Epsom Sports Club £1 million boost

Epsom Sports Club has been awarded £1 million in funding by Surrey County Council towards constructing a new clubhouse as part of the YourFundSurrey Large Community scheme.

The clubhouse will open up new exterior and interior spaces, creating a shared space in the heart of the community for a wide range of activities, with aims to support new participants to become active, particularly those from inactive and under-represented groups. The clubhouse will be built at Epsom Sports Club’s sports facilities space in Old Schools Lane in Ewell, where a range of sports and activities already take place such as cricket, croquet, hockey and tennis – to name a few.

As a charity that promotes active lifestyles and community recreation for Epsom and Ewell residents, providing facilities for sports, recreation and other leisure activities, the Sports Club caters to all ages and abilities. Around 800 young people regularly participate in these sports. Walking cricket and hockey
have been recently introduced for older members and a disability hockey group is also affiliated with the club.

Planning permission has been granted for a fully accessible single-storey building which will hold four changing rooms, a clubroom for indoor activities, a kitchen and a bar for both participants and spectators.
Simon Everest, one of Epsom Sports Club’s Directors, said: “The facility will be open to local community groups to hire and we anticipate that this will be of huge benefit to the Borough.”

The funding was granted after the YourFundSurrey panel was presented with the planned community usage of the new clubhouse, which is said to hold activities such as exercise classes, art classes and the card game ‘bridge’. The panel was also pleased to hear of potential plans for organisations such as guiding or scouts to make use of the facilities.

Natalia Anda, Chair of Epsom Hockey Club said: “We are so excited and grateful to have received this grant from YourFundSurrey. “The clubhouse will made such a difference to the club in maximising the potential use of our outdoor sports pitches, providing much needed changing facilities and a place to socialise for our members and the wider local community.”