A new Tees Valley bowling club is looking for new members after completing the final stage of its clubhouse development plans.
Yarm Bowling Club’s clubhouse and bowling green was built three years ago as part of the new Morley Carr Farm housing development to the south east of the town, with a committee of local people being formed to get it properly up and running.
Since then, new fixtures, fittings and floorings have been added to the Holly Pond Court clubhouse for members and visitors to use, along with a fully functioning kitchen.
And now, the club has used an £1,800 grant from County Durham-based employer the Banks Group to buy 60 new lockers in which members can keep their shoes and other belongings while they’re out on the green.
The club recently celebrated its first anniversary proper with an open day and is now actively looking to increase its membership, which is open to people of all ages and already up to more than 70 people.
Yarm has one of only two artificial all-year playing surfaces in the north east, with the other one being at Billingham, and is the only one with the advanced synthetic Tiger Turf bowling green.
The club aims to keep its membership fees as low as possible to maximise access to the sport, with members being able to access the venue and play at any time.
Steve Atkinson, development and funding lead at Yarm Bowling Club, says: “This is a great community facility and somewhere that we’ve already managed to turn into a very popular venue, but we’d now love to see even more local people joining and playing.
“We also get lots of spectators coming along to watch on sunny days and we can offer them all the facilities they need to enjoy spending some time on the side of the green.
“None of the committee members were bowlers before getting involved with the club, so we’re being guided by our more experienced members about their priorities for facilities at the venue.
“Lockers were pointed out as being something that players really needed, but we didn’t have any budget left to cover the cost of them and it would have taken us a long time to save up the money required if the Banks Group hadn’t stepped in.
“Our open day was a great success and we’re hoping to now see even more people joining us on the green in the future.”
Kate Culverhouse, community relations manager at the Banks Group, adds: “The progress that’s been made at Yarm Bowling Club in such a short space of time is really impressive.
“It offers players opportunities to keep active all year round, as well as providing a chance for anyone to come along and have a chat with their fellow spectators, and we’re very happy to be contributing to such a successful community project.”
The Banks Group’s community funds are independently managed by Point North (formerly the County Durham Community Foundation).
Anyone from a community close to a Banks Group project who is interested in applying for funding from the Banks Community Fund should contact the company via its website enquiry form (www.banksgroup.co.uk/contact-us/) to find out if their group or project is eligible.