I am delighted to write in this issue of GR as your new president.

I would first like to pay tribute to Kate Davidson, our outgoing president, for her wonderful contribution to the BSG, particularly in the last two years. She has worked tirelessly behind the scenes to secure BSG’s future and progressed the Society’s aims through the establishment of working groups, a fellowship scheme, and the Alan Walker prize to the person who has made an outstanding contribution to gerontology. She has contributed far more than anyone can imagine to the Society both as president and previously as secretary. Kate, as past president, will be taking over as chair of the international working group and I know her enthusiasm and commitment will be there as well as support for the Society.

I would also like to thank those members of the executive who also ‘retire’ during this period; with special thanks to Mark Faulkner for his work as treasurer and I welcome additional members to the team: Sarah Hillcoat Nallétamby, Kate Bennett as treasurer elect, and Miriam Bernard as president elect.

Congratulations too to the Bristol team for a superb conference with an impressive line up of plenary speakers, excellent papers and superlative social entertainment. We anticipate that our return to Bristol next year will be an equally memorable and successful event.

As promised at our AGM I’m going to use this space to briefly outline ways in which our Society could develop in the next five years. I’m pleased to say that Mim Bernard, as president elect, will be fully involved in working towards this vision. We would be grateful for your feedback and thoughts on the strategic direction of the BSG as we progress the agenda.

It is an opportune time to move to a broader strategic vision for the long term future of the society. BSG needs a fresh vision for the 21st century in which we need to ask ourselves are we ‘fit for purpose’. I think there are a number of factors that make this question timely:

• Considerably more people from diverse backgrounds are moving into ageing research that aren’t members of BSG – engineers and psychologists for example, - what do we offer such diverse groups outside the traditional networks – do we need a different network or thematic approach ? How can we reach out to those in other societies, particularly professional societies which have a membership of practitioners and encourage them to be part of BSG?
• The UK Age Research Forum (UKARF) is reviewing priorities for funding and launching long term objectives in relation to ageing research. BSG should be at the centre of those discussions through the British Council on Ageing (BCA), which represents the BSG on the UKARF. We also need to have a stronger presence in BCA working together with biologists and medics.
• These are difficult times for many societies as we are all competing to increase membership at the same time as free access to resources through the net has increased. Thus, societies like ours need to have added value. Membership is declining in some societies to the extent they are questioning their viability. Fortunately BSG is not in this position but we have to work hard to maintain our position. Should we be concerned about funding through membership? Should other sources be looked at?

For BSG to survive as a Society for those engaged in the ageing research agenda the Society needs to move forward and to undergo ‘transformational’ change. We need to move BSG to another level and this is our challenge over the next five years.

I believe this can be achieved through:

• A drive for sponsorship (for both core and specific activities) from large and multinational commercial companies or consortia of smaller companies (rather than relying solely on increased membership). We will need to carefully think through our relationship with such funders; this does not mean we are tied to particular brands but we will be able to grow in our activities through small contributions from a number of different sources. Sponsorship around targeted activities or roles could be attractive to both sides.
• More professional servicing of the organisation through a paid administrator/office (possibly jointly with other societies). We welcome to our Society Rachel Hazelwood who will take up the post as our administrator for a period of time to enable us to explore the possibilities of a longer term appointment.
• Being more visible on the national and international stage and being able to respond to government etc through BCA. Ways in which to strengthen our external influence could be through a forum of research centres of ageing, or an expert group on ageing developing a research strategy, or a brochure outlining our impact and contribution to society. Working in such a way will be necessary if gerontology is to be recognised as a subject area in its own right by the Research Councils and if we are to have input into the new Research Excellence Framework.
• This all indicates greater liaison and working with other organisations and societies. We hope at the IAGG in Paris in 2009 to have joint activities with others in the BCA but again want to extend our range of services to members through hosting joint conferences and symposia with societies here and internationally.

To begin to achieve this in the next few months the BSG executive will engage in scenario planning for the future; mapping out different directions for the Society. In addition we will start to explore opportunities for funding with companies where ageing research is of interest. Our format for executive meetings will also place a greater emphasis on strategy. I hope to report on progress in each issue of GR and of course at the AGM. It is an exciting time and I look forward to working with the strong executive team.

Thank you for allowing me to share some of these thoughts – as an executive we would welcome any comments, thoughts and offers of assistance to take this agenda forward.