The Foresters Friendly Society is a British friendly society which was formed in 1834 as the Ancient Order of Foresters. As of 31 December 2016, the society had approximately 75,000 members. Its head office is located in

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

, England.

History

The society was formed in

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...

in August 1834, when over 300 branches of the Royal Foresters society (established in the 18th century) formed the new Ancient Order of Foresters. In 1874 the American and Canadian Foresters seceded from the Ancient Order of Foresters and set up the

Independent Order of Foresters The Independent Order of Foresters, operating as Foresters Financial, is a fraternal benefit society headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada that provides life insurance and other financial solutions in Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United ...

(IOF). The IOF's UK operation is now called Forester Life, based in

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 87,889 as of 2011. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, c ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

The society became incorporated on 1 January 2003 (in accordance with the provisions of The Friendly Societies Act 1992), that year acquired Tunstall Assurance Friendly Society, followed by the Leek Assurance Collecting Society in 2005.Foresters Friendly Society (2013) ''Annual Report and Accounts 2012'' On September 26, 2014, it acquired the Post Office Insurance Society (POIS), which added 21,000 members and a further £69.0 million in assets The society's local branches are termed "courts", rather than "lodges" as in other friendly societies. They were named after the law courts of the

royal forest A royal forest, occasionally known as a kingswood (), is an area of land with different definitions in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. The term ''forest'' in the ordinary modern understanding refers to an area of wooded land; however, the ...

s, and performed the Ancient Ritual of the Society. The most famous was Court LUD No. 10,100, which was formed in 1947, by members of the London District Management Committee. However, owing to lack of members willing to take office, this court was erased in 2004. Since the society became incorporated the number of courts has slowly reduced and remained stable over the last 10 years at 189 Courts in the British Isles. Internationally, there are courts in Georgetown, Guyana and

Paramaribo, Suriname Paramaribo (; ; nicknamed Par'bo) is the capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname's po ...

. The society offers a range of member benefits, and in 2018 nearly £1m was paid out in discretionary grants and benefits, and charitable donations. The society had its own magazine – ''Foresters Miscellany,'' which ran from 1862 to 2008, when it was incorporated into a replacement called ''The Forester''.Library and Museum of Freemasonry
catalogue ref: 1522 FOR fol. In late 2016, the publication of ''Foresters Miscellany'' restarted with issue 1618 and continues today celebrating Foresters social and fundraising activities in local communities.

Products

The society provides its members with savings policies – including tax exempt savings which are only available via friendly societies. They also offer an Investment Bond, Guaranteed Savings plan and in June 2017 the society launched a Lifetime ISA. Foresters also offer insurance policies against sickness and death. There are also policies for children, including a child tax exempt savings plan. In addition to this, it is also the provider of group insurance to several police forces in the United Kingdom, the

Police Service of Northern Ireland The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI; ga, Seirbhís Póilíneachta Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster-Scots: ') is the police force that serves Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) after it was reform ...

being one of the largest, and its Guernsey business mainly consists of medical insurance. The society is regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority. The total combined assets of the courts (including Guernsey) as of 31 December 2016 was £78.9 million As of December 2016 the society had approximately 75,000 members and managed funds of £277m on their members' behalf.

Management

In November 2012, Paul Osborn was appointed as the Chief Executive. In September 2012, Mike Wilkinson was appointed to the Board, and subsequently elected chairman. Two professional non-executive directors were also welcomed to the board: Michael Allen, latterly of

Liverpool Victoria Liverpool Victoria, trading since May 2007 as LV=, is one of the United Kingdom's largest insurance companies. It offers a range of insurance and retirement products. History The First Hundred Years The first known meeting of the Society was ...

, and John Instance from the

Financial Reporting Council The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is an independent regulator in the UK and Ireland based in London Wall in the City of London, responsible for regulating auditors, accountants and actuaries, and setting the UK's Corporate Governance and ...

. In 2016, John Instance was appointed the chairman and Myles Edwards was appointed as executive director. The High Chief Ranger (which is equivalent to president) for 2016/17 was Glyn Carpenter and for 2017/18 is Cheryl Eagleson. Each year the High Chief Ranger chooses a charity for whom the society's members fundraise. In 2016/17 this was Canine Partners, and in 2017/18 it is the Association of Air Ambulances Charity.Foresters Friendly Society (2017) Annual Report and Accounts 2016

Sponsorship

In December 2012 Foresters announced its official sponsorship of the Archery GB Olympic and

Paralympic The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaire ...

teams. In November 2013 Foresters renewed its sponsorship, taking its sponsorship beyond the Rio Olympics.

References

External links

{{NIE Poster, year=1906, Foresters, Ancient Order of, Foresters Friendly Society
Foresters Friendly Society
– official website
Foresters Friends
– official news and forum site for members
Foresters Heritage Trust
– independent charity, info on Ancient Order of Foresters and other friendly societies
Library and Museum of Freemasonry
has a comprehensive collection of material about the Foresters (and other friendly societies) Organizations established in 1834 1834 establishments in the United Kingdom Friendly societies of the United Kingdom

History

Products

Management

Sponsorship

See also

References

External links