Delighted members of a Nottinghamshire sports club have been bowled over after receiving much-needed funding to make vital improvements to their facilities.
Keyworth Bowls Club has installed new banks, ditches and a sprinkler system which will enable the sport to continue to be played safely on its Elm Avenue green for many years to come.
They have replaced the original crumbling banks and ditches, which had been in place since the club opened in 1964 and had become a serious risk to bowlers’ safety.
Nottinghamshire County Council contributed £19,026 towards the project via its Local Improvement Scheme (LIS), with the total cost of the improvement work being £38,052.
Councillor John Cottee, chairman of the communities committee at the county council and Keyworth Division member, said: “Keyworth Bowls Club is at the heart of the local community and plays a key role in bringing people together in the area.
“Therefore, I am absolutely delighted that through the Local Improvement Scheme we’ve been able to help this wonderful club carry out much-needed work to help preserve its future for many years to come.
“Bowls is a sport which can be enjoyed by players of all ages and I really hope the improvements which have taken place at the club encourages even more people to take it up.
“The Local Improvement Scheme was introduced to support projects which put the community at the centre of their activities, and Keyworth Bowls Club certainly does this.
“I would like to wish the club all the very best for the future and look forward to bowls being played again when the new season starts next spring.”
More than 800 people use the club’s facilities seven days a week during the summer, providing benefits from a mental health viewpoint and helping to combat loneliness and isolation.
The club, which has 73 members, hosts regular weekly indoor games nights, coffee mornings and social events during the close season, enabling the ‘coming together of people’ all year round.
Alan Jackson, Keyworth Bowls Club’s committee fundraiser, said he was delighted the county council had provided the funding to help cover the costs of the improvements.
He said: “We’ve been looking at doing this for several years but never had the funding to carry out the work, which was so badly needed.
“We have an excellent reputation of having one of the best facilities in the county, but the banking was so bad it had become a health and safety hazard because all the wood was cracking.
“However, thanks to the support of Nottinghamshire County Council and Cllr John Cottee we have been able to successfully carry out the work which has enabled us, as a club, to keep going.
“They have been brilliant throughout the whole process and I would recommend anyone looking to secure funding for projects like this to contact the county council.
“We are very much a community club and without this funding and support, we wouldn’t be able to provide the obvious benefits of helping people to get out of their homes and participate in open air sport.”
– Anyone who is interested in joining Keyworth Bowls Club, should contact secretary Kevin Reed on 07881 448905 or collect an application form from the clubhouse on Elm Avenue in the village.
