I mentioned back when I got my WingTsun 4th Student Grade a couple of weeks ago that unlike my 1st three grades, it wasn’t an official NWTO-GB WT 4th SG, as my club had left the NWTO-GB (& therefore also the EWTO & the IWTA) back in February.
Well, after a lot of thought, I recently decided to leave the club.
It was already really expensive (a fact made even more apparent when I looked into how much other WT & WC clubs charge), but the lack of official recognition made it seem a bit pointless in my eyes, plus – and it’s a big plus – they have effectively made it even more expensive with their new upcoming non-NWTO programme, as if I had carried on paying what I had been paying I’d be getting fewer hours per week, & if I wanted to have the same hours as before I’d have had to pay even more each month. So, screw it. Time to cut my losses before I spend any more money with them.
Been good though, this past year of WingTsun kung fu, even though it’s been really fucking expensive. But now it’s over.
Here’s a copy of an email I sent to the club head & his main assistant instructor on Tuesday lunchtime this week, informing them of my decision & the reasons for it. I have yet to have a reply.
“Hi guys,
as said verbally & as mentioned in newsletters]. People who had joined before I did, on the old agreement, & so who previously did 3 hours of WT per week for £45, were allowed to do KS + BBP for £49pcm (a few just did BBP only, but quite a few like Martin, Paul, etc. did
continue to do both KS & BBP).I signed up for the £49pcm Kickstart course on 2nd March, which at that time did still include WingTsun.
During my 2nd grading, in August 2005, those of us on KS were all informed that to continue doing WingTsun & to continue doing official NWTO-GB gradings, we would have to upgrade to the BBP, due to new NWTO-GB rules requiring students to be on a 3 year course, & due to KS no longer containing any WT content.
Myself & various others in my position were pretty annoyed at this.
But, after a lot of thought, I decided to upgrade from KS to BBP, as I wanted to continue learning WT, & continue grading in WT. I did not want to simply do a different martial art every 3 months, I wanted to be able to stick with one – WT – & continue progressing in that – as did others.
So, I upgraded from the KS course to the BBP course on 22nd August 2005. £69pcm, instead of £49pcm, plus another deposit. Very expensive, but I wanted to carry on with WT. We were told that the BBP course included the KS course, so you’d have 3 hours of WT per week in the BBP, plus still have 3 hours of mixed martial arts per week in the KS
course.
And now it’s changed again.
No longer is the club a part of the NWTO-GB, so no more official NWTO-GB gradings, no longer are we doing anything officially recognised.
I did wonder about things then, when you told us of this change before the last grading, but did think maybe it wouldn’t be too bad – you’d have the freedom to teach us stuff we wouldn’t have learnt at this point under NTWO-GB rules, etc., & it sounds like you have some really good ideas. But I was still not 100% sure, & still getting a bit wary.
And then we got the letter last week detailing the programme changes.
Instead of £69pcm for 3 hours of official WingTsun in the BBP & 3 hours of martial arts in KS (so 6 hours total per week), it’s £69 for 4 hours total of “Kickstart Biu Tze” & “Kickstart Chum Kiu” Wing Tsun (£74pcm for any new people).
To do the same no. of hours as pre-change, I & anyone else would have to pay £89pcm (“3 subjects”, with 2 x 1hr lessons each per week). £69 is steep enough, but £89…
And anyone doing just Kickstart, gets only 2 hours for £39 instead of 3 hours for £49 (while new people get only 2 hours for £49).
If anything, I would have thought that leaving the NWTO-GB would have reduced prices, not increased them, as you’d no longer be paying vast amounts to the organisation.
So, after a hell of a lot of thought, I’ve decided to quit.
I don’t particularly like being a quitter, but I cannot justify £69pcmfor 4 hrs of Wing Tsun (hard enough justifying it to myself when it was £69 for 3 hrs BBP WT & 3 hrs KS), especially as it’s no longer official, & I certainly cannot justify – nor afford – £89pcm to do the same hours I have been doing until now.
As a comparison, Midlands Wing Chun Kuen charges £6 per two hour lesson (for the intro lessons, at least). The Simon Lau Centre in London charges £600 per year for 2 lessons of Wing Chun per week (so equivalent to £50 per month). My girlfriend, who does Tae Kwon Do with an official TAGB member club, does 2 x 1 1/2 hour TKD lessons per week for £40pcm (although she could actually train twice as much per week – or more – & still only pay £40pcm), & her gradings cost £23, which includes the cost of the certificate & belt as well as the grading.
Don’t get me wrong – I do not feel that the past year has been a waste of time. It’s been pretty bloody expensive, but it’s been great. The two of you have been really great teachers, as have the others. I feel I have learned a lot of useful things, & have definitely got fitter, & more confident & coordinated & so on.
But it’s time to call it a day for me, unfortunately.
I don’t want this email to sound arsey or anything, so sorry if it does at any point – it’s not intended – I’m just trying to explain myself & my reasoning.
My last payment went out in the middle of March. I remember Leo mentioning something about a 3 month notice period for cancellations when I first joined a year ago, but, as the nature of the service I signed up for has seriously changed (no longer a 3 year course in
official NWTO-GB WingTsun, no longer the same hours/money), then I feel that this 3 month notice period is void.
I wish you – and the club – all the best,
Cheers,
Matt Dodd”
Still no reply, as I said above.
Also, since that email, I’ve found out some prices for a couple of other WT clubs, for comparison wih my old club.
1) NWTO-GB “South-West London Region” (www.nwto.org/prices.html) [as of 2005]1st lesson free, 1st month £20.
Subsequent months – £35pcm (by Standing Order – £40pcm if cash/cheque)
Annual membership fee for NWTO-GB – £35 (subsequent months £30)
Gradings – £12 for 1-4, £17 for 5-12, plus seminar fee.
Although…The above “SW London Region” Schools have now left the NWTO-GB like KickStart Cambridge did (seems quite a few are leaving), & have formed the “UK Kung Fu Federation”, under the “World Martial Arts Alliance”:
http://www.ukkff.org/about.html
http://www.ukkff.org/about_origins.html
http://www.ukkff.org/prices_classes.html
http://www.ukkff.org/prices_gradings.html
Good website. Some nice principles & reasoning for leaving – and *still* low prices (rather than high prices going even higher). It’s still the same monthly fee (£35pcm). Gradings are £10 for 1-4, £15 for 5-8, & £20 for 9-12, which all include the seminar price as well as the grading & certificate. No contracts, no billing companies, no being tied to them for x period of time, etc. Sounds great, pity it’s in bloody London.
2) NWTO-GB Crawley WT
http://www.wtkungfu.org/AboutWT.jsp
Sifu Paul Hawkes’ own club (he is one of the two UK Head Instructors at the very top of the NWTO-GB).
£45pcm, plus £35pa membership fee of the NWTO-GB.