We are a family and dog friendly private members sports & social club located in the beautiful village of Alderholt, near Fordingbridge on the edge of Hampshire's New Forest. We warmly welcome all visitors, although we do ask that guests and non-members must be signed in. Please see our bar staff for further guidance.
About Us
Volunteer led private members club
We are a volunteer led private members club committed to providing a relaxed social hub for all of our community to enjoy. We are not to be confused with a pub, although we do have an excellent village pub in Alderholt which is highly recommended for food. Our members cover all age groups, and whilst most reside in the local community, we do have members from further afield who have joined simply to benefit from the discounted bar prices and to allow access to our members only functions and events.
We serve a wide range of beers, lagers, real ales, ciders, wines and spirits in addition to bar snacks, sweets and confectionery. Our members receive a substantial discount on all alcohol and soft drinks across our full range, and your discount card also conveniently acts as a debit card allowing you to top up your account by card or cash to make purchases across the bar. With membership starting from as little as £20 per year, it really is worth joining us and your membership fee is invested directly back into the club to support future events. Although we are a private members club, we do welcome guests and visitors as we appreciate most people will want to see what they are missing before joining us. We're a relaxed bunch although we do insist that if you intend using the club regularly, you will be asked to become a member. All guests and visitors are required to be signed in.
We have gone to great lengths to ensure our customers can relax in a safe, welcoming environment. We are very popular with families and our youth footballers regularly use the club facilities. With that in mind we operate a zero tolerance policy when it comes to any form of behaviour which contravenes our club constitution, including the use of foul language. In addition, any guests or members suspected of being involved in any illegal activity on club premises, or involved in any acts of violence against members, guests, the committee & officers, and/or our bar staff, will be asked to leave immediately and banned from using the club for life. CCTV will also be provided to the police for the purposes of supporting a prosecution.
Established since 1986 with no ties to any supplier
Alderholt Sports & Social Club was opened in 1986 to support Alderholt Football Club, and the darts, pool, cricket and later tennis club, all of which still remain a key part of the club today.
The club has been managed and operated by a volunteer committee since inception. We receive no funding and rely completely on trading to remain self sufficient. We have no tied debt, which means we are free to choose suppliers and brewers who give us the best quality and value for money.
The committee's over the years have worked tirelessly to forge solid relationships with our suppliers and we have achieved an A+ credit rating providing us with very favourable trading terms. This allows us to pass on all savings to our members and to ensure the club remains affordable during these difficult times.
It also places us in excellent standing should the decision be made to take-up funding opportunities available to us through our bank, our creditors or our suppliers.
Also affectionately known as 'The Shed' - but why?
The Alderholt Sports & Social Club building is actually a series of four prefabricated blocks joined together to create the main customer area, bar/cellar area and toilets.
The prefabricated units were delivered by LJ Ings & Sons Transport, with the majority of all other work carried out by volunteer tradesman from the village.
Once completed, our modest prefabricated building sat in the middle of the recreation ground with it's flat roof was said by some to resemble a shed. And so the name was born. The actual prefab building originally had a life span of 20 years, which expired in 2006.
Hence in 2018 we started a fund raising campaign to start extending the life of the building, and to date we have completely renewed the roof and replaced the prefabricated building skin with weatherproof cladding boards.
Watch this space for future plans!
Not-For-Profit volunteer organisation
As the name suggests, we are a not-for-profit organisation, and not a charity as some might think. Every penny left after paying our bills and settling our invoices goes back into the club to cover maintenance, emergency repairs, and to save for future improvements to our facilities.
A perfect example of this is our cellar cooling system. After an impressive 34 years of non-stop operation, other than the 4 months we were closed during lock-down, the entire system failed in September 2020. Despite a significant loss of income due to being forced to close in March 2020, we were able to cover the cost of renewing the system, with very minimal downtime.
We continue to live through uncertain times, however our members can rest assured the club remains financially strong and in a good position to continue trading despite the current challenges.
Ran by the community, for the community
Our volunteer management committee comprises three officers, and six committee members. The three officers are Chairperson, Secretary and Treasurer.
All of the management team are volunteers and do not receive any remuneration for the work they do in managing the club. The only employees are the bar staff and our cleaner.
Managing and guiding the club through these difficult times has been particularly challenging and the committee has dedicated many hours of their own time in order to ensure we meet our legal and moral obligations to keep the doors open.
Our members are our lifeblood and many are local tradesman in the community who support us with their time and advice. We are truly a community hub for the whole village and would love to see more members join us.
Photo Gallery
