New Changing Rooms
Our old changing rooms were 50 years old, dilapidated, inaccessible for wheelchair users, provided no privacy and were far too small. Often, players had to change outside or in the toilets. This hindered our ability to recruit new bowlers, especially younger players, and to host county matches.
The first 5 photos below show the old changing rooms; then photo 6 shows the ground screw foundations for the first new changing room (Friday 6 Dec 2024), 7 floor framework (Mon 9 Dec), 8 rear wall (Tue 10 Dec), 9 other walls installed (Wed 11 Dec), 10 roof on (Thur 12 Dec), 11 windows and roof trim fixed (Fri 13 Dec), 12 & 13 external cladding & internal insulation both started (Mon 16 Dec), 14 & 15 external cladding complete & insulation and electric cabling complete (Tue 17 Dec), 16 internal fireboard and vapour barrier (Wed 18 Dec), 17 & 18 internal counter-battens fixed & external cladding at rear and end nearly finished (Thur 19 Dec), 19 & 20 external cladding and decking at entrance completed & ceiling plastered (Fri 20 & Sat 21 Dec), 21 Ceiling painted (Thur 2 Jan 25); 22 T&g boarding progressing (Mon 6 Jan), 23 T&g boarding being finished around windows (Tue 7 Jan), 24 T&g boarding, flooring and electrics completed (Wed 8 Jan), 25 Gates for maintenance machinery (Wed 8 Jan), 26 First Changing Room complete, exterior (14 Jan), 27 First Changing Room complete, interior (14 Jan), 28 Shed over watering system pump (30 Jan), 29 Ground screws being installed (11 Feb), 30 Ground screws for second changing room complete (11 Feb)
We have started to build the first of two new changing rooms which will improve our facilities immensely and help us recruit and retain more members, particularly younger bowlers who may arrive straight from school or work and need to change. We have an excellent bowling green and could host county or national matches. New changing rooms will mean we have suitable facilities for players to change before and after matches.
New changing rooms will help our Club grow and prosper, recruit and retain younger players, help us with safeguarding, and hosting county and national matches. This will help our Club to continue to provide and maintain our facilities for the benefit of the wider community in Sharnbrook and surrounding villages of north Bedfordshire. Many groups use our facilities in the ‘close season’ for bowls for art, crafts, music, creating writing, learning foreign languages, card games, club and society meetings, for example. Without a successful bowls club, this would not be possible.
The changing rooms design is specific to meet our needs and the constraints of our narrow site, which makes it more expensive than an ‘off-the-shelf’ design. The work also entails lifting and relaying a paved area to improve and make more central the viewing area for watching matches. Other elements of work include a new shed to house the watering system pump which was in the old changing rooms which have now been removed and a new double gated entrance for machinery to maintain the bowling green.
All this amounts to a considerable financial challenge and our Club is busy fundraising and applying for grants. So far we have completed the first of the two new changing rooms. We have now been awarded sufficient grants to enable us to build the second new changing room which should be ready in time for the 2025 season.
Thank you very much indeed to everyone who has helped us to raise the funds for our new Changing Rooms, in particular:
- Eddie Powell and his daughter and son-in-law, whose bequest and very generous donation gave us such a good start
- Sharnbrook Bowls Club members, their families and friends
- Members of so many other Bowls Clubs near and far who supported us with donations and buying raffle tickets (winners listed below)
- Local businesses and others who donated cash, raffle prizes and/or rewards for our crowdfunding campaign which gained us the grant from Sport England, including: Bedford Chiropractic Clinic, Bedfordshire Golf Club, Brewpoint Brewery, Co-op Sharnbrook, Currys Bedford, D-Air, Hair by Vincenzo Bedford, Hazel Kaye Oakley, Lorna’s Salon Sharnbrook, the Matthews family USA, Pavenham Park Golf Club, Michael R Peters, Phew!, Sainsbury’s Bedford, Scotts Veterinary Clinic Sharnbrook, Sharnbrook Café & Deli, Sharnbrook Mill Theatre, The Bell in Odell, The Cock Pavenham, The Fox Carlton, The Horse & Groom Clapham, The Royal George Stevington, The Sun Felmersham, The Swan with Two Nicks Sharnbrook.
We would never have enough through fundraising alone and the changing rooms could not be built without receiving grants. We are very grateful to Be Active Bedfordshire and Community Voluntary Service Bedfordshire for their advice and encouragement in our applications for grants and for the generous grants we have been awarded by the following organisations:
- Sharnbrook Parish Council
- Sport England / National Lottery via a crowdfunding campaign
- The John Apthorp Charity
- UK Government Shared Prosperity Fund (Community Infrastructure Grant)
- Bedford Borough Council
- The Harpur Trust
Thank you all so very much from everyone at Sharnbrook Bowls Club and from everyone who will benefit from our new changing rooms.
Raffle Winners
Thank you very much indeed to everyone who bought tickets for our Prize Raffle to raise money for our new Changing Rooms. The Draw made at our Finals Day, Sunday 1st September 2024, produced the following winners:
1. £100 Cash. Winner: Paul Meeks, St Neots
2. Microwave oven. Winner: Bedford Chiropractic Clinic, Bedford ***
3. Private Consultation at Bedford Chiropractic Clinic. Winner: Nick and Julie Welch, Sharnbrook
4. DAB Radio. Winner: Carl Batchelor, Bedford
5. Round of Golf for 4 people, with buggies, at Pavenham Park Golf Club. Winner: Christine Wildman, Sharnbrook
6. Hair cut, 45 mins back massage, ladies or gents fragrance bundle at Hazel Kaye, Oakley. Winner: Craig Martin, St Neots
7. Private Consultation at Bedford Chiropractic Clinic. Winner: Barbara Thorpe, Milton Keynes ***
8. Animal Health Check & vaccinations at Scotts Veterinary Clinic. Winner: Gerry Stafford, Milton Ernest
9. Private Consultation at Bedford Chiropractic Clinic. Winner: Nikki Wooding, Bedford
10. £20 Voucher for Hair by Vincenzo, Bedford. Winner: Ali McCormick, Ramsey ***
11. Illuminated Makeup Mirror. Winner: Lucy Anderson, Rushden
12. Private Consultation at Bedford Chiropractic Clinic. Winner: Jan Leaper, Oakley ***
13. 4 Roast Dinners at The Fox, Carlton. Winner: Nick and Julie Welch, Sharnbrook
14. 10 Pints of Beer, The Sun, Felmersham. Winner: Malcolm Lilley, Biggleswade
15. Brewpoint Tour and Beer Tasting. Winner: Catherine Smith, Bedford
16. £10 Voucher for The Horse & Groom, Clapham. Winner: Marc Mann, Bedford
17. Bottle of Quinta De La Rosa Tawny Port. Winner: Sally Cooper, Sharnbrook
18. Bottle of Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey. Winner: Frank Ridley, Sharnbrook
19. Bottle of The Kraken Black Spiced Rum. Winner: Gerry Sansom, Oakley
20. Bottle of Gordon's Gin. Winner: Don and Jean McClennon, Clapham
21. 550g Tub of Cadbury's Heroes. Winner: Adrian Bailey, Bromham
22. 400g Box of McVitie's Family Circle biscuits. Winner: John Wade, Potton ***
*** These winners have very kindly donated their prizes to Sharnbrook Bowls Club to help with further fundraising. Thank you very much.