Wimbledon Racquets and Fitness Club, Cranbrook Road, London, SW19 4HD  
Club Noticeboard: Thursday, July 29, 2010

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All Members - Join out theatre trip to see The Jersey Boys on Friday 26th November.
Tickets prices are reduced from £65 to £45 per person and this price includes a
coach to and from the club (the bar will be open on our return for a nightcap!)
Please see notices in the club for full details - please book and pay at reception.
Guests are welcome.
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All Members - the on line court booking facility is now available - this can be
accessed through the link on the homepage of the club's website. You will need to
have a minimum club credit balance of £10 to make court bookings. Club credit
can be purchased in denominations of £50 at reception or over the phone.
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Badminton Members - New to WRFC - a fun team tournament with both level and
mixed doubles matches. Get together a team of 2 ladies and 2 men (can be of
different grades) and enter at reception (no form needed). The cost is £30
per team and the closing date for entries is Friday 3rd September at 8pm. The
tournament will run from 10am - 3pm on Sunday 5th September (the day before
the winter season starts).
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Squash Members - The popular Summer Teams League will start up again on Friday
23rd July and run for 7 weeks. If you are interested in playing or would like more
details, please email Phil Rushworth at phillip@wimbledonclub.co.uk
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Squash Junior Members - The Friday evening junior session is taking a break for the
summer from Friday 16th July until further notice.
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Badminton Members - The Old Hall will be having a new floor laid in July - this work
will mean that all 4 courts will be out of action from Monday 12th July -
Friday 30th July. All sessions will be held in the New Hall during this period but
extra courts have been booked on Saturday 17th, 24th & 31st July for the B/B+ and
A sessions as both usually have sessions on Tuesday evenings. Please refer to notices
by both peg boards and in the reception lobby.

All general sessions (Thursday morning, Friday afternoon and Sunday Beginners
& Improvers) will take place as normal but as the number of courts will be restricted,
please arrive early to avoid disappointment.
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Junior Badminton Members - There will be some changes to your Saturday sessions
due to the work being carried out in the Old Hall in July (see note above)-please
see notices around the club nearer the time and check with Khalid Akbar if you
are unsure which sessions you should be attending.
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Junior Squash Members - The Saturday morning junior squash session has restarted for
the winter. For 7-12 year olds it runs from 10-11am. Speak to Phil Rushworth phillip@wimbledonclub.co.uk
for more details.
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All Members - Dance Express is now running junior dance courses here on Saturday
afternoons - for details contact Vicky Tivers on 07904 217877 or go to her website
www.dance-express@live.co.uk- on offer is Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Freestyle/Street & lots more.
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All Members - The Chairman,Manager and our solicitors have been working for over a year to
establish the exact nature of the club's freehold. This has been unclear for some decades
but has now been confirmed.
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UPDATE TO MEMBERS ON THE BOARD’S CONSIDERATION FOR GYM EXPANSION

1. As mentioned in the update of November 2009, the club needs some £350,000 over the next few years just to maintain the fabric. The list of expenditure is detailed here
http://www.wimbledonclub.co.uk/EventDetails.asp?EventTitle=Club Repairs and Capt. Exp

2. The club commissioned a quantity surveyor to review the new gym estimates for each of plans A (conversion of squash courts 5 and 6) and plan B (new build on front car park). The estimates he provided were higher than those of the original quotations from the specialist contractor at £542,000 for plan A and £855,000 for plan B (both including VAT). In addition to either of these sums, there would need to be an investment of £150,000 in gym equipment.

3. An application was made in December, to one of the Sport England funds that was available at the time, for funding towards plan B (circa £800,000). The announcement of applications that have been accepted for further consideration by Sport England is due in March.

4. If the funding application is not successful bank borrowing will be necessary, whichever alternative is pursued. During preliminary discussions with our bank in July last year, a possible loan of £500,000 was discussed which the bank indicated a willingness to provide, commenting that “our (the bank’s) main focus will be ensuring that serviceability of the new loan repayments can be easily achieved”. As, in the meantime, not only have the sums required substantially increased, but banking conditions have also deteriorated, so a fresh application for a loan will need to be made.

5. Before the Board can approach the bank, it will be necessary for the projections of income and expenditure for the next 10 years to be reviewed and, if necessary, amended. That work will take place shortly and it is entirely possible that the projections will not support borrowing at either of the levels anticipated.

6. The newly constituted squash committee has indicated its support for the gym expansion, but believes this should be achieved by extending in to the front car park. The Board and management welcome the new enhanced air of enthusiasm and activity from the committee and are in regular dialogue about how to increase the level of squash activity within the club.

7. Whilst comments from members have been received on these plans verbally and by e-mail, we believe it is now appropriate to hold an open meeting so that all members who wish to attend can come and give their input to the considerations. In view of the substantial amount of work required before the Board can make a recommendation to members (if at all), it seems appropriate to call that meeting in the near future.

8. Consequently, we would like to invite all members to an open meeting to discuss the gym expansion plans at 7pm on Saturday March 20th. As the club will aim to provide light refreshments, would members who plan to attend kindly e-mail the club manager [club.manager@wimbledonclub.co.uk] so that provision can be made for all those who attend.

Kenneth Cobley
Chairman (on behalf of the Board)
15 February 2010.
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Feedback on this page? send to lynne@wimbledonclub.co.uk

Last updated: 13th July 2010

 


Wimbledon Racquets & Fitness Club - Play badminton & squash on great courts at all levels including international, competitive league standard or indeed just for fun. Our facilities and gym also make the club the premier gym and fitness club in Wimbledon serving the Central London, South, South East, South West of London, Surrey & Kent

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