Cost of Living
This article was written by Neville Rainford. He noted that In the early years, I have used Pounds, Shillings & Pence. Shillings (/- or s) are worth 5p and there were 12 pennies to a shilling. Later in this Chapter, I have rounded Pounds up or down, whichever was nearer.
In 1954 the Treasurer, H Sutton, reported that the Club had accrued a balance of £32 10/-. Subscriptions at that time were £1 1s and Match Fees 2s (10p).
In 1956 the Club kit cost £21 and the season’s total pitch hire cost £16.
1960 also saw Deando’s first Annual Dance, each ticket sold for 4/6d (23p), the live band and MC cost £11 and the event made a profit of £15 12s (£15.60). The Club Annual Subscription was now £1 15s and Match Fees 2/6d.
In 1963, after the move to KIng George’s Field, the pitch hire then cost 18/6d (93p), made up of the Hire of the Cricket Pitch 12/6d, Hire of Dressing Room with hot water 5s (foregoing the hot water would have saved 2/6d) plus 1s Charge for insurance against accidents to the public.
By 1968 the cost of pitch hire was 31/6d (£1.58), totaling £29 18/6 for 19 bookings.
A breakdown of the income and expenditure of the 23rd Anniversary (1973) Grand Dance was as follows:
By 1973, teas at home matches cost 20p.The Club balance in hand (17/5) was now £163.58. To keep Club finances on an even keel, the Finance Sub-Committee recommended to the AGM that annual subs be increased to £4, though it would decrease by 50p if settled by 1st July. Match Fees remain at 20p.
The 1973 Club Accounts (which also include the 1972 Accounts for comparison purposes) are a very good indication of Income, Expenditure and Balances for the Club at that time.
In 1974, after a new tea lady took over in late May, the cost of Home teas was £5.50.
In 1975 the General Secretary reported his concern with the rising costs of pitches, affiliations and insurance which now totalled £66, an increase of £25. Further, the cost of the President’s Match was highlighted by Jack Hesketh: the match was a ‘freebie’, the Club picking up all costs including pitch hire, teas and a buffet in the evening. On this occasion, Jack agreed to organise a raffle. In the event, the catering cost of £27 was partly offset by £10 donations.
The cost of teas was now increased to £6.50 per match, the income would be £5 and the cost of teas was now increased from 25 to 30p.
The Club account balance was £432.79 and the Club earned £11.41 interest from its Deposit Account.
Price of cricket pitches to rise by 30% in 1976 from £3 to £4. Cricket balls cost £2 each.
Finance Sob-Committee Proposed annual subscriptions increase to £5.
The 1976 Grand Dance in January made a profit of £80 although that included £45 in donations. However, the first Dinner and Dance at The Drift Bridge Hotel in November lost £20. In 1977, despite the Dinner & Dance being a sellout, it lost nearly £96 and the then Treasurer, Pete Wallis, made it clear he was not in favour of this level of subsidy.
The 1978 Dinner & Dance, £7 per ticket - meal cost £6, had 116 attendees and made a small profit after raffle takings plus donations. Balance now £686, up to £805 at the start of 1979 mainly due to the 100 Club.
When Indoor Cricket started the cost, for 10 games, was £30.
1978-9 winter nets at Gover’s had lost £91. Pitch Hire in 1979 £6.95 + VAT £194.60 total.
1979 D&D, with 160 attendees, lost £136.
In 1980 the Pitch Hire doubled to £13 - the Club could not adjust the season’s match fees which were set by the AGM. This was also particularly galling in the light of the fact that the cricket pitches were considered to be of a very poor standard. The Club earned £113 interest on its Deposit Account.
AGM increased subs to £12, match fees and teas to 60p each. D&D tickets priced at £9 produced a profit of £9.57 after donations and a profit on the raffle.
The 1982 Dinner and Dance at Sandown Park only sold 94 tickets. Tickets were priced at £11. The event lost £169 but this could have been much worse had it not been for donations and a successful raffle. Particularly disappointing was the sign up from playing members. The Committee agreed to stay at Sandown Park but agreed to increase the ticket price to £12.50.
The publication of the Annual Accounts at the 1982 AGM led to discussions about the Club’s finances, how much it costs to run the Club and where the Club is going financially. The Treasurer, Pete Wallis, said that it costs the Club £33 per match on average and that current annual expenditure is likely to exceed £2,000. It was agreed to ‘tighten our belts’ and that all future expenditure must be authorised by the Committee. It was also agreed to hold an Extraordinary General Meeting to increase Match fees from 60p to £1.
By December 1983 the Club’s bank balance exceeded £2,000.
In winter 1983-4 Deando entered 2 sides in The Indoor Cricket competition at Elmbridge LC: entry fee £75 per team, though significant recovery was made through players’ match fees.
In 1984 Deando CC purchased 4 sightscreens @ £126.50, Total £506. After deduction of the Council grant, £300, Kingston Methodists and Kingston Workmen contributed £68.66 each.
The Treasurer, Pete Wallis, investigated how to earn interest on Club funds. One Building Society Account returns 7 ¾% after tax on a minimum investment of £1,000.
After cancelling the Dinner & Dance of 1983 and holding a Presentation Dinner in a restaurant, Deando reverted to a Presentation Dinner & Dance in November 1984, tickets priced at £10 but it still lost £257.
In 1985, Pitch Hire cost £18.70. The Dinner & Dance at The Stoneleigh for a second year, tickets priced at £12.50. At the AGM Pete Wallis reports how much the Club members owe to income from the 100 Club - it has raised over £4000, the current balance being £2,719.
At the 1986 AGM Match Fees were increased to £1.50 per match. Annual subs are £12.
By 1987 the bill for pitch hire is budgeted at £675.
In 1988 Deando CC joined the Slazenger Surrey Cricket League: Annual Subs were £38 + £5 postage for the weekly result sheets plus £9 for each Slazenger Crown ball to be supplied at each Home match. Each Club had to purchase 2 League Dinner & Dance tickets minimum, at Kempton Park at £15 each. Deando’s Dinner & Dance still took place at The Stoneleigh Inn and tickets were £14 each.
By May the Club balance was £3,496.
In 1989, the Club chose to Return to Sandown Park for its Dinner & Dance. The room was free but the License extension was £50, each meal cost £12.80 and the live band, Casablanca, was £400. Ticket price was fixed at £17.50. 124 attended, but the Club still lost £137.
Match fees raised to £3 (£2,25 for student members).
The 1990 Presentation Dinner & Dance remained at Sandown Park, tickets went up to £19 (£10 for students). After an incredibly successful season, the attendance was over 150 and the Club made a very small loss. [worth checking 1991 Accounts.] The Club organised a ‘Sixties’ Night at the BA Sports and Social Club in North Kingston. Tickets were priced at £7.50. The event was not particularly well-attended (84, of whom only 15 were members) and the event lost £300.
The cost per pitch was £28.
Around this time a developing theme was the size of the debtors which, at certain times of the year, had been known to reach £2,500. As the Cub was becoming more and more responsible for an increasing cash flow - not just subs, though they continued to be a problem, but 100 Club, Dinner & Dance and Nets and Match Fees - the Treasurer’s time was taken up with administering the debtors situation and regularly printing out individual letters to accompany the Club Newsletter.
At the 1991 AGM, Dave Kaill, Treasurer, proposed the Annual Subscription increase to £15 and Match Fees to £4 (incl teas).
By 1992 Council pitch hire had risen to £30 per ptch.
Interestingly, the Year End accounts revealed a £361 surplus mainly due to takings from two very successful discos. However, by March 1993 the balance, reflecting extra expenditure on the new Ruxley Lane ground, was £2,340.
The Dinner & Dance at Sandown Park had now risen to £22 per ticket.
With the move to the new ground, Deando chose to improve the facilities (sightscreens, scorebox) and paid out just under £1,500 leaving the 1993 season’s end balance at £2,400. However, the continual debtors problem - spread over the two 1993 100 Clubs, Race Night, League & Deando Dinner & Dance and unpaid 1993 subs - amounted to an additional £1,612.
The tickets for the 1994 Presentation Dinner & Dance, at Sandown Park, were £20 but economies had been made with the hire of a disco to replace a live band and a cheaper menu choice.
Club Members owing the Club money had been a serious problem as long as anyone could remember so Dave Kaill, as Treasurer, was approaching the Bank to see whether Standing Orders were possible and how easy they then would be to administer. Thus a Member could tot up payments they expect to make during the year - subs, Tour, Dinner & Dance, at the Member’s discretion - and make monthly payments.
Subs for 1995 were increased to £25 and the payment date was brought forward to 1st January. The Rugby Club’s pitch hire charges rose from £55 to £65, £35 to £40 for a mid week match.