A golf club in Caerphilly that was bought out and turned into a social enterprise is thriving with nearly 1,000 new visitors in just 20 weeks.
Community golf club Ridgeway Golf 4 All Ltd, on Caerphilly Mountain, was established as a community business with support from The Coalfields Regeneration Trust Wales (CRT Wales).
Ridgeway Golf 4 All aims to make golf accessible to the whole community by providing recreational and educational golfing activities for young people and adults who are socially excluded, including marginalised groups such as Deaf Golf Wales and Growing Spaces, a mental health charity.
The club has seen a surge in numbers since the opening of a new marquee, also funded by CRT Wales. The new facility has allowed the club to offer affordable events, including weddings, corporate events and birthday parties, to generate revenue that can be re-invested into the golf club and its members. Over the Christmas period marquee events also provided four new jobs for young people from the local community.
Bill Fitzgerald, Operations Director at Ridgeway Golf 4 All Ltd, said: “We’ve seen a huge increase in the number of people visiting the golf club, which is great for us as a social enterprise.”