Message from Kerry Brown, President-Elect

Dear Member,

Despite the huge impact of COVID-19 since March, the Society has been moving forward, making some critical decisions about its future, and plotting out a sustainable, positive vision once we have hopefully put the current challenging times behind us.

One of the most significant achievements was a membership survey, conducted online over April to March, to which over 350 of our 650 members responded (see pages 33 to 38). This was a remarkable response rate, and we are very grateful for those that took the time to give us their feedback.

The message from the survey was very clear. The KAS has a committed membership, one predominantly interested in the Roman and Saxon eras, with a strong interest in digs, field walks, study days, and educational activities. They are also supportive of more online resources, and many of them have been involved in archaeological works. The more concerning finding was that of the respondents, two-thirds were over retirement age, men significantly outnumbered women, and in the last 1 to 2 years, only 13 per cent of new members were under the age of 55.

The issue of doing all we can to recruit younger members is a key part of the task of ensuring we are sustainable. Closely linked to this is the issue of finance. The excellent work of our treasurer Barry Beeching has ensured that even during the turbulence of the last few months we have managed to limit our losses. We have reserves invested, which continue to give a return each year. The problem is, however, that the income from this, from membership fees and other sources, has not covered our outgoings for most of the last decade. We have only managed to balance our budget twice since 2010. The stark fact is that, in the long term, if this situation continues, we will eventually run out of money.

To address these two issues, over the last three years, the Trustees have discussed in detail a number of plans about what the KAS should do to ensure that it has a sustainable future. No one doubts the passionate interest in the historical heritage of the county we live in. What we need to do is find ways to connect with this and to ensure that as wide a group of people as possible are involved in our work. The Membership survey showed strong support for one key idea: a physical centre of some sort for Society which can showcase the history of Kent, promote education, be a resource for members, and contain some of our significant, but at the moment widely dispersed, assets.

A physical centre could take many shapes and forms. While we currently have a members room at Maidstone Museum, there are a number of other options. We are currently exploring the possibility of an external consultant to work through some of these and propose those that might be most feasible. This will likely involve a significant fundraising campaign. On this too, we are also working with a group of professional fundraisers to see what options we might have.

Those objectives of having an enhanced physical presence for the Society, and engaging on a proper fundraising campaign to support this, will also involve considering full time, paid members of staff, and a dramatic increase in our online work. All of this will take time and hard work. As a charity, however, the KAS has to ensure that its future is sustainable and that it continues to speak to a public need. Thanks to the feedback on the membership survey this year, we now have important answers to what that need is, and how we can answer to it.

I look forward to working with the Trustees, and the Members, as we proceed through this process. Together we can ensure the KAS remains an extraordinary and relevant organisation that understands and contributes to the extraordinary archaeology and history of Kent.