History of Wolverhampton ABC
Wolverhampton – England

History

WABC was founded on 10th May 1936, by a group of prominent businessmen & citizens, their aim was to provide an activity that would, encourage physical health, create community cohesion and give young men & boys the opportunity of learning discipline. WABC is the oldest established club of it’s kind in the UK and started life in a small gym in Union Street, the club moved to it’s current premises in 1985. Situated on the corner of Colliery & Willenhall Roads in the East Park area of the City the Old Eastfield Girls School has become a permanent base not only for the club, but also HQ for the South Staffs Division.

As with man y voluntary organisations WABC has had it’s ups and downs over the past 70 years, overall the founding fathers would have been proud of the achievements and the progress made. During this period the club has produced 2 Olympians, 4 ABA finalists and 16 ABA semi & quarter finalists, the club has also enabled hundreds of young men and boys achieve personal goals. Members of the club have proudly carried the City of Wolverhampton’s crest all over the United Kingdom & the world (WABC & Wolverhampton Wanderers are the only organisations granted this privilege) it was granted by the Council in 1937.

The support of Wolverhampton City Council cannot be under estimated, by recognising the important role played by WABC in providing physical recreation and support to the local community, the provision of the existing premises at a peppercorn rent has given the club stability in an ever changing world. Being the only club in the district with it’s own premises and with many clubs closing the lack of funding, or no longer able to use council owned facilities, WABC is becoming a magnet for all aspiring Amir Khan’s from around the Black Country. This is obviously creating pressure on the Club’s resources, particularly the qualified coaching staff – who are all volunteers.

The Need

Boxing is recognised by many organisations as a way of channelling aggression into constructive activity and achievement, boxing promotes high levels of physical fitness, helps promote self confidence, sportsmanship, self reliance and self-control. Boxing appeals to many on the fringes of society, it offers them the opportunity of representing their Club, County or Country and a chance of gaining self-worth and growing into responsible citizens. Boxing is highly regulated, amateur and schoolboy boxers are subject to close medical supervision and stringent regulations, which are rigorously applied, WABC have their own doctor who is ABA approved.

WABC has for many years worked closely with both the Probation Service and NACRO, providing training opportunity for young offenders and those who have suffered from substance abuse. Many of these young people have benefited from the opportunities offered and have gone on to become mentors and involved themselves in community matters.

WABC is situated in the East Park Ward of Wolverhampton an area that suffers from high levels of poverty and deprivation, according to Government statistics, the East Park Ward is:

• In the top 4% most deprived Wards in the country
• The fourth most deprived Ward in the City in both income & employment
• The third most deprived Ward in Wolverhampton, in education & training. This indicator measures lack of qualifications amongst adults and 16+ not taking up further education places.
• Third most deprived Ward in relation to child poverty – those under 16 living on means tested benefits
• Having the highest level of people with limiting long term illness including high numbers of smokers and those with poor diets
• Having the highest conception rate amongst 13-15 yr olds.

The Ward suffers from high levels of benefit dependency and low paid employment with over 45% of households having no independent transport, a low level of community facilities providing physical fitness classes and advice on living a more healthy lifestyle (there are numerous facilities for keep fit/aerobics etc throughout the city but the residents of East Park do not have the financial ability to pay for these activities).

Current Activities

WABC has moved with the times and has recognised the needs of the wider community in which they are based and with the limited resources available, working to improve the health and fitness of all people living in the area. Whilst the club relies on an adult committee for legal reasons, they have devolved the decision making process in a way in which the users of the different activities have a genuine say in how these activities are organised and delivered, community involvement plays a key role in the development and delivery of all activities.

Chill Out Sessions

The club have weekly ‘Chill Out Sessions’ which regularly attract over 50 people. These sessions include Citizenship and encouraging the young people to become interested in supporting community activities, many of those attending become ‘Mentors’ and will work with others. This programme has enabled the club to have a wide range of mentors with ages ranging from 10 – 50, many of these Mentors were previously regarded as ‘No Hopers’, with the support of all members of WABC they are now able to pass on their experience to others.

Boxercise

As part of their community involvement the club have been running weekly ladies only ‘Non Contact’ Boxercise classes, as part of the club’s commitment to physical fitness and improving community health. These classes are extremely popular and regularly attract over 25 ladies as you can imagine this has placed huge pressure on an infrastructure that has for nearly 70 years had operated in a males only environment. Improvements to facilities used by the ladies have been made, but progress has been slow due to restricted finances.

Holiday Activities

During last summer (2004) WABC took part in the Nestle – ‘Make Space Project’, this scheme was implemented to enable children & young people from deprived areas access activities during the Summer Holidays. The scheme gave the young people somewhere to meet relax, and to take part in healthy physical activities in a safe and supervised environment. John Thomas the secretary of WABC stated ‘The Make Space programme has been a phenomenal success, it has kept them off the streets and has encouraged self discipline. The demand and interest from the community has been so great that we have been running a limited programme all year round”. It is hoped that future funding from Nestle will enable a larger scheme to be run during the summer of 2005.

Fitness In the Community

The club for a number of years has been running a programme called ‘Fitness In the Community’. These classes have proved very popular, as they cater for all ages and abilities, they are run by qualified instructors and including aerobics. A number of members will be making a trip of a lifetime in June 2005 by travelling to Adelaide (Australia) to fly the flag for Wolverhampton & the UK at World Vintage Aerobics Carnival (over 35’s only). This programme not only promotes fitness but gives advice and support in healthy eating, diet, drug & Alcohol awareness training.

Training

The club regularly offers training courses in First Aid, these courses are open to all and are very well attended by, coaches, trainers, teachers and mentors from a wide range of community & sports organisations. Many of the young people who attend the club have come from areas of the city that are deprived, most of these are disaffected, have not achieved at school and they have poor literacy & numeracy skills. In their desire to use the club to give young people greater confidence, fitness and discipline, a committee member with relevant skills & experience has been running literacy, numeracy and IT training for the past 12 months. This training has proved popular with many young people, to whom a structured school/college environment is unacceptable. The club has plans to convert the second floor of the building into a permanent administration – learning – training centre and free up space downstairs for physical activities.

The Future

The work undertaken by the club and it’s involvement in supporting the community means that the current facilities no longer meet the diverse needs of those who use the centre. With encouragement of all who use the centre and those who recognise the valuable work undertaken by WABC and the honour of becoming the HQ for the South Staffordshire Division, the committee will be launching a £250,000 appeal to make the Old Eastfield Girls School a ‘Centre of Excellence’ for the Midlands and a community facility that is accessible & open to all. This appeal has already received magnificent support with almost half of the total pledged by the James Beattie Charitable Trust and Wolverhampton City Council.

Raising this amount will enable the Club become a Centre of Excellence for the Midlands and give the Community a focal point for creating a healthier lifestyle. A successful appeal will:

• Provide space for a fully equipped gym with a full sized training ring
• Provide an administration – Training & IT facility
• Fully accessible centre for people with disabilities
• Create a ladies changing & shower area
• Refurbished kitchen with coffee bar & ‘chill out’ area
• Refurbished changing rooms & showers
• Keep fit, aerobics – dance studio
• Refit & re-equip the weights room
• Renovate doctors and first aid room
• Replace worn out training equipment – punchbags, guard pads gloves etc

Honourable Secretary – John Thomas –
01902 686675
07703 295548