Joining
So, you have read the website and decided you want to to join the club. What happens next ? First task is to contact the Membership Secretary, complete a Section 21 Declaration (a formal statement declaring that you are not prohibited from owning or accessing a firearm) and arrange to come along to one of our range days where you can find out more about the club and decide if you really do want to join. You’ll have the opportunity to meet members of the club, see our facilities and try your hand at shooting under the supervision of our training team.
If you decide that you still want to join us, the next step is to pick up and complete an application form, then return it with 4 passport sized photographs. We notify the police that you are proposing to join us and if there are no objections you can then pay your membership fee, currently £140, and begin attending the club as a probationary member.
Our Training System
We operate a training scheme for new members. Over the course of your 6 month probationary period we’ll teach you, first and foremost, how to handle firearms safely. Even if we achieve nothing more than that we consider it a success, but ideally we’ll also want you to enjoy yourself and be a good shot. Over a probationary period of 6 months we will require you to attend a number of range practices where we will progressively teach you how to handle and shoot firearms from .22″ rimfire target rifles at a range of 25 yards to centrefire hunting, target and military rifles at ranges up to 100 yards.
Your first range attendance will introduce you to the essential elements of firearms safety and the rules to be followed on a shooting range. These are deliberately few and very simple, and this training element is mandatory for all those joining the club, even if you already have a firearms certificate and many years of shooting experience. After this, one of the club’s training officers will introduce you to the types of firearms the club holds for members to train with and talk you through how to use them, safely and confidently. After a short period familiarising yourself with a particular firearm, you will be taken onto the firing point under the supervision of a mentor and shown how to use it. This process is repeated over your subsequent range attendances, new types of firearms being introduced and training given in their use.
The Staffordshire Phoenix Club differs from many in that we have a particularly high number of members who are fully qualified Range Conducting Officers, and also a number of instructors with a great deal of training experience, both civilian and military. We are therefore able to offer all our probationary members not only the basic tuition required for safety but a high level of individual coaching in the Principles of Marksmanship if they so desire it. We are very proud of the fact that it is not unusual for our our probationary members to be capable of a very high level of accuracy with full bore centrefire rifles at long before they have finished their probationary period.
So, in a nutshell, that’s the training process. It’s quite possible to go from complete beginner to being able to place 10 consecutive shots in a 2 inch circle at a range of 100 yards in under six months. Come along and find out for yourself.
Club Training Officer