If you are a VRT Member and you would like to do a bit more for XL426 please read on!
As a registered charity, the Vulcan Restoration Trust is always seeking additional funds to invest in the ongoing maintenance and preservation of XL426, as well as to cover general operating costs. Our funding comes from a number of sources, the most important of which are membership subscriptions, donations, income from appeals, Open Days, the 200 Club, the annual Prize Draw and the sale of souvenirs.
The response to our various appeals by you the Trust membership has, over the years, been truly magnificent. We have always tried to ensure that our appeals are targeted towards tangible and realisable projects; the Return to Power appeal, which will see XL426 put back to full ground running order, being the most current example. The fact that XL426 is in such excellent condition (being classified by the British Aviation Preservation Council as a ‘benchmark’ example of its type) is largely down to your generosity. We certainly do not take your contributions for granted and we are always delighted and grateful by the money that pours in as a result.
The Trust is, however, faced with ever-increasing costs just to ensure it can keep running. Such costs include unavoidable items such as our rent and rates at Southend Airport, electricity, insurance, postage and publicity costs. We have generally met such expenditure from membership subscriptions, the profit from our annual Prize Draw and souvenir sales. In recent years, though, income from these sources has declined, making it increasingly difficult to meet our running costs without cutting into the funds we allocate directly to XL426.
It is with this in mind that we have launched the Vulcan Restoration Trust ‘Helping Hand’ Scheme. The Scheme is aimed at increasing the funds we have in our ‘general’ pot (income from the Scheme will not be directed towards any specific project or item) by asking as many of you as possible to set-up a simple £2 per month standing order in favour of the Vulcan Restoration Trust using the form which you can download by clicking the link below - just print it out and send it to the address on the form. This is an extremely small amount of money which the great majority of us will simply not notice. However, with the current membership of approximately 800 it would, if all members took part, realise the Trust a combined total of over £19,000 per year – a fantastic sum. Financially, it would be the equivalent of doubling the Trust’s membership overnight.
It is a truly painless gesture but will be of enormous benefit to the Trust and XL426. You are, of course, more than welcome to contribute more than £2 per month and, alternatively, you may cancel the monthly payment any time you wish, although we hope you will maintain it indefinitely. Don’t forget that if you are a standard UK taxpayer the Trust can also recover a further 28% of the value of your donation from the Government through ‘Gift Aid’.
I hope you will consider providing the Trust and XL426 with extra help in this way and I thank you for your continued support.
Kevin Packard: Chair – Vulcan Restoration Trust
