19th hole day nursery plan for Birmingham golf club

A BIRMINGHAM golf club which is struggling to attract young players has revealed plans to boost its revenues by converting its clubhouse into a children’s day nursery.

Wast Hills Golf Centre in Kings Norton is hoping that if a nursery provider can be found then it could help to attract the younger audience the facility needs to sustain itself.

The golf club was originally granted planning permission in October 2012 to change the use of its clubhouse, a move which saw the facility house a golf retail store.

However, that business was forced to close in the summer because of poor sales after the operator could not reach revenue targets due to the lack of younger players heading for the course.

The facility is currently vacant.

Keen to maximise revenue opportunities from the facility, the owner – Universal Golf and Leisure, based in Cheltenham, is now applying for a new change of use so the facility could be used for a children’s nursery.

The proposal is for a change of use of an existing building to improve an existing facility within the green belt. Although located within the green belt, the 328m2 clubhouse is thought to be suitable for such a use.

“A day nursery has been selected as the business that the owners believe suits the site and the location and has the potential to become successful. A successful business on site will have a positive impact on the golf centre,” said Universal in a statement supporting the application.

The owners believe a day nursery would draw families to the site, which in turn might introduce new golfers.

“The owners predict that parents will use the golf facilities whilst waiting to pick up their children. Whilst the children in the nursery will be too young to play, it is likely that they will have older siblings that will use the golf facilities,” it adds.

“This is in keeping with the owners’ long-term plan for the site to become more of a family destination.”