New home for sports club with 300 on waiting list

Four of the club's trampolinists compete at the highest national level

A sports club which has more than 300 children on its waiting list has moved into new premises.

Wansbeck Gymnastics and Trampolining Club has been operating out of Ashington Leisure Centre in Northumberland for nearly 30 years, but has now begun offering classes at an adapted industrial unit in Ashwood Business Park.

The club has four trampolinists competing at the highest national level and 100 youngsters in its competitive squad.

Head coach Liz Naylor said: "These kids have so much talent and I just want them to put Ashington on the map in their sport."

The club's new base is much larger and has a viewing platform where parents can watch the classes.

In November a sprung floor will be laid which is needed for gymnasts to perform floor routines.

The building has a mezzanine area from where parents can watch classes

Ms Naylor said: "When I took it on 11 years ago, the club was on the verge of closing. Now we can't keep up with demand.

"We'd just outgrown Ashington Leisure Centre, where we had to set up and put away all the equipment for each session.

"We've got some top level gymnasts but I had to take them to Newcastle so they could use some of the facilities there."

The new premises on the Ashwood Business Park means the 300 children on the waiting list can join the club

Carl Donaldson, whose 13-year-old daughter trains for at least 12 hours each week, said: "Lots of teenage girls stop doing sport, so I'm so glad they have this fantastic new facility.

"It saves us having to travel to Newcastle and will mean the club can coach even more children."

Ms Naylor says moving to new premises has been a "huge community effort".

"Lots of companies have helped us for free, or given us a discount and we raised over £30,000 for the sprung floor alone," she said.

"But this is an area where many families don't have the money to travel to Newcastle and the children deserve to have the very best on their doorstep."

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