Clubs fear for future as revenues fall
NEW data has highlighted the decline of the humble working men’s club amid growing fears over the industry’s future.
According to the Working Men’s Club and Institute Union (WMCIU), the number of Cleveland-based WMCs has almost halved from 56 in 1978 to 30 today.
Local WMCs say revenues have been hit by a combination of the credit crunch, smoking ban, cheap supermarket booze and the growing popularity of home entertainment.
Middlesbrough-based Westgarth Social Club has seen membership numbers fall to around 400 from 1,200 in 1998.
Club steward Steve Callaghan, said: “We are struggling a little bit - like anyone else in our trade. The industry has to modernise to find new ways of engaging young people.”
The club has tried to attract the younger generation by forming a football team to play in the Boddy Printers Middlesbrough League.
“We play on Sunday afternoons and afterwards some of the team come back to the club for a drink,” said Mr Callaghan.
“The regulars tend to stay for the evening but the young people tend to move on.”
The decline on Teesside has roughly kept pace with the national trend. Affiliate membership of the WMCIU has dropped by 44.9% in the last three decades, from 3,995 in 1978 to 2,203 today.
See tomorrow’s nebusiness for an in-depth feature on the decline of the working men’s club in the Tees Valley.
