Its Keeping Me Awake !!!
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Four of our members volunteer
to speak out ! with an interview with the BBC
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COUNCILLOR
DARREN MALTBY
SPEAKS OUT FOR OUR CLUB AND DISABILITY
At Full Council on Wednesday 12th Nov 2025, I spoke up in favour of supporting the Gedling Bowls Club, which the Council are looking to stop supporting when the new leisure centre is built.
This facility is currently at the Richard Herod Centre and the club handed in a petition to request that the Cabinet reconsider their decision. I was happy to support this motion a voted in favour of trying to save this much needed club.
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HOT PRESS
IAN SUMMERSCALES HITS RADIO NOTTINGHAM
THE FIGHT GOES ON
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COUNCILLOR MIKE ADAMS SAYS!
"SAVE GEDLING BOWLS CLUB"
Appeal to Gedling Labour at Gedling Borough Council to rethink their plan to close it.
You might think, why does this effect me? In all honesty I've never played bowls, but this isn't about just bowls.
This is about a council leadership prioritising itself instead of it's residents.
Let's be honest, residents feel if it's not in Arnold it's fades into insignificance in the eyes of this Labour led council. Here's your chance to prove them wrong!!!
We feel the same disastrous way of prioritising is coming to Calverton next. That's not right!
With over 300 members of all ages, ranging from teens to people in their 90s. I feel having looked at the location, alternative designs could enable it's continuing use as a bowls club.
Over the next week, I'll be writing to the leader of Gedling Borough council, meeting with the Chief executive of Gedling BC to request a new look at this proposal.
Let's show them how much Gedlings residents mean to all of us and sign the petition in the comments
All the best
Mike
Leader of the Gedling Conservative group at Gedling Borough Council.
Cllr for Trent Valley and Carlton East.
GEDLING BOUROUGH COUNCIL JUST DONT CARE SAY THE CONSERVATIVES!!
Hold Your Head in Shame…..Gedling Borough Councillor’s Labour Cabinet effectively evict Gedling & District Bowling Club after 40 years states Ian Summerscales!
In a media statement earlier today Ian writes,
Gedling Indoor Bowls Club unnecessarily evicted at the end of April 2026 and indoor bowls excluded from the redevelopment of the Richard Herrod Leisure Centre confirmed
A report presented at the Gedling Borough Council Cabinet Meeting yesterday, confirmed that no indoor bowls provision will be included in the new Carlton Active leisure centre.
The Council is committing to demolition of the Richard Herrod Leisure Centre, prematurely, before alternative indoor bowls facilities exist, or are funded, with no financial support being offered by the Council.
This is contrary to Councillor Wheeler’s statement in the Council Meeting on the 25 September 2025 that “we are not closing any facilities at this stage, to those in the press who are listening, we will not be closing facilities, we are consolidating our facilities, investing in the future. We will not be moving any of our facilities out of those current leisure assets until we have got new facilities in place.”
The leader of the Council, Councillor John Clarke, during yesterday’s meeting asked, that he and the Cabinet are briefed about alternative sites for indoor bowls. Why were they not briefed ahead of the meeting?
The Directors of Gedling Indoor Bowls Centre Limited wrote to Councillor Clarke over a month ago regarding Gedling Borough Council’s feasibility report and displacement of existing sports facilities, a letter which has neither been acknowledged or responded to.
It remains clear from the Council’s own feasibility report that any and all alternative sites would require unaffordable capital investment of at least £2m to £3m.
In a last ditch attempt to save indoor bowls, in a meeting with Mike Hill (Gedling Borough Council Chief Executive) earlier this week, Directors of Gedling Indoor Bowling Centre Limited asked him to use his influence to get Councillors to reconsider their decision, especially in view of the refusal of the Portfolio Holder for Lifestyles, Health & Wellbeing to meet with constituents who play indoor bowls, saying that he “did not consider a meeting necessary”.
During the meeting Mike Hill conceded that indoor bowls does not require a subsidy, and the subsidy can be attributed to the historical decision to build the Millenium Suite on the Richard Herrod site. Mike Hill further stated that “the rest of the building was not fit for the times – but not the Bowling Hall”
Following figures provided by Gedling Borough Council in respect of the costs of the running of the Richard Herrod Centre it is clear that Gedling Indoor Bowls Centre Limited cover all the costs incurred by the Council for the bowling hall, through their Lease payments.
When asked, the Assistant Director for Leisure & Wellbeing Lance Juby, confirmed the costs of the required essential maintenance to the swimming pool at the Carlton Forum Leisure Centre are in the region of £2m, which is being put forward as part of the justification to build a new swimming pool on the Richard Herrod site.
Ian Summerscales said “It seems inconceivable that approving spending of £1.6m on fees charged by consultants, (plus £500k already spent by the Council), when during the same meeting the difficult financial environment Gedling Borough Council faces in relation to its revenue budget for 2026/27 was discussed. Surely, this money would be better spent on the essential repairs to the swimming pool at the Carlton Forum, which according to Lance Juby could be rendered unusable at any time.”
Mr Summerscales added “the cost of this project is currently estimated at almost £30m, and will require borrowing many millions of pounds to be repaid by future users of the Carlton Active Centre and/or Council Tax payers over many years, by which time Gedling Borough Council will not exist following Local Government Reorganisation. I urge Gedling Borough Council to think again.”
In terms of the impact of this decision Mr Summerscales said “I know Mike Hill objects to the term ‘evicted’ but as a tenant of nearly 40 years, not to have your lease renewed by your landlord (Gedling Borough Council) feels like an eviction”, he went on to say “personally this is like the feelings of bereavement following the death of a close family member”.