CORONA VIRUS - BRANCH COUNCIL IS BEHIND YOU We would like to reassure the membership that Branch Council supports the membership of APTG at this very difficult time for the profession and will support you all as far as we can. Danny Alex Alfie Talman Parlour Hetherington Treasurer APTG Secretary Chair Tricia Ellis Victoria Herriott Edwin Lerner Aaron Hunter Craig Kao Amy Wang Maria Gartner Nan Mousley NEXT MEMBERS’ OPEN MEETING The next Members’ Open Meeting is due Also in this issue: on Tuesday, 14 April at the Unite HQ NEW FACES, NEW FEES - PAGE 3 Theobald’s Road, WC1X 8TN at 6:30 pm RUSSIANS IN LONDON - PAGE 4 At this meeting any proposed changes to the structure of the HITHCOCK’S EAST END - PAGE 5 APTG fee sheet will be discussed. However, due to the WORDSWORTH 250 - PAGE 6 ongoing situation with the corona virus, please check email notifications nearer the time to find out whether the meeting PRUDIE FINCH - PAGE 7 will be taking place or needs to be postponed to a later date. PORTSMOUTH VISIT - PAGE 8 ASSOCIATION OFASSOCIATION PROFESSIONAL OF PROFESSIONALTOURIST GUIDES TOURIST GUIDES www.guidelondon.org.ukwww.guidelondon.org.uk September 2019 April 2020 Union news THE CORONA VIRUS: FACTS AND FEARS Co-ordinated Action by Guiding Organisations What is being done for blue badge guides Advice on fighting the corona virus APTG, the Institute of Tourist Guiding, the Guild, and the Frequent and thorough hand-washing: twenty seconds with Driver Guides Association have all agreed to come together soap and hot water or sanitiser gel (if you can access it) is for the benefit of their members at this exceptional time to: recommended. Dry with - and dispose of - a paper towel. - demonstrate leadership Avoid touching nose, mouth and eyes with unwashed hands. - inform Use a paper tissue if sneezing or coughing. - advise Stay away from people who are ill. - reassure Try to stay three steps away from other people in your home. - provide interim support If you have high temperature or cough stay home for a week. - prepare for the eventual return to normal. If symptons do not improve, seek medical advice but do not A joint management group is being set up to co-ordinate go to a doctor, medical surgery or hospital. Instead phone communications and initiatives and a Frequently Asked 111 or go online to 111.nhs.uk for advice and information. Questions (FAQ) document has been sent out now as the Financial assistance first sign of this joined-up approach. This FAQ document will be added to the Members Sections of the respective The Benevolent Fund is there to assist blue badge guides websites. There will likely be updates and they will be who have been qualified for a year or longer. If you wish to communicated as and when they are available. ask for assistance - or would just like to chat - please contact the Chair of the fund Carole Hiley by email at Names of those in the Management Group are included at [email protected] or any other member of the the end of this document. In the meantime, please continue Benevolent Fund committee, whose contact details can be to rely on APTG for support and advice. found on the APTG website. All of us are aware that this is a very difficult and worrying Universal Credit or Contributory Employment and time for our members. We will be working together on Support Allowance: Unite advises us that self-employed initiatives and will be in touch shortly with details. people can now more easily make a claim for Universal Danny Parlour - Chair, APTG Credit or Contributory Employment and Support Allowance. Marilyn Collis - President, Institute of Tourist Guiding For the duration of the outbreak, the requirements of the Elizabeth Eastwood - Chair, British Guild of Tourist Guides Universal Credit Minimum Income Floor will be temporarily Angela Akehurst - Chair, Driver Guide Association relaxed for those who have COVID-19 or are self-isolating With thanks also to Nigel Rundstrom. according to government advice, ensuring self-employed The FAQ document can be viewed at GuideLondon.org. claimants will receive support. GUIDE LONDON REPORT YOUR BRANCH COUNCIL VISITORS AND LEADS Danny Parlour - Chair The website achieved 25,469 unique visitors for February, the 17th Alex Hetherington - Secretary consecutive month with over 20,000. I have noticed a slight slowdown and, Alfie Talman - Treasurer assuming this relates to concerns about coronavirus, will monitor activity in Tricia Ellis - Sie Liaison March when we normally see a surge for the busy season. Maria Gartner - CPD 267 leads were generated in February, a slight improvement on January Victoria Herriott - Membership (256 leads). It is also an improvement on last February (241 leads). Aaron Hunter - CPD Top 3 tours: Classic London (17), Westminster Abbey (14), Tower (8). Craig Kao - Technology BLOG POSTS Edwin Lerner - Guidelines Thanks to blog editor Anne Pollak we have added three new posts: Nan Mousley - Membership Shopping for Valentine’s Day Gifts of Love by Jeanie Carmichael Amy Wang - Mandarin issues The Women of Westminster Abbey by Antony Robbins Famous Russians in London by Edwin Lerner (see also page four). APTG’s administrator MULTI-LANGUAGE PROJECT: Anna Simpson is slowly I am working out a plan with Pedalo to start in March. Pedalo must upgrade returning to work and will share duties with Wordpress and related plug-ins used in the GuideLondon website. We have Sara Colclough who has not done this since last Spring and it is overdue. The plan is to upgrade and been standing in for her. test on the website before changes are made to the live website. Welcome back, Anna. Ursula Petula-Barzey 2 Union news NEW FACES NEW FEES We would like to welcome the newly New fees for guiding engagements come into effect qualified guides who passed their from 1 April until 31 March 2021. London exams recently and have now They can be seen in full in the members area of the been awarded the blue badge. Their GuideLondon website, together with our terms, results come out in late March/early conditions and cancellation charges. April and the names of those who have In summary the new fees are: qualified will be printed in the May Half day (English) £17 6 edition of Guidelines. Photo Paul Metcalfe Half day (language) £203 A reception was held for those taking Full day (language) £288 their exams at Unite on 10 March in which they were welcomed into the New (and older) Full day (language) £322 guides at Unite guiding profession in what will obviously The lunch allowance remains at £12. be a very difficult year for guides. Eric Thompson (above) has taken over duties in The reception was organised by Nan Mousley and several relation to fees. If you have any problems with tour operators and guides spoke at the meeting to advise new being paid please contact him at this email: guides on what was expected of them and what APTG could [email protected] offer to those starting on their careers. Pamela Laycock MARCH MEETING of Spectra meets The March Members’ Open Meeting some new guides was well-attended with inevitably a good deal of discussion on the corona virus issue. The meeting was preceded by a talk from John Williams (pictured) on the role of a heritage consultant, who gives advice to owners and custodians of historic properties and guides them through the planning application process, one which includes Owen Joseph a legal requirement for a heritage assessment. discovers the finer points of wine tasting DIARIES from a newly trained guide No diaries have been issued this month. Due to the ever-changing situation with venues closing, often at short notice, guides are asked to keep updated via email and through information direct from the sites. GUIDES SET UP THEIR OWN TOURS APTG member Pepe Martinez is hoping to organise a series of summer CPDs to provide opportunities for guides as there is so little work available at present. He is looking into the possibility of live broadcasting the walks on Facebook and doing remote lectures so that people can log into them at home. A trial tour was set up in late March with an East End walk. Pepe would like to thank all those guides who have offered their services and suggests setting up a GoFundMe page to finance these walks/talks. If any members would like to become involved in this project, to lead a tour or lecture and are tech savvy enough to deal with the technology, please contact Pepe at: [email protected] or on 07956 919229. Pepe Martinez (left) and introducing guides to East End street art (right) ASSOCIATION OF PROFESSIONAL TOURIST GUIDES 3 www.guidelondon.org.uk April 2020 cpd reports THE RUSSIANS ARE COMING Jerry Miller introduces us to Russian influences in London - both past and present Some of us still know him as Yura Brengauz but our Russian expert at What every APTG now uses the Anglicised name oligarch needs: of Jerry Miller. He was born in Melnichenko’s Russia, works with Russian groups yacht at Tower and individuals and gave us a Bridge in 2016 fascinating talk on ‘Russian Emigres, Spies and Oligarchs in London’. Historically, one of the most famous figures to come to England from Russia was Peter the Great, the tsar who came Although the very wealthy dominate the headlines they make to learn about ship building in 1698 and spent three months up only one per cent of the Russians resident here. It is not here - ‘incognito’ according to Jerry.