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Dover Gymnastics Club has been operating in a nationally registered deprived area since 1976 where the club opened its doors for the first time at Dover Sports Centre with just two coaches, Ron Hambrook and Malcolm Perkins.
The Club operated from Dover Sports Centre for the next seven years and built up a membership of around 50 gymnasts.
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In September 1983 the Club had the opportunity to move premises to a Salvation Army building in The High Street of Dover, which meant being centrally located in the town and for the first time the space to be able to leave all the equipment set up on a permanent basis, which not many clubs in Kent were able to do at that time.
The relocation of the club and the help of two more coaches allowed for an increase in the number of classes for a wider range of age groups to take place. The next few years saw the development of Women's Artistic Gymnastics to a competitive level and ever increasing numbers to the several Recreational classes that were held each week.
The Club operated from its High Street premises for 20 years and built up a membership base of around 150-200 members helped by the introduction of many new classes over the years, including the introduction for the first time of mixed Recreational Classes, Pre-school Classes and also a competitive Girls Floor & Vault Squad.
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In 2002, the Club was notified that the owner of our building intended to sell it, which started the search for new premises in the Dover area that the club could afford.
Although this was a worrying time for the Club and many different options were explored, we also decided to use the move to new premises as a positive step forwards for the Club by introducing a new and even more varied Timetable of Classes to run 6 days a week, that enabled boys & Girls of all ages to be able to take part and also included training sessions for Adults.
In October 2003 the club moved into a leased industrial unit located at Holmestone Road in Dover.
We were then able to run an extensive programme of classes ranging from structured Parent & Toddler classes catering for children as young as 18 months old right through to classes for adults, catering for all levels of ability.
In 2008 we were awarded the prestigious GymMark and Club Mark accreditation which means we are recognised by British Gymnastics and Sport England as having a robust set of policies and practices in place to ensure all of our members enjoy their gymnastics in a safe, child-friendly environment. We are committed to the principles of child protection, health & safety and equality.
We were at Holmestone Road for just over five years and on 1st February 2009 moved into our exciting new building at Unit 2, Poulton Close, Dover. This means more space, better office, kitchen, viewing & changing room facilities and a bright new prospect to help the grow as we look forward to the next 10 years.
The Club's Coaching Team currently comprises of 14 Qualified Coaches at various levels, 3 Trainee Coaches and a number of Qualified Floor & Vault Judges, all fully committed to delivering a high standard of coaching to all of our 300+ members.
With the help of several major grants over the last few years, it has also been possible to replace much of the equipment in the gym itself, providing a Safe and Child Friendly environment for all of our members.
Page updated: 4 February 2009