Programme
The emphasis is on a very supportive, easy-going environment to allow individuals to develop at their own pace.

Usually there are between 10 and 15 people present at a meeting.

Visitors can either plunge straight in if they feel brave enough; otherwise they are welcome just to observe proceedings for the first couple of times.

For the serious member there is a very structured programme of development, but if the reasons for joining are semi-social, that is fine as well.

After all this is all about communication and whether the aim is to develop professionally or simply to be a better parent or friend will depend on the individual.

Speeches
Your education starts with a 10 step programme that ends with you giving your masterpiece speech. This speech incorporates all your new skills from the programme. By this time you will be comfortable speaking in public and you will be impressive. Your education does not stop there. If you continue with the club you can go onto advanced assignments.

Each step in the basic programme is a logical progression in the learning process and you are asked to concentrate on one new facet of the speaker's tool kit per assignment.

You will be able to give speeches in public long before you finish this programme and you are encouraged to speak outside the club as well as at our meetings.

Topics
Another area and one you most likely fear the most is being asked to speak without warning. Our topics sessions are great at helping you here. At every meeting there is a topics sessions where a few members are asked to speak for 2-3 minutes on a subject.

As your confidence grows and you are reassured by the supportive atmosphere of the club you will be happy to take this on.

Evaluations
This is where the real value of the club comes in to play. After every speech or topic you are evaluated on your performance. A typical evaluation covers your strong points and will give some guidance in areas that could be improved.

You might think this sounds daunting but nothing could be further from the truth. Also you will start to give evaluations when you reach the second half of your development programme.

Manual
The ASC has a comprehensive manual that covers all your educational development while you are a member. This will take you from novice to accomplished and then to advanced levels of ability. It also includes a lot of useful information and tips that cover just about every requirement you will ever have.

This manual costs £10.00 and will be given to you when you join.