Please help our sports club survive the devastating financial impact of COVID-19.
by Joe Mckenzie in South Shields, England, United Kingdom
If we were fortunate enough to raise more than the targeted funds, we would utilise that money to further improve the club's facilities and buy essential equipment to focus on the upkeep and maintenance of the grounds. These improvements would provide more opportunities for our local community to participate in our sport and become part of our rugby family.
Help South Shields Westoe RFC recover from the financial impact of COVID-19.
Your help will allow us to survive the COVID-19 financial impact, revive our club facilities with much needed improvements and purchase basic equipment whilst planning a future that allows us to thrive in our community.
We are a rugby team from South Shields based in the centre of our community. We formed in 1875 by a young man from South Shields called Charlie Green and a bunch of his friends. They accepted a challenge to play Tynemouth, a prominent local rugby club at that time and won the game.
To celebrate our 140th anniversary as a Rugby Union Club, the decision was made to amend the club’s name. We did not want to lose our heritage as Westoe RFC, but we wanted to celebrate the town and community we all lived in. So from the season 2015-16, we went on to be known as 'South Shields Westoe RFC', but still known to our supporters and friends as Westoe.
We as a club are passionate about providing opportunities and we want everyone regardless of their age, background, or level of ability, to feel able to take part in sport and physical activity.
Almost a year ago COVID-19 brought the 2019-20 season to an early end. We were unable to complete our games and had to stop training. This brought the club’s community, leisure and hospitality activities to an immediate stop. The usual revenue streams from match days, facility hire and club functions, which we rely so severely on, was put on hold and we found ourselves in an extremely worrying position.
In total, we have lost in the region of £100,000 revenue since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, due to national lockdowns and the local restrictions which have been in place. This has had a massive impact on the club with regards to maintenance and repair.
The work we had planned to carry out on the club changing room area last year has had to be cancelled. The loss in revenue means repairs can’t be done and the winter weather has caused more damage, leading to further costs.
Currently, only 40% of the floodlighting system is working correctly, which makes training in the winter months extremely difficult. A maintenance plan was drafted to carry out the necessary repairs, which would benefit all members for training and playing, but unfortunately, because of our financial losses, we did not make the funds needed to carry this out.
Some of the funds raised will be used to support the purchase of basic training equipment for all teams and age groups to benefit from.
These improvements would provide more opportunities for our local community to participate in our sport and become part of our rugby family.
At South Shields Westoe RFC you’ll find 15 teams playing rugby, ranging from players as young as 4 years old up to some in their 50s! As a club, we are fortunate enough to see our mini and junior players grow and develop over the years with many of them playing long enough to play senior rugby.
Our club has such a rich history and has nurtured the likes of David Wilson and Katy Daley-McLean MBE, who have both went on to represent England. We have a strong Junior and Mini section, a promising Colts set up and competitive Senior teams.
We are one big family at Westoe and once you are part of it, you don’t want to leave. If someone’s playing career comes to an end, you’ll often see them in and around the club to watch the matches on a Saturday or even in the bar watching rugby games on the television.
We have a vast number of volunteers who are invaluable to our club, without these the running of the club would be impossible.
They take on various tasks from coaching and organising the mini and junior teams, volunteering in the kitchen on match days and assisting with necessary administrative tasks to keep the club running. We work closely as a team and share facilities with other community sports organisations, not just rugby.
Bonfire night – We run an annual Bonfire night which attracts up to 1000 people. The community gets the chance to appreciate a fantastic firework display, enjoy a range of fairground rides and activities and share some delicious street food and have a drink.
Our Bonfire night has been popular from the first year we ran it, 7 years ago and has grown year on year.
Poppy day – South Shields Westoe RFC always does something for Remembrance Sunday, whether it be minutes of silence before a match or fund raising activities. In 2018 we were fortunate enough to host the 205 Battery of the South Shields Royal Artillery and their volunteers to carried out a demonstration, which was open for people from the community to attend. It was a great experience for everyone and we are proud to have been apart of it.
Music events – Our music events are well attended and provide a welcome place for the community to relax and enjoy the atmosphere. We were fortunate enough to turn our outdoor areas into a COVID safe concert area to provide a safe opportunity for our community to enjoy local music events.
South Shields Westoe RFC always tries to provide for the community in some way and we try to always give back. However, we find ourselves in an unusual situation where we need our communities support. We need everyone to pull together and support their local rugby club, so we are able to survive, revive and thrive.
We are therefore asking our local community, club members, players (past and present), supporters, residents, and businesses to all pull together and collectively help us through our most difficult time. With your help, we can continue to provide members of our community with the opportunity to engage in regular and meaningful activities.
Any donations received will be hugely appreciated and will be used to undertake the works highlighted above, so please donate if you can and 'pass it on' to a friend or colleague to help spread the word.
USE OUR REWARD SCHEME - Club supporters are kindly providing rewards for donations and pledges, please keep a close eye on the rewards available as we are adding more rewards as often as we can.
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