How Hub Club works
Three steps, and they are the three tabs on the board. The point of all of it is that nobody organises on hope and nobody is left paying for a room half of us didn’t turn up to.
And said up front, because people rightly ask: what we run is secular. No prayer, no worship, no faith-based teaching in anything on the board. Who we are is mixed, and families of every faith and none are equally welcome. There’s more on this further down.
Prefer to be shown? Take the one-minute tour. Want every detail written down? The guides cover the lot.
Someone puts up an idea
Ballet. A fossil hunt. Board games for the older kids. You don't need a date, a venue or a price to start. Put it up and see if anyone else wants it.
The rest of us say if we'd come
One tap, and you can take your name off any time. Interest closes after 7 days: if enough families want it, it goes out for places. If not, it quietly drops off the board and nobody has spent anything.
Enough people pay for a place, and it's on
This is the part that makes it real. Saying you'd come doesn't pay the instructor, so a place costs money and it's yours once you've taken it. Pull out freely until commitments close. After that the organiser has already paid, so your place is yours to use or hand to another family.
Does that actually change anything?
Whoever leads a thing ticks off who was there afterwards. Nobody is ever named as a no-show; it only ever comes out as a number. Here is the shape of it.
1 event is not a study, and these are our own numbers rather than anyone else’s. It grows every time whoever led something ticks off who was there.
Three kinds of thing
Runs over several weeks
Ballet, clay, survival skills. A real start and finish. These usually have a teacher to pay, which is exactly why they need a firm number before anyone books.
One-offs
A trip, a workshop, a morning at the library. Some are free, some aren't. Same rule either way: it runs when enough of us are in.
Short notice
Beach tomorrow. Park this afternoon. Decided yesterday, happening now. No minimum, no cost, nothing to book. Turn the alert on for these or you'll hear too late.
Where you fit
Looking is free and open to everyone; taking part is for members. You can browse as long as you like before you decide.
Everyone
The whole London homeschool community, free and no sign-up. See what’s on, the dates, roughly where, and how many are coming. A look at what the club does, not a way into it.
Members
$5 a month per family, card on file. This is the tier that takes part: say you’re coming, put up ideas, comment, pay for places, and see the real detail, who’s coming and exactly where. Pay-what-you-can, and cost is never the reason to miss out.
The four things we all sign up to
Ticked when you join. Not fine print. The whole reason it feels like a club.
- Secular, and open to everyone. What we run has no worship, prayer or faith-based teaching. Families of every faith and none are equally welcome, and nobody is ever asked which.
- Kind, welcoming and safe. I'll help make this a place every family and every kid feels safe and wanted. That's the one real requirement.
- Reliable. When I say we're coming, we come, or I take our name off in good time. Someone has usually paid a fixed cost up front, and I get that.
- In it together. This is a community we build, not a service we buy. I'll pitch in where I can, even if that's just showing up and saying hello to a new family.
Questions people actually ask
What happens if I pay and then can’t go?
Before commitments close, tell us and you get your money back, no questions. After they close, the organiser has already paid the instructor out of that money, so it can’t come back without them personally covering it. Your place is still yours though, and you can give it to another family.
It works the way a ticket works, and for the same reason.
Do I have to help organise?
No. Coming and running are two separate taps and most people only ever use the first one. If you do want to help, say so on the thing itself and whoever’s leading it will see.
What does membership cost?
$5 a month, per family, not per child, and pay-what-you-can if that’s tight: $2 reduced rate, $5 standard rate, $10 support rate. It is not for profit and it pays nobody a wage: it covers the texts, the emails and the cost of running this, and nothing else. Activities are priced separately, and there are free things on the board too.
Cost is never the reason a family misses out. Say the word to whoever’s running the club and it’s sorted, no explanation needed.
Who is this for?
Any London-area family educating at home, whatever your approach.
What we run is secular. No prayer, no worship and no faith-based teaching in any activity on the board.
Who we are is mixed. Some families here are religious and some aren’t, and nobody is asked which. You do not have to be non-religious to belong here.
Being kind, welcoming and safe for everyone is the only real requirement.
Who sees my name?
You choose. Show your name, your photo and your kids’ ages so people know who they’d be meeting, or be counted without being named. Either way you count toward the number.
Set that upReady?
You can look around as long as you like without joining. Becoming a member is what lets you take part: say you’re coming, put up ideas, and pay for a place.
Become a member