Since the latest Word for Windows update I have been unable to create new Word documents that remain macro-enabled. When I first create a new .docm I can apply 1 (one) macro from my attached Normal template; if I try another, I get an error message that says “Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications / System Error &H80070057 (-2147024809).”

I have been unable to find any way to get around this. I have been using .docm’s, not ordinary .docx’s; I have looked extensively online and have tried the oft-repeated settings in the Trust Center (Enable all Macros, Trust access to the VBA project object model, choose a trusted location (I have added my own locations as well as using the Word Start-up folder). I may get the macros to work for a while, but sooner or later I get the dreaded error message again, and my .docm is back to having its macros disabled.

I find it strange that I do not experience any problems like this with Word for Mac. If I open a document that already contains macros it simply asks permission to enable them, and then everything works fine. If I create a new doc and add macros, they simply work.

The one idea I have not followed up with WinWord is to create a new Normal.docm. My macros and other items (AutoCorrects etc.) in my Normal.docm have been built up over many years and it would be a huge investment of time and effort to try and reconstruct them. Can anyone reading this suggest a less drastic solution?

Many thanks for any help you can give.