About FNF

During 2001, the FNF Reform Group have been taking action against the grip which the 'old guard' has on the organisation. They are doing this because it is believed the 'old guard' don't represent the views of the ordinary member, will resist any attempts at change, are too ready to agree with our enemies, and don't assist with any cross-group actions. It appears that FNF suffers from the same demise of many organisations, that the organisation and its leaders become more important than the original cause it was set up for. They appear to act with arrogance and contempt towards their members.

FNF organisational problems

FNF has not :

• identified and described the problems which fathers face;
• there is no description of the problems faced by their members, even when that was offered to to them, and is readily available from the 1995 FNF survey conducted by the Cheltenham Group and published in The Emperor's New Clothes;
• there is no description of the problems on the FNF website, yet there are some solutions identified;
• stated any organisation philosophy or strategy other than in terms of 'keeping children and parents in contact'; e.g. UKMM believes that the central issue is men's rights in marriage and the family, that these should be defined in written law, and that children's issues are only a part of that;
• any attempts by members to initiate activities or projects are met with dissaproval and lack of support from FNF NC;
• FNF suppress cooperation with other groups, as is evident from the various demos during 2001 which did not have FNF support, even when (e.g. the Bridges for Children event of 5 June) they take place in FNF's heartland of London & the Home Counties.

Some anecdotes

UKMM's Secretary, Barry Worrall, was a member of FNF National Council during 1992-96, and was their editor of Access for 1993-95. As such he saw first-hand activities within FNF, and later took part in the Ambose Neil affair, which failed to obtain change. In 1994, the Cheltenham Group (CG) was set up by John Campion, and Barry attended the inaugural meeting. Simultaneously Roger Witcombe set up the UKMM, which Barry also joined as a member. During this time, he maintained his position on FNF NC in order to keep CG informed, and for possible cooperation. However, certain events, and the Abrose Neil affair drove him out of FNF.

Here, he recounts some anecdotes.

Anecdote #1

After the establishment of the Cheltenham Group (CG) by John Campion, it was resolved to write a book about men's experiences.

John Campion approached the then FNF Chairman Bruce Lidington. It was agreed that CG would create a questionnaire, FNF would distribute to their members, and CG would analyse and publish the results.

All this took place in 1995-96, so in 1996 the results were available. The statistics were entirely drawn from the responses by FNF members. Statistics that had never been collected before, either by any other group or by the government.

Barry Worrall presented the then Secretary with a copy of the statistics report (now appendix 3 of The Emperor's New Clothes) and proposed that FNF pay for publicity and promotion, especially as it described the experiences of their own members, which they themselves had never bothered to collect. It was considered essential that FNF NC should at least know what was happening to their own members.

The response was to find all sorts of reasons to avoid doing anything.

The book was completed (with 128 case strudies by FNF members in their own words as well as the comprehensive statistics) in 1996, and has been on the CG website and UKMM website for about 2 years now, yet we don't know of any use being made of this valuable resource by FNF.

Anecdote #2

When FNF NC were discussing the speakers for an AGM in 1995 or 96 (sorry forgot exact date), Charles Kenyon proposed someone should be invited to give the members a talk on "how to be better fathers".

Barry Worrall told Charles Kenyon excactly what he thought of this proposal, as it is grossly insultiung to the average member. Charles Kenyon came around the table and threatened Bary worrall with physical violence 'outside after the meeting'.

So FNF NC will allow threats of physical violence on any dissenters from their degenerate approaches.