LawrenceCooper wrote:The irony to this thread is that Alex consults more than any director that I can think of during my involvement with the federation.
Since the 2015 ECF AGM, I have written the following ECF-related consultation papers/questionnaires:
- The format of the British, which was sent to 2200-2400 rated players at Division 1 of the 4NCL. We wanted to know why they play in (say) the 4NCL, or continental tournaments, but not the British. This was one of the reasons why. Comments were invited via Ask the Director, and I received a number of comments, from people I don't recall ever previously coming across, who were in favour of the changes.
- A consultation about the League Management Software and about the format of their local leagues, written in conjunction with the grading team, sent to all league and county secretaries about a month ago. I'm aware of approximately 20 responses to that, mostly positive; more positive than I expected, to be honest. [I expect my posting this will lead to people saying they should have received it but haven't.
]
- I'm on the cusp of publishing something to do with changes to the structure of the domestic arbiter titles, but that's maybe a few weeks away. It'll be sent to all arbiters and to the CAA to distribute to its members when it's ready. It has been compiled with the help of some CAA persons and some ECF persons already.
**
With respect to the British, there are some outstanding points to tidy up in a questionnaire that has already been written for the 2016 event. It isn't published yet in case we think of something else to add to it in the meantime.
- Whether the Under 8s should be standardplay or rapidplay; in particular whether the parents of this year's Under 8s feel they are able to write down the moves. Standardplay is the Junior Director's preference, but we'll see whether that's viable.
- Whether the junior tournaments should be "open", or there should be a separate Girls tournament played separately. I don't think we have a strong feeling here, but the views of the parents of the girls who play are important here.
- What is the optimum way of organising the Senior tournaments: 7 rounds as now, and if so, which 7 days; or 9 rounds?
No doubt the list will grow by the time we get to Bournemouth.
Examples of recent changes made as a result of player consultation to the British:
- Changing the time limit to the 5-hour FIDE session (in spite of Roger's assertion to the contrary)
- Introducing separate 50+ and 65+ Championships
- Re-introducing the Under 15 Championship
- Moving from 4 FIDE-rated tournaments in 2012 to an overwhelming majority of tournaments being FIDE-rated in 2016
Anyway, I think I've made the case that I do consult people.
Reg Clucas wrote:
I wish they'd move the colour code key down to the bottom of the sheet. I've just spent a few minutes searching for an explanation as to why the Seniors events have been changed to Rapidplay!
You're not the only one to make that comment, so it's probably something that I need to show more clearly. I'll add it to the to-do list...