Aldeburgh Yacht club secures £50,000 National Lottery funding

by Michael Haigh 1 May 2014 19:59 BST 1 May 2014

Aldeburgh Yacht Club, a thriving sailing club in Suffolk with 1,700 members, has secured £50,000 of lottery funding from Sport England's Inspired Facilities fund

AYC will use the money, along with £35,000 of partnership funding from members, to modernise its changing facilities and to renew its junior clubroom/workshop

Sport England has announced that local sports projects across the country totalling £17m have received National Lottery funding in the latest awards under its Inspired Facilities programme, part of its 2012 legacy programme.

As a result of the award AYC will be able to ensure it has top class premises and facilities to support its extensive sail training and racing programmes which run from April to October annually with a particular emphasis on July and August. These programmes saw more than 1,650 'learn to sail' and 'learn to race' training participant sessions in 2013 whilst club members and their guests are estimated to have undertaken more than 15,000 cruising and racing sessions on the River Alde. Building works are expected to begin this Autumn and the Club intends that the new facilities will be ready for the 2015 season.

Club Commodore, Keith Martin commented:

"We are delighted to have secured this award, which means we can upgrade the quality of our premises to match the quality of the sailing tuition and racing we offer as an RYA registered training establishment and one of UK sailing's Champion Clubs. As many Aldeburgh residents and visitors will know the Club is a hive of activity during the summer school holidays in particular with upwards of 100 children regularly out on the water in our racing and sail coaching sessions. The Club is also a centre of sailing activity at weekends, bank holidays and on Wednesday evenings in the sailing season.

New members are always welcome. The Club owns a fleet of dinghies which are available to members meaning that it is not necessary to own a boat or to have prior sailing experience in order enjoy the beautiful, tranquil waters of the River Alde."

Therese Coffey (MP, Suffolk Coastal) added:

"It's great to see the good work the Club does with their youth training scheme - this award should help them develop the next generation of young sailors from Suffolk"

The Club will hold a formal opening ceremony and a try sailing day open to all in 2015 but anyone interested in learning more is invited to call David Keates, Club Secretary on 01728 452562 or to come down to the Clubhouse on Saturday mornings.

The Club has also received a £2,000 emergency award from Sport England's £5m Flood Relief Fund which is helping the club complete necessary repairs to its dinghy park following damage in last December's tidal surge.