New Hutton pickleball players getting on the ball thanks to lates Armistead Wind Farm Fund grant

People in a South Lakeland village have been picking up pickleball thanks to a four-figure grant from a renewable energy firm.

New Hutton Institute has used a £1,661 grant from the community fund linked to OnPath Energy’s nearby Armistead Wind Farm to pay for the equipment required to play what has become one of the UK’s fastest-growing sports.

Combining elements of tennis, badminton and table tennis, pickleball is played on a court around the size of a doubles badminton court and features a net that is slightly lower than a tennis net.

It is especially popular among older adults as it is less physically demanding than other racket sports, but can be played by people of all ages and skill levels.

Up to a dozen local people are now attending weekly Monday night pickleball sessions at New Hutton Institute, with the OnPath grant also paying for a new table tennis table and equipment that are available on the same evenings in the Institute’s smaller room.

And the Institute committee is hoping to see even more local residents coming along to try something new while also spending some quality time with their friends and neighbours.

The grant is the latest in a series that have been made to New Hutton Institute over the last decade, with a £5,000 grant given in 2019 paying for the installation of a new commercial standard kitchen and the rebuilding of areas of the Institute that had been seriously affected by damp.

A £3,000 grant also supported the installation of an improved electricity supply which better met the building’s power needs in 2017.

We’re all still learning the game, but it’s proving to be an enjoyable way for local people to get active and spend time together.”

New Hutton Institute provides a home for a wide range of community activities, from flower group meetings, dancing classes and the local bowls club through to parish council meetings, church functions and coffee mornings, while it is also used by pupils from Old Hutton Primary School.

David Knowles, vice chair at New Hutton Institute, says: “We wanted to find new ways to get even more people using the hall and had had a popular badminton club a few years ago, but with the room not really being high enough to start that again, we thought pickleball might be a good alternative.

“We ran a taster session for anyone who wanted to try it out and got a such a good response that introducing it into the Institute’s weekly activities rota seemed to be the obvious thing to do.

“We’re all still learning the subtleties and intricacies of the game, but whatever standard you play to, it’s proving to be an enjoyable way for local people to get active and spend time together.

“We couldn’t have afforded to buy this new equipment without our latest grant from the Armistead Wind Farm Fund and we’re really grateful for the continuing support that OnPath Energy has provided to the Institute and its users.”

More than £166,000 has so far been generated by the Armistead Wind Farm for its community fund.

Lynsey Stephenson, communication manager at OnPath Energy (formerly Banks Renewables), adds: “The Armistead Wind Farm Fund was designed to build long-term community value in surrounding communities and it’s great to see how New Hutton Institute has helped us do just that.

“The Institute is already used by hundreds of local people from across a wide area every week and we hope even more of them will think about giving this fun new sport a try.”

Environmental and community projects in the vicinity of the Armistead Wind Farm which are interested in applying to itsCommunity Fund should first contact the fund manager via apply@onpathcommunityfund.co.uk or on 0191 378 6342 to confirm that their group or project is eligible.