Chair’s Message

What a wonderful summer of sport, which is now flowing into the early autumn. Who can forget the drama of the Women’s Soccer World Cup, Wimbledon, the BMW Golf … and now the Rugby World Cup, US Open Tennis, and the Ryder Cup. The mental and physical benefits of sport are significant, and we are lucky to have a club that facilitates so much. It is important to remember as we look forward, in a period of very meaningful change, that we remain an extremely attractive club to join, and the Board feels a responsibility to keep it that way.

Tulloch Clinic – change in provider to Pure Sports Medicine (PSM)

Late last year Inga Tulloch informed the Club that she wanted to sell her business to another medical services provider and PSM was her preferred selection from several candidates. She wanted to continue working part time for Members but let another provider assume responsibility for the business. PSM agreed to take on the business from Inga, allow her to work for them, plus take on all the medical and receptionist staff under TUPE conditions.

The Board approved that we allow a smooth transition with PSM having a licence to occupy the same premises on the condition that investment was made to upgrade the interior layout and décor and the same professional services are offered to Members.  The fees that PSM charge will be approved by the Club and will need to be competitive with other local physio and medical clinics. We also insisted that the beauty services provided also remain.

PSM will take over from Friday 6th September and please click here to learn more about their services.

Club Survey on the Masterplan Update

There is always a balance in communication within a Club with respect to how much and how soon the Board asks for input. We decided to communicate early and give Members an opportunity to express their views on possible future development projects. We expect to receive the results shortly and will review them at the Board strategy day on 21st September. We will then communicate the findings and any proposed changes to the Masterplan 2035 resulting from the feedback.

We have consulted with the planners on possibilities but still need to get planning approvals, and then work on final costings for all these projects. We cannot do the latter until we know the parameters of the former. We plan to hold an open session in October for Members to ask questions.

Key reflections underpinning the Masterplan and related Survey Questions

1) No planned increase in subscriptions relating to development (however in reality inflation remains high and our policy is currently RPI+1%)

2) Club is in good financial health and this is comparable with the investments made for Tennis (2018 to 2020, ITC, Airhalls One and Two, Padel) and Health Club upgrade (2017), both of which have been very well used and received … and we have effectively paid down the debt relating to those investments.

♦ Sport facilities

We are in good shape – and just as the Club did 70 to 80 years ago, I am sure it will evolve in the future. For example padel and pickleball didn’t exist 30 years ago, and are now growing quickly (and are popular with the membership)

◊ The Council will not approve any more padel tennis courts near to Fairacres

◊ Tennis Committee is now thinking about where it would make most sense to put a Padel and Pickle hub. There are several complex issues relating to location and court surfaces to be considered.

◊ There is no current intention to reduce the number of grass courts, however in line with the club’s history we will evolve our provision. Tennis has evolved significantly at the club, and I am sure will continue to do so.

◊ We are in discussions with the Council re location and size of the Indoor Golf Centre. They want us to future proof it, anticipating significant members usage, so we are working on that. It is intended the IGC will be open to all Members, but we will potentially need to transition the access as we assess usage. As a 5,000-member, multi-sports club, golf is a key sport that we need to invest in its learning and playing indoors and outdoors.

♦ Social facilities

We all agree we have room for improvement, especially with respect to the ambiance and appeal of our infrastructure.

◊ Real focus in near term is going to be around improving the bar, piano bar and bar terrace spaces. We want to make better use of the garden and course views, make it more welcoming and enable better use of the lovely gardens.

◊ We want to keep the toddler play area close to the creche, but there is a gap in our provision for older children. We need to provide more play areas for 8- to 15-year-olds.

♦ Beautiful environment

We are part of designated Metropolitan Open Land and are constantly working to be good custodians of the estate.

◊ We are actively evaluating the best way to reduce our energy, carbon and water footprints. The solar panel investment has been a significant success, and we want to build upon that with the electrification of the kitchen equipment removing gas.

◊ We recycle all our grass and garden clippings, are actively replanting indigenous  trees and shrubs , and have recently been awarded the prestigious GEO certification for our environmental work on the golf course.

 Sports on TV at the Club this weekend

The Men’s Rugby Union World Cup kicks off this weekend so please watch your favourite team in the comfort of our Bar with your friends – for more details and special offers click here.

Watch our own Joe Salisbury defend his US Open Men’s Doubles title in New York. He is, once more, the only Briton left in the championship reaching the semifinal.