Local Boys’ Club Must Let Girls in or Lose Funding say Bristol Council – But No Such Demand Made of Local Ethnic Womens’ Groups
For 114 years, The Broad Plain Boys’ Club in Bristol has offered an outlet where local youngsters can meet with their contemporaries in an atmosphere that teaches them self-confidence and discipline.
The leader of the club, where boys are tutored in such sports as boxing, is Dennis Stinchcombe who has run the club for 33 years and has been awarded an MBE for his work in the local community. Broad Plain receives £11,600 in funding from Bristol City Council.
So, a worthwhile group run by a leader of obvious experience and talent that has been keeping the local boys occupied and out of trouble for over 100 years and instilling in them a sense of self-worth. An obvious success story one would imagine.
Not so, according to Bristol City Council. The club has fallen foul of the council’s gender-equality Gestapo as they have told the leader of the group that they must change the name of the club to something more inclusive, such as the Working With Young People Club and admit girls or face losing their funding.
Mr. Stinchcombe said: “They want us to drop the name Broad Plain Boys’ Club, no matter that we have had that name for more than 100 years.”
“It will cost thousands to change the name. We would have to get new letterheads and change all the equipment with the name on it.”
The council funding for the club pays for two staff to work alongside a team of volunteers who cater to boys who are aged 7 to 25. The club is open four nights a week and teaches the youngsters sports such as football, basketball and boxing.
If the club were forced to devote more time to girls, the club would need to take on a female leader as well and as Mr. Stinchcombe notes, “They will not pay us anything to give more time to girls.”
The club already has a mixed evening which is held on Thursday evenings. A university female boxing team also trains with the boys on a Tuesday night.
But this is still not good enough for the zealots at Bristol City Council. “It has been made clear that we have to make changes to stand a chance of continued funding,” Mr. Stinchcombe said.
As of this date, no such demands to include boys have been made to the Chinese Women’s Group or the Pakistani Welfare Community which are aimed at women. Bristol City Council funds these groups to the tune of £10,984 for the Pakistani women’s group and a whopping £30,494 for the Chinese women’s group.
