Or do the National Trust need to start looking after their members during the 'Rona

[MaconVillagesisgoodchardonnay]

I know we're in "unprecedented times" before anyone starts with that one.

I pay a family membership for NT and in a normal week I will use it at least twice a week with the children, either alone, with husband or to meet up with friends.

I haven't been since March when they opened it up to everyone, caused chaos and subsequently shut.

Since reopening and operating a booking system, the venues close to me you need to book almost a week in advance which is utterly bonkers. They haven't prioritised their members, or in fact communicated with us at all regarding this, in fact I've had no post from them since Jan renewal.

I've emailed them to see whether I can have either a partial refund or an extension on our membership - AIBU? I haven't had a response yet. I'd rather now have an annual pass to a private estate locally and know I can be guaranteed somewhere to go. When the schools do break up for summer the chances of booking a NT day out become even slimmer.

I'm a bit ratty after the baby kept me up all night but AIBU to be a bit fucked off at them?

Thanks to this I have found out that my Eng Heritage membership is extended. It was due to expire in May and I didn't renew for obvious reasons.
Going away for a couple of nights to North Yorkshire and will use it. The booking is a pita though. Who knows what time you want to go

I've been completely happy with NT membership. On my renewal letter they offered a payment holiday to reflect their closure, but as I haven't been too badly affected by lockdown I carried on paying. It's not a business, it's a charity. And I've definitely got lots out of membership over the years. Also used it for the free parking at some parks during lockdown. Had to book a time slot for some properties, but that wasn't exactly hard work.

We have been going to a local national trust weekly , ive been loving being there and my little girls love it. I book on a Friday for following tuesday, i did have to wait a few weeks as was booking very quickly but , its fine now.

Sometimes I feel they've been elevated to untouchable status. Fundamentally they are a private organisation and private landowner in charge of some of our most precious and beautiful natural environments and that sits uneasily with me

And me. DM has a membership that renews each year, when she was well she saw it as an important way of protecting our countryside and opening it up to everyone. Now I have to look after her finances I have kept it going but it's starting to grate on me.

Our nearest property has been defaced by a huge expansion in parking since they decided to bring in charges and seemingly endless 'thinning' of the woodland that has left the beautiful park looking very changed.

[quote Mumtumwobble]@WhentheDealGoesDown that’s all well and good if you’re just at home with nothing else to do. Not so good if you’ve got commitments such as work. Most people can’t spend an hour trying to get tickets (particularly weekend tickets) like I had to last week.[/quote]
It doesnt take hours to get ticket , u go onto website u click on link to tickets and u purchase one. If they are sold out you dont. Takes 5 mins at most. Im not sure what u r trying to do

I spent about 5 mins at 10am today booking a visit for next Friday. Was loads of slots still free. I think you just need to time it right and maybe choose somewhere slightly less popular.

@Duggeehugs82 that’s exactly what I did, but then got put in a virtual queue by Eventbrite because so many people were trying to get tickets. I suppose it’s to try and stop the website crashing. I did manage to access the booking page in the end, but it took a long time.

@SachaStark

They have charity status, so cannot prioritise members due to this.

I don't completely buy this. Chester Zoo are a charity and they're managing to allocate tickets for members and other tickets for the general public. There must be something more to it than that. Possibly mainly bad PR advice...

Well perhaps Chester zoo has got it wrong. Charity tax law is very clear on this

@sanityisamyth maybe you’re right. I haven’t tried for a few weeks maybe it’s calmed down a bit now or I just timed really badly when everyone else was trying to get tickets too. Unfortunately the places I can get to easily are in the NW near Liverpool and Manchester so they probably are popular.

[quote Mumtumwobble]@sanityisamyth maybe you’re right. I haven’t tried for a few weeks maybe it’s calmed down a bit now or I just timed really badly when everyone else was trying to get tickets too. Unfortunately the places I can get to easily are in the NW near Liverpool and Manchester so they probably are popular.[/quote]

That makes sense. I only have 2 NT near me in South Wales and have already done them. They were very popular too! It's nice now that we can go more than 5 miles from home so I was able to escape back into England yesterday to Bristol!! Good luck with managing to organise a nice day out :)

@WilliamTheToad

I don't know why people seem to treat it as some sort of club

Because they call it a membership. If they want it viewed as a large donation then they name it appropriately. It's not unreasonable that someone who paid for something called a membership thinks they may now be a member of some sort of club or entity.

Of course, if they called it a donation then it opens them up to scrutiny on the whole "give us 20% extra at no cost to you" line. I'm happy with them claiming my tax back but let's not pretend it's at no cost to me. The alternative is that I can claim it back instead. If they have it, I don't.

I have many frustrations with the NT but I also want the buildings and land protected so will continue to donate (and continue to be frustrated about the way they run things).

Not true re the 20% tax. If you're a higher rate taxpayer you can claim back the additional bit on top of the 20% but the 20% basic rate tax is only claimable by the charity unless you donate via payroll giving and it's deducted from your salary at source.

The booking system isnt very good. I booked for 4 of us. Me and 3 dc. The time slots given said there were no member spaces available but there were plenty of paying slots. I've been a nt member for ten years so I was a bit annoyed. I rang them to see why this was the case and lo and behold they suddenly found space for the four of us.

We went. It was ok. The one way system was silly. The playground was shut,bthe shop was shut and we were home an hour an a half later

I have decided to cancel my membership next year as when I messaged them asking for a 2 month extension since they were closed for 2 months and we couldn't use our memberships they refused

I haven't been able to use mine for 5 months. I won't be renewing.

I contacted them about how they were responding to Black Lives Matter and got a comprehensive reply so i felt a bit better about my membership fee. I am still benefitting from all the countryside they look after even if i cant visit it. I find the whole house nit uncomfortable though.

DM has a membership that renews each year, when she was well she saw it as an important way of protecting our countryside and opening it up to everyone. Now I have to look after her finances I have kept it going but it's starting to grate on me

In the nicest possible way, PoA means managing someone’s money in the way they managed it themselves when they were capable. It would be highly unethical to make decisions that go against the way she managed her finances. It’s not your money, it’s still hers.

As well as belonging to National Trust and English Heritage, I also have a membership with David Lloyd and I have to say that David Lloyd have been excellent throughout. They suspended membership immediately, gave us vouchers in lieu of the spare days we'd paid for, opened up outdoor exercise spaces as soon as they were allowed to and have communicated clearly throughout. I haven't been able to restart my membership yet because I haven't had any childcare but they haven't charged me a penny.

David Lloyd is a business.

Gosh and there was me thinking that with an annual membership I was supporting an excellent charity that does great work preserving the environment and historical properties for the enjoyment of the nation. All 'naicely' put together, and very accessible for families. I have primary age DC. I think people have absolutely no idea how much it costs to keep property, gardens and artefacts maintained; to train staff and volunteers, and to keep the place safe. Family membership is a sunk cost, I paid £120 or whatever it is in February this year, I'm not going to be quibbling about getting £30 back or whatever. My kids have had to 'put up with' going to the local park / nature reserve / walking locally in the neighbourhood for a good while now.

But no, it seems I'm in the minority. I can't believe that there's such a consumerist stance on this. There are so many council-run parks and outdoor areas that you can still go to! Maybe it's not all quite as 'exclusive' as the NT but you can still take your kids, the buggy and your packed lunch. Maybe a ball or a scooter for the children. I won't be asking NT for a refund, I'd be devastated if they ran out of cash or entirely lost their volunteer workforce.

This really is a small price to pay for really difficult circumstances. Do people really think that NT are pulling our legs on this?

David Lloyd manages gyms - big boxes, full of electrical stuff, easy to clean and maintain, one site very much like another I should imagine.

@Todaythiscouldbe It's not exactly an extension. It's an extra 3 months WHEN and IF you renew the subscription.

So, for me, that means my new sub is due in August. I will pay another £80 and get 3 more months rather than my current sub being extended to December. And obviously between August this year and December (when a lot of the sites close down anyway) they will still have restrictions in place.

Also, there is usually an ongoing offer for new members which is 15 months for the price of 12, so it's hardly generous.

I don’t get what all the moaning about booking in advance is about?

This thread has just reminded my friend and I that we wanted to book parking at our nearest National Trust venue for the coming week. The house obviously isn’t open, but we want to walk through the grounds, then swim off the little beach there.

Just went on to the site, and I’ve got two e-tickets with our membership cards in under five minutes. And there were slots available for every single possible time frame for the next week, I checked.

No idea what all the fuss is about. Besides, it’s a charity, I was under the impression that I pay for my membership in order to preserve historical artefacts and allow for important conservation and research. Not so that I can be part of a special club.

That was my point: businesses have to be businesslike about keeping your custom. Charities don't. What the National Trust has done is muddied the waters by giving the impression that members were paying for a service, when actually members are donating and getting benefits as a side effect.

You font have to book the Pay and Display car parks just use your membership card at the machine.

@SachaStark amazing - you're obviously not trying to book any of our local sites which are booked up for the next 7 days, it's proving more difficult than online shopping delivery slots during lockdown if I'm honest.

I'm a land agent by trade and I do work close with our Natty Trust so I'm under absolutely no illusions about they revenue from private rentals and tourism sector - they are not a penniless charity by any stretch. I saw the gardens at Knightshayes have been largely neglected for the duration of lockdown - if they are pricing themselves in being custodians of our national heritage with their charitable status, they really do need to up their game.

For everyone who is shocked at my stance on membership - I pay £X amount per 12 months to access heritage sites. If I can't do that, why on earth would I pay?