London is the largest single masonic group within the international family of Freemasons. With more than 55,000 Craft members and some 2,300 Lodges and Chapters, it has been difficult to steer.
    Its biggest boost was when the Assistant Grand Master, RW Bro the Marquess of Northampton, now Pro Grand Master-designate, became chairman of London Management, the new structure for the capital’s Freemasons.
    The need for structural change was glaringly obvious, particular as London, because of its size, did not have the local feel about it that is such a strength of the Provinces and Districts.
    As such the decision was taken some two years ago that a restructured and better co-ordinated body, to be known as London Management, would take on the task of administering London, and it has been fully operational for the past 18 months.
    A great deal has been achieved in that time, and much remains to be done. But the result is that London is now better managed, and there is improved communication between the centre and the various Lodges and Chapters.
    The full-time director of London Management, W Bro Andrew Henderson, says: “We are trying to provide a service. The change came about because senior London Masons perceived a need for London to be serviced in a manner dedicated to London.”
    In the subsequent shake-up, London has been divided into 22 groups, each with its own chairman. They meet as a Board of Management under the direction of the Assistant Grand Master as Chairman. A Deputy Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer and Charity Representative then administer Board Resolutions. Groups are based either on geographical areas or Masonic centres and are named after the early Grand Masters.
    Each group comprises around 75 Lodges and 30 Chapters and is backed by over 520 Visiting Grand Officers (VGOs) each of whom, on average, looks after five Lodges and/or Chapters.
    W Bro Henderson says: “There has been some misunderstanding about the role of the VGOs. They are not there to cast an overseeing eye but to assist and provide a service and feedback of how things are going, and as a means of communication.”
    The new management structure is taking over the entire administration of London, including both the annual and installation returns to Grand Lodge. The aim is to merge them into a single document – a move that will bring joy to secretaries.
    The new London Management website (www.londonfreemasonry.com) will fulfil two roles, providing a public window for Freemasonry in London and an administrative goldmine of information for Secretaries, Scribes E and London Freemasons in general. Forms will be available to be downloaded and returned by email, or filled out online.
    This will bring about considerable cost savings, improve communications and ensure administrative efficiency. In addition, the eventual aim is to provide e-mail addresses for all London Lodges and Chapters.
    London now has its own Masonic Yearbook and this, too, should be available electronically next year, but is only available within the Craft.
    Another major innovation is that the London office now has a sophisticated scanner, enabling all Lodge and Chapter summonses to be scanned in for posterity.
    Andrew explains: “We have around 8,000 summonses a year, and we had ten four-drawer filing cabinets to keep them in. We can now store a year’s London summonses on one CD. If a Lodge wants to look back at, say, a Centenary summons, in future it will be there.”
    London is also supporting its own charities. To this end it has established the London Masonic Charitable Trust, through which funds are channelled to the two non-masonic charities supported each year.
    This year’s non-masonic charities are the Royal National Institute for the Deaf and a special research project under Professor Waxman, at Hammersmith Hospital, to provide an effective test to identify early signs of prostate cancer.
    Within London, London Management is also responsible for that thorniest of subjects – the honours system.
    W Bro Henderson stressed that the recommendation of honours “is being conducted in a very open manner. Lodges now understand how their candidates will be judged.”
    To ease the problem, a new designation of London Rank has been added to that of London Grand Rank and Senior London Grand Rank. This is to recognise those who have contributed to London Masonry without having served as Master of a Lodge.
    He adds: “We make sure that people are assessed on a level playing field, and that we are scrupulously fair.”
    As one of its new duties, London Management will also be running the annual London Investitures.
    At a time when Freemasonry is often accused – not least from within the Craft – as being fuddy-duddy and not geared to the modern world, London Management is showing how to adapt and change to meet the needs of the 21st century.
    In particular, it is organising a public relations campaign in which individual Masons will be responsible for targetting local newspapers in chosen areas.
    In this and many other ways the new London Management is projecting a new image that should ensure the smoother running of London’s affairs.