Agenda item

Representatives from some of the groups which received ward funding over the last financial year were present and Cllr Kent invited them to say few words about their project and experience of ward funding. 

Alan Slater, West Bank Park Bowling Association took on the role of the treasurer in November 2021. There are four clubs that use West Bank Park bowling greens.  Activities are subsidised from sale of refreshments from the Pavilion. Annual running costs of the bowling are circa £40k. Ward funding has been provided over the years to help with purchase of equipment such as pushers, dewy or installation of accessible gates. Without this support those improvements would not be possible Grass cutting machines require regular maintenance. New grass cutter costs circa £5k and a replacement cutting cassette is worth approximately £1k. The recent application to the Two Ridings Community Foundation York Community Fund was not successful and turned down on the grounds of insufficient collaboration. This was very disappointing for the Club, as it was felt that evidence of collaboration between four clubs using the greens and community volunteers should be sufficient.

The most recent improvement work was repair to the concrete gutters around bowling greens, and the next fundraising target will be purchase of a new ‘Dennis’ type grass cutter. The club relies on fundraising and without sufficient income it will have to fold, similarly to no longer existing club at Clarence Gardens.

Malcolm Britton, York Railway Bowls and Social Club echoed the preceding speaker experiences of running a bowling club. The Club tries to keep the fees low to retain and encourage new membership. The Club separated from York RI some years ago via asset transfer process. Maintenance of the grounds also involves mature trees, which can be costly to look after. The Club received financial support from the ward towards the clubhouse accessibility improvements. Attempts were made to apply for funding from other grant giving bodies, but it is usually a protracted process requiring grant writing skills and you often compete against several other bidders. In comparison, the Club found ward funding process to be much more accessible. The Club is much more than bowling, with fitness classes and children’s parties taking place at the clubhouse. Annual running costs of the Club are circa £50k and the green is considered one of the best in the county. Installation of a new ramp and assisted door system have been carried out over the past couple of years to enhance the Club accessibility. Ward funding contribution helped as an enabler to secure match funding from Sport England, the funding body which required the Club to secure half of the funds from another source. The total cost of accessibility improvements was £15k which was funded via contributions from the ward, fundraising at events and Sport England. Those improvements benefit the Club and other groups using the clubhouse.

Sean Heslop, York Railway Institute CIO gave an outline of the organisation history. Founded in 1889 to stop railway workers drinking alcohol and provide sports opportunities. The organisation undergone many changes over the years and even had its own theatre for a time. Pike Hills Golf Club and York Sailing Club have previously been part or the York Railway Institute. Currently the organisation manages two sites - Queen Street with renowned badminton facilities, judo, table tennis, squash, dance and New Lane with football, rugby union and netball. At both sites facilities are available for hire and on a pay to play basis. The Club previously received ward funding towards creation of an exit road to enable Park and Stride project back in 2020. The project allows parents to park their car at the New Lane car park and walk their children to OLQM School, which alleviates traffic issues on Hamilton Drive during school drop off and pick up times.

More recently funding was received towards perimeter fence repairs and a community defibrillator. Community defibrillator project is being led by a group of local residents who got together with the aim to install a publicly accessible defibrillator at a location close to Hob Moor. The group is not constituted and has no bank account and York RI CIO stepped in to act as a sponsor and receive the funding.

New Lane perimeter fence is as old as the site and required repairs as it suffers from vandalism from people trying to break in to access the site. It was recommended by the Police to install a steel fence to deter further vandalism, however that solution was not affordable. Repairs to the most damaged parts have been undertaken instead. Some of the neighbours were led to believe that the entire fence was to be replaced, however that was not the case. A learning from this project was that clear communication is key to maintaining good relationships and managing expectations. Repairs to the existing fence were made possible thanks to the contribution from ward budget. Ward grants have been great enablers to make the above projects possible.

Sadie and Cherinne from Poppy’s Preschool spoke about Thursday sessions at the Poppleton Road Memorial Hall. Ward funding enabled the project to expand, and covered venue rent, resources and refreshments. The Preschool caters for 18 families and there is no set fee for participation. Voluntary donations are welcome, however no fee approach aims to not prevent families on low income from participation. Sessions are every Thursday between 10am and 11:30 at The Poppleton Road Memorial Hall.

Cllr Kent thank all the speakers and briefly spoke about other projects funded by the ward over the last year, namely:  pilot activity morning for parents, carers and their children at St Paul’s Church; Citizens Advice York monthly outreach advice service at Lindsay Avenue housing office; activities for young people at the Poppleton Road Memorial Hall during May, summer and October 2025 school holidays; installation of a set of swings and a basket swing at the Sowerby Road play area; consumables for community defibrillators; contribution towards workshops and activity sessions for young people at Acomb Explore during October 2025, February and May 2026 school holidays; community bulb planting in October 2025; Friends of West Bank Park – locking of the park; and currently taking place art based workshops with pupils from primary schools in the ward which will result in graffiti artwork installations on utility boxes.