Sports clubs in Ludlow are working with Ludlow Police on plans for a new purpose-built contact sport centre in the town.
Police officers, along with Ludlow Judo Club and Ludlow Amateur Boxing Club will apply for a major lottery grant to fund a centre with gym and changing facilities for boxing, Judo and other martial arts.
The scheme is the latest sporting venture to be put forward by Ludlow’s local policing team and coincides with National Neighbourhood Policing Awareness Fortnight, which runs from March 17.
Ludlow beat officer, PC Tony Sewell said: “It all started a few years back with the South Shropshire Youth Forum Fitness and Football Project, thanks largely to a grant for £1,300 from the Community Foundation for Shropshire and Telford.
“Initially, this project was set up to provide disaffected youths with a positive way of spending their time which they would enjoy. Soccer provided that outlet and it has been a huge success.”
The police believe sport has proved a new and positive way of tackling crime and disorder involving a minority of young troublemakers in the town and have since helped set up cricket, skateboard and boxing projects.
PC Sewell added: “The police in Ludlow are proud of our achievements in bringing all these projects to the town.
“We call it ‘diversion through sport’ and by supporting and providing facilities for youngsters, there has been a marked reduction in vandalism and disorder involving young people.”
Duncan Morris of Ludlow Boxing Club said: “This is about thinking about the future for the youth of south Shropshire. My son Craig does boxing, but a centre like this would be for him and for his children.
“It’s not just about the boxing club either. It would be for any contact sport.
“Where we are now in the Wheeler Road Guide Hut is great, it’s good to have our own place. But it would be good to have something purpose-built and a bit bigger.”
Colin Dodd of Ludlow Judo Club said: “We need a bigger premises in order to develop and to help us break up the age bands so we can get kids doing judo right the way through.
“If we can get our own building then we will have more time and more space and can run classes at weekends. At the leisure centre we’re restricted by the time we can have. Not having our own building is holding us back at the moment.”
The contact sport centre proposal is still in its early days and the exact location is still to be decided. The project will be a major undertaking costing hundreds of thousands of pounds.
Initial meetings with interested parties in South Shropshire have already taken place, and PC Sewell is confident the venture will become a reality if the application for funding is successful.
