The regions are responsible for local social and membership support activities, and by rotation undertake the organization of the annual reunion, which is overseen by the Executive Committee. Personal contact with their members is, however, their main function, which includes recruiting and welcoming newcomers, helping them to settle in, organizing a suitable programme of meetings and activities, and keeping members informed of them through regional circulars, and through the BAFUNCS website
The nature and number of regional meetings depends on members’ interests and other factors, such as the area of the region and the distribution of members within it. Where regions are very large or there is a concentration of members, local meetings of like-minded people may be organized. Most meetings are intended for social purposes, but this includes their own annual general meeting for the election of officers. Regional meetings may be held in restaurants, pubs or members’ homes; they often include visits to places of interest, country houses, exhibitions or the theatre.
The regions are also in the frontline of the Association’s members’ support activities, which are overseen by a Welfare Coordinator on the Executive Committee (welfare@bafuncs.org). Activities include visits to sick, elderly or housebound members, and they are the channels through which deserving cases are brought to the attention of the BAFUNCS Benevolent Fund. The regions also provide a means of coordination with other local associations concerned with welfare, retirees and international cooperation. Many BAFUNCS members also belong to the UNA and some speak at its local meetings.
