Dragons Trampoline Club, Norfolk's only recreational and competitive trampoline Club are in desperate need of a new home. Dragon Trampoline Club is non profit making and all the coaches do so on a volunteer basis.
Our club is based in Easton, Norwich, and was set up over 20 years ago by our Head Coach Rachel Parker, Our members train both recreationally and competitively, with about 30% competing at both Regional and National level. We also run specific disability and adult only classes, which have been proving increasingly popular and has been a great opportunity for all ages and abilities to get involved with the sport!
We moved into a designated centre with a local gymnastics club 4 years ago, which we believed would be a permanent home, and allowed us to keep our equipment up full time, purchase new equipment, and allowed us to install a rig - a vital coaching tool for teaching and progressing higher level skills. Unfortunately, they served us notice a couple of months ago in order to expand their own club, and if we do not find a new home by September, we are at risk of having to shut down
Short term, we are lucky enough to be able to move into a local sports hall, however this means we will have to pack away and set up our equipment every session, which is sadly going to reduce training hours for our gymnasts, and is not feasible long term. We also won’t have exclusive use of a rig, which is playing a monumental part in developing our performers skills at the minute.
We are therefore looking to find our own designated centre as a long-term home– whether that be through buying or renting a property/warehouse, or finding a plot of land to build on. Due to the nature of the sport, we need somewhere at least 21m x 10m, with a minimum height of 8m (some of our highest level trampolinists can bounce up to 6m tall!) Despite our best efforts, finding somewhere with these specific requirements is proving quite difficult, so we are really hoping that someone will see our story and be able to help – or know someone who can!
We are an extremely close club who think of ourselves as a family unit, so the news has been extremely devastating for all. It has also come at a time where 4 of our students are preparing to compete at National Finals– our biggest event of the year. They have been working extremely hard for this and have obtained some incredible results in qualifying rounds, so we hope we can keep giving them the opportunities they need to achieve their very best at the end of the year. We’d also love to develop and expand the club by running additional sessions, but are currently having to put these plans, and our 3-year waiting list, on hold because of the uncertainty of our situation.
If there’s anything anyone can do to help Dragons find a new home, so that we can continue running our amazing club and representing Norfolk, we’d be so grateful! To find out more about Dragons Trampoline Club please visit www.dragonstrampolineclub.co.uk and if you can help please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
The Maids Head Hotel in Tombland, Norwich, one of the oldest hotels in the UK, will emerge from lockdown on Saturday, July 4. It is believed that this is the first time that the hotel has been closed since it started trading as the Murtel Fish Inn during the 13th century.
Christine Malcolm, General Manager said: “We are all looking forward to welcoming guests to the hotel after this three month closure. It will also be very good to see our staff return from furlough. They have been keeping their spirits up with a whole range of activities from a baking competition, to a Zoom lunch and a virtual run between the Maids Head and our sister hotels, The Gonville in Cambridge and The Ship at Brancaster.
We recently delivered a lockdown gift of Norfolk strawberries, clotted cream and chilled rose wine to our 90 staff who live across the county, from Norwich to Wymondham, Reepham and Gorleston. This resulted in some great feedback, Dawn said: 'Lovely surpirise today, thank you Christine and the team, miss you all...' ”
Norwich City footballer Tom Trybull and his wife Anna have donated £5,000 to East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices (EACH), plus a bag of clothes as the charity gears up to reopen five of its shops.
The money comes from sales of children’s book The Story of Tommy T. Tommy T is a pigeon trying to make his name in football. The story is written by Anna, based on the exploits of her husband and encourages young people to follow their dreams.
It will go towards EACH’s fundraising appeal set up at the start of lockdown to address a forecasted income gap of £1.8m over 12 weeks, caused by the cancellation and postponement of fundraising events, and the closure of the charity’s 43 shops.
Following the government announcement that non-essential shops can reopen from Monday (15 June), EACH has decided to open five of its outlets in Norfolk, in a phased reopening plan the good cause hopes will eventually restore the pre-lockdown success of its high street portfolio.
Breckland Council’s work to support vulnerable residents through the coronavirus pandemic has been boosted by a donation from Norwich City Football Club and Norwich City Community Sports Foundation.
There are more than 3,600 people in the district who the NHS consider to be ‘extremely vulnerable’ and the council is supporting them by making welfare calls and, where needed, distributing medicines and food parcels.
The club and its foundation recently boosted the local effort by donating 120 parcels to the council, containing essential non-perishable food items such as tinned goods and dried foods. The boxes also included hand sanitiser, toilet roll, sweet treats, a NCFC gift and a note from celebrity chef and Canaries shareholder Delia Smith.
The support is part of the club and foundation’s Canaries COVID-19 Community Support Project which has seen £200k donated by the football club’s players, staff and directors, to help the county respond to covid-19.
All Things Norfolk has teamed up with Paul Dickson Books to give you a chance to win a collection of fabulous local books.
Paul Dickson Books is an independent Publishing House in Norwich, working with Norfolk writers and titles include Ink in my Blood - my half centiry in newspapers by Neil Haverson which was finalist in the East Anglian Book Awards 2018, Biography and Memoir.
Paul and his team have put together the following package of books as a prize to the lucky winner and there is something here for all members of the family to enjoy:
Local charity, The Benjamin Foundation, has announced its annual Sleep Out fundraising events with Norwich City and Ipswich Town Football Clubs hosting this year’s events.
Taking place on Thursday 19th November, the Norwich Sleep Out will be held at Norwich City Football Club, Carrow Road with the Ipswich Sleep Out taking place at Ipswich Town Football Club on Portman Road on 5th November.
The annual Sleep Out fundraising events support The Benjamin Foundation’s work in Norfolk and Suffolk to prevent youth homelessness by inviting people to spend one night sleeping outside so others don’t have to. Money raised through sponsorship helps their work to tackle the homelessness problem locally by providing a home and support to over 100 vulnerable young people aged 16 to 25 every night. The Benjamin Foundation also gives them the skills they need so they can go on to forge independent lives.