CAWOOD Bowls Club's new clubhouse looks set to open in time for the new season starting at the end of April.

A total of 625 hours of unpaid work by 12 volunteers, plus grants amounting to £4,600, helped build the clubhouse, which has now been completed.

Landscaping work to improve the surrounding area is on-going and, although a shortage of funds and the bowling season itself will delay this, the club are determined to finish the task.

Building work started back in November after grants of £1,000 were received from both Selby District Council and Coalfields Regeneration Trust, with a further £100 coming from RJB Mining. Club members also raised a massive £2,500 in sponsorship and donations.

The project saw the ageing Portakabin clubhouse replaced by a sectional timber building, which itself was donated by John Scutt from Swallow Hall Golf Club at Wheldrake, where it was no longer needed.

Project manager Gordon Pool said: "We feel completing the building was no mean achievement given all the work involved in a project of this kind at a time in the year when the weather is not good."

He said they were grateful to all the organisations and individuals who had made the project possible with donations of materials as well as cash.

"We have agreed to promote the use of the new clubhouse in bowls out-of-season times, and any organisation with a proposed use should contact the club secretary," he added.

"We are a friendly club and always need new members either to bowl socially or in the three leagues we enter.

"We now have facilities which are as good as any club's of our size and better than most, and we hope more players join us."

Any person or organisation wanting to use the new clubhouse or become members should contact club secretary Joan Pool on 01757-268238.

Updated: 11:29 Saturday, March 24, 2001