Last week I read on one of the social platforms that several councils are closing their bowling greens because the cost of maintenance is far greater than the income received from the clubs who hire them.
With upkeep costs exceeding £15,000 and considering councils’ budgets have been slashed, plus parks services not being a statuary service, parks departments have no choice other than to close these facilities.
My own local authority in recent years has devolved itself of the management and maintenance of their greens, passing the responsibility on to the clubs themselves.
I actually wrote a blog on how I saw the state of bowling greens, back in 2020.
I do, however, understand their predicament, particularly knowing that most council sports facilities are often heavily subsidised and have been for years. With the world changing and council budgets in major decline many councils are offloading public assets to save money and resources.
For many years the state of bowling club memberships has generally been in decline, with many clubs struggling to keep afloat, relying heavily on volunteers to maintain their greens and keep costs to the minimum.
This can be coupled with the fact that many clubs now have fewer than 80 members, who perhaps only pay a token annual membership fee that rarely covers the cost of running the club. Over time this will have led to the closure of many fine clubs.
This demise of the sport of bowls has been going on for a number of years, I personally blame Bowls England and crown green bowling governing bodies, who for many years have done very little in promoting the sport and encouraging the younger generation to participate in this skilful activity.
However I did find an article published last year in The Times saying that Bowls England was seeking to find a new generation of players to revitalise the game. For me though, it’s too little too late. The demise of the sport has been ongoing for the past twenty years.
I believe we need to stimulate the game by showcasing it in schools and encouraging clubs to invite pupils to come and use these local facilities on a regular basis. The sport’s governing bodies need to promote some new competitions and league structures to entice these youngsters to compete in the game.
Surely a large major manufacturer or business could be encouraged to sponsor this new opportunity to stimulate the sport and get a new generation of players participating?
Also, the existing members should be willing to pay more for their sport and the provision of the green’s maintenance. In today’s money, the real cost of maintaining a green with appropriate end of season renovations is more likely to be in the region of £20,000. Therefore, a club with a membership of 100 people would equate to them paying a £200 per year membership fee - about £4 per week.
Let’s hope we can see a change in attitude from the governing bodies, meaning we start to see this great sport become a popular community asset once again.
Council cuts
Whist on this theme, the provision of other council run sports facilities are also in decline - again mainly due to budgets eroded away and slashed to the bone.
Council run cricket facilities have all but gone – whilst football and rugby pitches are not so well maintained. The income councils generate from running these facilities is poor. But my biggest concern is that many councils do not have the appropriate resources and skilled operators to carry out the essential maintenance work required to produce decent playing surfaces. In the main, you are lucky if the pitches even get cut and marked out.
The current state of many council run sports pitches is dreadful – which is such a shame. I have witnessed the issues council have faced in the last twenty years, which is largely due to budget cuts and the massive change in how departments are now run.
It has seriously affected the provision of natural turf facilities up and down the country.
