Sport England - Movement Fund has provided £6,568 of match funding
Bridgnorth Rowing Boats Appeal 2025
Bridgnorth, Shropshire, United Kingdom
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Aim: We desperately need to buy a new single seat training boat for our novice rowers and replace 2 of our old single seat boats.
Who are we?
Bridgnorth Rowing Club provides access to the Olympic sport of rowing on the River Severn, opposite the town park in Bridgnorth, Shropshire. We've over 50 members ranging from ages of 16 to over 80!!
The club has been in existence since 1868, making it the oldest sporting club in the town.
Our members regularly represent our Bridgnorth, racing in regattas throughout the year and we hold our own Regatta every summer during which clubs from all over the country travel to Bridgnorth to take part in upto 200 races during the course of the day.
We also hold "Learn-2-Row" courses in the spring and summer providing an introduction to the sport, from which many become members join and contribute to the club and the sport as a whole.
As well as continuing their rowing with us, one member in particular who began with us less than 3 years ago, has now become a regional rowing umpire, giving back even more to the sport at a regional level.
As we row on a river that often becomes too high and unsuitable during the winter, we need to ensure that all our members are able to row as much as they can during the summer months which is the perfect time to learn to row in a single seat "sculling" boat.
2 years ago, we invested in a training boat to assist in this approach. which has become tremendously popular. It is fitted with additional floatation devices to help our novices get used to the rowing on their own.
This boat has become a workhorse of our fleet and was also pivotal in supporting one of our older members back onto the water while recovering from a stroke.
Novices rowers eventually progress from using this training boat and transition into a "fine boat" which they can then hone their skills and row independently in.
Why are we crowdfunding?
Like all clubs, we're feeling the pinch financially when it comes to maintaining our facilities. We rely solely on our membership fees and income from our regatta to support the club throughout the year.
The cost of making boat purchases outright are currently prohibitive, but we NEED to invest in equipment for our members so they can continue their rowing journey with us.
Many of our "fine" boats are over 25yrs old and are becoming beyond repair. We need to ensure that our rowers have boats that can meet their needs as they progress on their rowing journey and continue to be members of our club.
How we’ll spend the money raised
Your contributions and the contribution kindly pledged by Sport England will help us buy another training boat and replacements for 2 of our fine boats that our members can then progress into.
If we can raise half of the intitial amount (£6568) from at least 25 unique supporters, Sport England have pledged to contribute an additional £6568 to take us past our target.
Community Impact
At it's heart, Bridgnorth Rowing Club is a Community Amateur Sports Club with a strong alignment to grass roots values, providing not just access to rowing but also a sense of community and belonging for our members.
Your support not just leads to boats on our stretch on the river Severn, it will help contribute to the continuation of the club which in addition to providing access to rowing for the local area, is also social and health hub for it's members.
As well as regularly rowing, members also take part in land-based fitness sessions during the winter months and hold regular social events for members and their families.
How You Can Play Your Part
There are four simple ways to help us reach our target, and make this project a reality.
1. Make a pledge. Don’t delay if you’re going to support us because momentum is key to our success!
2. Spread the word. Share our project on your social media pages and tell the world to get behind us! The more people we reach, the more support we will get.
3. Offer rewards. Get involved if you are a local business by donating things we can offer to our supporters. We will give you a shout out!
4. Fundraise for us. If you want to run your own fundraiser – maybe a sponsored activity or similar – use the 'contact project' button at the top of our page to let us know. Setting up your own page only takes a few minutes and you won’t need any bank details. Just a fun idea!
Funding method
Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made by 10th August 2025 at 4:48pm