, and support them to build their
brands.
We will actively engage with other chess organisations in England and elsewhere to improve
coordination, efficiency and knowledge-sharing across English chess.
We will continue to develop a set of key performance indicators in order to monitor our progress
against our objectives.

[Vladimir Drkulec]

https://www.englishchess.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/C31.7-Strategy-Statement.pdf

Junior
Objective: Improve participation levels in and the profile of junior chess in England and reduce the
current rate of attrition in the transition to adulthood.
• Continue to develop the ECF Chess Academy in partnership with our chosen partners as the
development route of choice for our top juniors.
• Support the Chess Trust as it continues to develop its Accelerator Programme for our elite junior
players.
• Encourage junior chess organisations’ activities in England and promote the development of
collaborative working.
• Understand why so many girls stop playing chess in school and put in place actions accordingly,
liaising closely with the Director of Women’s Chess and junior organisers.
• Understand the core issues which make girls stop playing when they go to secondary school,
liaising closely with the Director of Women’s Chess and junior organisers.
• Identify and use sponsorship money to improve the quality of support to junior players.
• Develop competitive chess in schools with a particular emphasis on those pupils aged over 11.
• Develop chess playing opportunities that encourage girls to continue playing chess in adulthood.
• Encourage adult chess clubs and leagues to integrate, support and develop junior players.
• Review and improve junior financial management processes.
• Identify and work with top junior players to increase participation in non-ECF events, in
particular FIDE-rated tournaments.
• Extend take-up of the new Supporter category among parents of juniors.


Women
Objective: Work towards delivering our ambition to increase participation in chess among women
of all standards to 15% of ECF membership (including ECF Supporters) within four years.
• Increase participation in the English Women’s Championships.
• Work with independent organisers to increase female participation in non-ECF events and in
particular FIDE rated events.
• Increase the profile of women’s chess so that girls/teenagers/women have something to aspire
to.
• Reach out to non-chess women’s organisations to encourage female take-up of and participation
in chess.
• Extend take-up of the new Supporter category among girls and women.
• Implement the proposals in the paper “Development of Women’s Chess: Progress Plan” to be
presented at the April 2020 Finance Council meeting.

[Vladimir Drkulec]

https://www.englishchess.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/ltsp_oct07.pdf

English Chess Federation Long Term Strategic Plan 2007/2008

SECTION 4 SHORT-TERM ISSUES
4.1 Issues
There are a number of issues that the ECF faces in the short-term as follows:
 The ECF is seen as remote, elitist and profligate. The grass-roots players do not feel
that they get value for money from Game Fee.
 ECF message is not reaching local organisations.
 The ECF does not have a clear strategy on Internet Chess and use of Website.
 There is a need to provide more support and better training of organisers.
 There is a need for better recognition for efforts of organisers.
 There is a need to understand cost/benefit issues for the current membership schemes.
 There is a need to understand why the 4NCL and UK Chess challenge are successful
and see what lessons can be learnt.
 There is a need to establish a surplus policy to replenish reserves.
 There is a need for a review of the marketing/publicity/communications/sponsorship
seeking functions.
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4.2 Action Plan
An action plan against all of these points should be included in the next Annual Business
Plan. An important aspect of this plan should be to arrange that MB members visit
county/league AGMs to present the ECF viewpoint.

SECTION 5 LONG-TERM VISION FOR THE ECF
The long-term vision for the ECF includes the following key aspects:
a) Chess taught in all schools;
b) 100% Membership;
c) Access to lottery funding;
d) Sponsorship;
e) Chess on TV;
f) Improved image of chess and chess players;
g) An ECF organisational structure that allows the Board to act effectively;
h) An increased proportion of income that comes from non-governmental sources;
i) Inclusive communications with all chess players and chess organisations.

[Vladimir Drkulec]

https://new.uschess.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/us-chess-2020-annual-report-r2.pdf

USCF Annual Report for 2020