FAQs

An A-Z of FAQs

 

 

 

Administration

The Guild’s day-to-day Administration is looked after by Kim Furnell. Should you have any queries in relation to the Guild’s activities, please direct them to her in the first instance, or to the relevant Committee member. You can email Kim here - admin@guild.co.uk

 

AGM

The Guild’s constitution requires us to hold an Annual General Meeting each year. The next AGM will be held in late 2022. It is free to attend, and must be attended by 10% of the Guild’s membership to be quorate. Should any changes need to be made to the Guild’s constitution, they can be voted on at the AGM. The last two AGMs have taken place virtually.

 

Awards

The Guild of Food Writers Awards take place annually, usually in June, and will celebrate their 25th anniversary year in 2022. The Awards are judged by Guild members and are the only UK-based peer judged awards. The Awards are free to enter and are open to entry from GFW members and non-members. Judges are selected on rotation from the Guild membership each year. You can find out more about our Awards here

 

Bios

The GFW website www.gfw.co.uk is your place to share your professional details with members and more widely, if desired. The website’s search function allows members who are logged in to the website to search for member details, including published work, areas of expertise and contact details, and these details can also be made available externally, should you wish to make the details more public. Please do take a moment to update your bio on the website, particularly with your areas of expertise, as it is used as a tool to find suitable candidates for professional projects, and it helps to capture your particular skills. 

 

Code of Conduct

The full Guild of Food Writers Code of Conduct can be found here.

 

Committee

The Guild is served by a Committee of up to fifteen elected members, who work across the Guild activities on a voluntary basis for a four year term. Committee members are voted in by the Committee and can serve for up to 4 years. The full list of Committee members is featured in the footer of all Guild emails, and it is now sent in a designated email to all members, following the AGM. You can find out who is on the current committee here

 

Directory

If you are looking for contact details for a Guild member, or are wondering if someone is a Guild member or not, you will find a listing of all current members on the website under ‘Directory' or by clicking here. You can also search for individual members, and their contact details, by tapping their name into the search box or by searching here.

 

Discounts

The GFW operates an exclusive discount scheme with a wide range of businesses, which mainly offers food and drink products, kitchen equipment and cookery book services. We regularly feature discounts in our newsletter and full details can be found online. Most discounts are in the form of an online discount code.

 

To find our full list of discounts and the relevant codes to redeem, log on to the GFW website, and it is linked in the text at the top of the page. 

 

Should you wish to recommend a business to join the discount scheme, please email joy@joyskipper.com.

 

Diversity

The Guild is committed to offering a supportive and inclusive community for all members. You can read more on this here. The Guild Committee team includes Mallika Basu and Chetna Makan who are dedicated to Diversity issues.

 

Events

At the time of writing, many of our events are held online through Zoom but we are beginning to meet back in person again. We hope to continue the online programme in conjunction with in person events as both have proved successful in equal measure. Events are sent to members in a dedicated email, listing the details. To book a place, please email Kim admin@guild.co.uk.

 

Where spaces to events are limited, we assign them on a first come, first served basis, and we keep a waiting list in the event of cancellations. We only do this where places need to be limited, due to the format of the event or supplies required for tastings. All other events are unlimited. 

 

Where we charge a ticket price for events, it is to cover costs incurred by the Guild, such as speaker fees, or products to taste. 

 

We record Zoom classes where we can, and share them on our YouTube channel shortly after the event takes place. We cannot record all events, to protect speaker copyright. 

 

Facebook Forum

The GFW Facebook Forum is a private forum for Guild members to connect and share information. To join, please email Kim admin@guild.co.uk and you will be added. It’s an active group with around 300 members, and is a great way of asking questions or sharing information. Guild updates are shared here, but our newsletter remains our primary method of communication with all members.

 

We do recognise that not all members wish to use Facebook, but we feel it is the best tool available at present. We are keeping alternative technologies under constant consideration. 

 

Futures Fund

The Guild has a small fund which is set aside to make a bursary to members once a year. You can find out more about this here. Members will be offered information and sometimes events offering updates from members who have received support from this scheme.

 

Giveaways

We very occasionally are approached with giveaway opportunities for members. They will be shared in the newsletter with full details. In the event of a short deadline, we will share on the Forum. 

 

GFWBnB

Many members offer accommodation on a free or discounted basis to other Guild members. A list is available in the Members' Area.

 

Guildhall Library

A huge collection of cookbooks from Guild members past and present is housed at the Guildhall Library, and it continues to welcome donations from members. Contact the library directly to find out more. 

 

Membership

Fees

Membership subs are due once a year at the start of the year, and we ask that they are settled within 28 days. We are now pleased to offer Go Cardless as an alternative method of payment. The current rate is £92 a year.

 

Press cards

The Guild offers Press cards on request, and they are produced once a year. Should you wish to request a card, please email Kim admin@guild.co.uk.

 

Applications

Our membership application criteria is published in full on our website and you can find that here 

 

Readmission

Should a former member wish to return to the Guild, we ask that they reapply to reinstate membership. Please direct any queries to Kathy Slack kathy@kathyslack.com or Kim in the first instance.

 

Member Toolkit 

An invaluable list of resources for food writers and broadcasters compiled by our Professional Affairs officer, including legal advice and how to register for revenues paid to writers automatically by PLR and ALCS.

 

Mentorship

The GFW runs an internal and external mentorship scheme. Should you wish to become a mentor or mentee, please contact Angela Zaher kenandangela@gmail.com and you can read more about the scheme here

 

We always need mentors to match with mentees, and are committed to mentoring members of all ages.

 

Our external mentorship scheme is shared on social media.

 

Metrication

The GFW offers guidance on metrication, which can be found here

 

Newsletter

The GFW newsletter is published monthly, around the start of each month. Contributions are always welcome and can be sent to admin@gfw.co.uk or your Regional Coordinator. If you’re not sure who your Regional Coordinator is, email joy@joyskipper.com.

 

The newsletter comes out during the first week of the month, so look out for it in your inbox. It is sent from admin@gfw.co.uk, and the subject line says: Guild of Food Writers [Month] Newsletter. Usually within 24 hours a link to the newsletter is posted on this Forum, but if you don’t receive it by email, here’s what to do.

 

First check your spam or junk filter. These filters are increasingly sophisticated, and may start rejecting mailings – particularly when they are generated by a mailing list, as in the case of the newsletter – on an apparent whim. You may need to change your preferences or rules, or add admin@gfw.co.uk to your list of contacts or approved senders.

 

The second most common problem is that the newsletter is being sent to an email address you no longer use. If you have changed your email address, or perhaps a redirection has fallen out of use, then email Kim at admin@gfw.co.uk with the correct address. At the same time, it is worth checking and if necessary correcting your details on the website, by logging in and checking what it says on your member listing.

 

Opportunities

From time to time, professional opportunities arise, and we share them with all members in our monthly newsletter. Very occasionally, time sensitive opportunities are presented to us, and we share them on our Facebook Forum if the deadline is too short for the newsletter.

 

Pay Survey

The Guild undertakes a Pay Survey review, to help offer more information on current pay rates for projects. Our 2021 results can be found in the Member area of the website. 

 

Professional Issues

The Guild of Food Writers has a designated Special Officer to support members with professional issue queries. Should you wish to discuss any concerns in complete confidence, please contact Sarah Beattie iamsarahbeattie@gmail.com

 

For more information, please see Member Services on our website.

 

Recipe Testing Network

The GFW has a newly formed Recipe Testing Network. Should you need help with recipe testing, or would like to volunteer your services, more details can be found here.

 

Regions

The Guild of Food Writers has a series of Regional Coordinators. Members are represented across the UK regions, as well as overseas. Regional Coordinators share a monthly update from their area in the newsletter, and all members should receive an email from their coordinator once a month requesting news. Should you wish to suggest an event or meeting in your area, please contact your coordinator. In the event you are unsure who your RC is, please email Joy Skipper joy@joyskipper.com.

 

Social Media

The Guild is active on Social Media. You can find us on Instagram as @thegfw and Twitter as @GuildFoodWriter. See Facebook Forum for our presence on Facebook.

 

Special Officers

The Guild’s elected Committee members are supported by Special Officers. These are important roles in the Guild management, and Special Officers attend Guild meetings and contribute their time in all areas of business. Special Officer roles do not come with a vote. Should you wish to volunteer your time, please contact Kim Furnell admin@gfw.co.uk.

 

Sponsors

The GFW works with commercial sponsors to deliver the annual Guild of Food Writers Awards. We welcome any contact from prospective sponsors. Please email Kim Furnell admin@gfw.co.uk. for more information. You can also read more about our sponsorship opportunities here.

 

Sponsor information is included in our newsletter and our event programme as part of their sponsorship package. Otherwise, our activities are free from commercial ties.

 

Trips

Occasionally, the Guild receives opportunities for members to join third party trips, both in the UK and overseas. The opportunities are shared in our newsletter (or Forum if timings are tight), and members are invited to put their name forward. The organising party is responsible for selecting attendees and making arrangements.

 

Visits

The Guild organises regional visits to suppliers, farmers and producers from time to time, and details will be circulated by email. Places are often limited and allocated on a first come first served basis. There is usually a nominal charge for events to cover costs.

 

Website

The GFW website has a private member area, where you will find more information that is available for members only. This includes the Pay Survey, Member contact details and full details of our discount scheme.

 

To access this, log in to the GFW website using the buttons at the top right hand corner of the website, and these member pages should be listed at the top of the page. 

 

 

 

YouTube

The Guild has a YouTube channel, and event recordings are shared here to watch back. We record every event we can, however, we are unable to record all events due to the confidential nature of some information and speaker copyright. All videos can be found here