Bridgwater sports upgraded with SCF loan funding

Emma Kemmish, marketing coordinator at Bridgwater and Albion Rugby Football Club, explains how blended social investment funding (part loan, part grant) from our Somerset Social Enterprise Fund helped heat up their community activities.

“We’re very community-minded from every point of view. It’s not just sport – but rugby is the golden thread that runs through everything we do. We describe ourselves as a community hub for families to host gatherings, for local wellbeing groups and businesses.

The British Cellophane Retirement Club

I’ve been here 11 years and I’m very passionate about the club. I’ve worked on everything, from admin to washing up teacups and serving behind the bar. Our more commercial events, like when people hire the club for birthday parties, help fund our community work. All the profit we make goes back into our club.

The building’s over 30 years old. And we got to a point where the heating would fail regularly during events. On a cold day it would get absolutely Baltic in here. You have one chance to impress people – and if the heating doesn’t work, you’re on the back foot. It didn’t look professional and wasn’t commercially sustainable.

The funding from Somerset Community Foundation helped us replace the boiler. It’s such a joy now that it works. It’s a simple thing that makes all the difference – and it really does make a difference to everything we do. We flick the switch and it works, I can’t tell you the joy and relief that brings!

I feel the harder I work and the more successful the club is, the more we can give back. Being commercially sustainable means we can welcome more groups. For instance, we’ve got the men’s club, ‘Talk Club’ – a safe place for men to chat about their mental health difficulties with no judgement. We also have the British Cellophane retirees’ group, who meet here too. It’s fantastic being able to support so many people in our community.

It all comes back to the rugby, which is why we’re here. Sport can do so much for people. We’ve had young lads playing rugby to learn discipline, respect and team values. They’ve used it to turn their lives around, which has been brilliant. We’ve also created a new women’s rugby team. The team is so inclusive and there’s lots of camaraderie. We also have a walking rugby team for the young at heart and those keen to get on the pitch.

Rugby is great for everyone’s physical and mental fitness. Playing or watching the sport just gets people involved, it provides them with a place in the community.”

22.02.2024