Wine tasting, tennis, brass bands, and billiards: The 132-year-old Lancashire club bringing locals together over shared passions

A place for people to bond over a shared interest in a range of sports and hobbies, the club facilities allow members to partake in everything from tennis, badminton, table tennis, and crown green bowls to bridge, bridge, pétanque, and snooker.

Over the past six months, however, the organisation’s tennis club has been particularly busy improving their facilities, with members and county players Dorothy Bamber and Annabel Benson having recently officially opened two newly-surfaced artificial clay courts alongside head coach Wayne Scott.

The culmination of months of hard work, the two new courts were opening in addition to the pre-existing five all-weather hard surface courts, giving members access to state-of-the-art facilities with Lawn Tennis Association-approved LED floodlights unavailable anywhere else in the area.

“We’ve carefully considered the pros and cons of different court surfaces and spoken at length to members and club professionals at other clubs with this newer surface, and their feedback is overwhelmingly positive,” says tennis secretary Julie Drinkall. “This new surface provides similar characteristics of natural clay whilst being easy to maintain: a win-win!”

Wayne Scott, head tennis coach, agrees, saying: “Tennis is great exercise, it improves balance and strength and is fun to play. The benefit of an artificial clay surface is the soft and comfortable feeling it gives players underfoot, reducing impact on joints and preventing injuries during training and game play.

“As an inclusive tennis venue, we cater for everyone,” he adds. “Children, adults, wheelchair players, and all abilities are welcome including beginners and experienced players.”

During the summer, the club has a total of 10 teams who compete in local Fylde and Ribble Leagues, while players also participate in various knockout tournaments during the season. As well as the adults’ section, the club also has a thriving junior programme with two under-16s teams, an under-14s team, and an under-12s team, all of which play in local leagues as well as participating in the National Junior Club League.

Tennis aside, membership at Broughton and District Club is open to anyone and everyone, with the club boasting newly-refurbished lounges and a bar in the main clubhouse, providing members with a comfortable environment in which to gather. They also run a thriving entertainment section which encourages contributions from members of all their respective clubs with the aim of running a wide range of events at the club throughout the year.

Their calendar features everything from horse race nights, wine tasting, and singers to themed evenings, brass bands, and fashion shows. They also hold monthly quizzes each Saturday followed by bingo and a club draw, which gives members a chance to win cash prizes whilst raising funds for the club.

Whether it’s aces during a doubles match, friendly card games, or potting the black, Broughton and District Club has something to pique your interest. We may be 132 years on from its founding, but the club’s mantra has stayed the same.