New golf club owners announced

We are now a step closer to a secure golfing future on Cleeve Common as Tewkesbury Borough Council and Cleeve Common Trust announce their selection of the Cotswold Hub Co. as their preferred bidder to transform the area, making the current clubhouse site a destination for all visitors to this conservation area and Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). 

The Cotswold Hub Co. will take on a new 125-year tenancy of the golf clubhouse site as well as a new licence to play golf on the common from 1 April 2021. The company is founded by Nick Hovey and Sam Foyle. Both are local which Nicole Daw, Cleeve Common Trust’s Community Outreach Officer explains is important to the Trust. 

“Cleeve Common is a very special place for a wealth of reasons, to be working closely with people who know the site already and understand its importance to local people for recreation and wellbeing, as well as its rich history and incredible wildlife value is fantastic, we look forward to working alongside The Cotswold Hub Co. and sharing ideas together soon.”  

The Cotswold Hub Co. was awarded the bid due to its remarkable proposal, which promises to deliver a place “where cyclists, walkers, golfers, riders, wildlife enthusiasts and historians all share a common interest... the unique Cleeve Hill." 

Whilst pledging to respect the spectacular surroundings, of which a large majority is rare limestone grassland habitat which supports several critically endangered species, the Cotswold Hub Co. is aiming to completely transform the clubhouse facilities. The plans include a first-class golf club, but also wider amenities for the whole community, such as a new restaurant, café, accommodation lodges and a shared space where people can meet and work.  

Michael Bates, Cleeve Common Trust’s Clerk expands, “it was vitally important for us to find new tenants who wanted to put the wider communities needs at the forefront of their plans. We are very pleased golf can continue on Cleeve Common as it has done for 130 years. But we are also very excited about the potential for more facilities for all of our visitors, both locals and tourists.” 

For more information please follow this link to Tewkesbury Borough Council’s full press release