FAC & Club Attendence Minimum Requirements

[dromia]

There is no minimum attendance requirement at our club.

At members FAC renewal time the police may ask the secretary about the specific attendance of a member and he will get that information from the members attendance record sheet.

We have never seen a minimum stipulated although the police will require evidence that you are using your firearms as stated in your reasons to possess, a stalker for instance may only shoot once a year or two.

Obviously illness and such like can interrupt peoples shooting but all my experience to date of licensing authorities has been that they are understanding.

Also from a club point of view just because a member hasn't shot with us that doesn't mean he isn't shooting somewhere else and that is the members business not ours. If people want be a member of our club and pay their money and not use our facilities that is up to them and if they are not using their firearms to fulfil the good reason to the police then that is 'tween them and the licensing authority.

[ordnance]

I am near sure there is a requirement for minimum attendances here. If you don't use it you lose it.

[Morph]

No numbers mentioned but I do have the "whilst member of XXXX club" on my FAC.
Club shooters record sheet is sent to firearms licencing each year

[Geek]

Non on the ticket but there is a general condition that firearms may only be used whilst a member of club X (primary club).

Similar on my FAC, but I have just added / advised of another club as part of my recent variation (.303 and .308).

One of my clubs request 12 attendances per year, from any of Clay, small bore or full bore. They do however have prizes for the highest attendance for clay and small/full bore.

The other club, no minimum attendance but they have just started a daily attendance log to sign when you visit.

[Chapuis]

Copied from the guidance to police notes.

13.53 Target shooters may be expected to use their firearms fairly regularly, say three or more
times a year. The police should consider on renewal whether “good reason” continues in
respect of all firearms held for this purpose. However, failure to shoot in a year should be
regarded as grounds for further enquiries to be made, rather than the automatic partial
revocation of the certificate for lack of “good reason”. For example, there may be personal
circumstances such as illness, working away (where this is not to be repeated regularly),
or practice for a particular competition that may preclude the use of all the firearms
concerned. In some cases, competitions for unusual or older arms may be few each year.
Owners, and especially collectors, may also not want to regularly shoot old, historic, and
valuable firearms, thus avoiding excessive wear and tear.

Many clubs will probably have read this and inserted a clause in their constitutions as a result that requires a minimum number of attendances.

[HALODIN]

Our club as a minimum annual attendance.

[Rburro2]

Bit confused here why would you not want to go shooting, I shoot as often as I can. Although I do know our club requires 3 visits a year. If you only turn up 3 times a year and shoot for half an hour each time perhaps shooting isn't for you.

[dromia]

Club secretaries have a duty to notify the licensing authority of any member that has not shot within a twelve month.

[rox]

Copied from the guidance to police notes.
"13.53 Target shooters may be expected to use their firearms fairly regularly, say three or more"
Many clubs will probably have read this and inserted a clause in their constitutions as a result that requires a minimum number of attendances.

Clubs who do this on the basis of the guidance are failing to understand the guidance, and are creating unnecessary additional onerous requirements for shooters, who already have quite enough to deal with. The guidance does not state that the holder must shoot three times each year with each and every club of which he is a member. It simply suggests that three times a year in total is a reasonable minimum for each firearm. I have certainly never encountered a club that has any minimum.

..

[IainWR]

Further, the condition on your FAC that refers to a particular club does not restrict you to shooting with that club. The general area being discussed on this thread (including, I might suggest, the original question) is an area where there is a huge amount of misunderstanding by both police and shooters as to what the regulations require. And remember, the "frequent use" guidance is just that - guidance. It does not appear in law anywhere, which is probably why it doesn't find its way onto a FAC, which is a legal document in the sense that you can commit an offence by misusing or ignoring it.