After struggling for years to find a secure location, Eccles Community Chess Club now have their first dedicated space.
Located at the end of Church Street, Eccles Community Chess Club opened their first dedicated space last month, January 20.
Currently, the space is open to the community on a Wednesday evening for ‘Fun Club Night’ where players at any level can play and learn chess.
Since being taken over by treasurer, Barbara Farrar, and president, Stephen Farrar, in 2019, the club has gone from ‘strength to strength’, being promoted from E to A division in league matches in just three years.
The club has been going for around 70 years, but when Barbara found them in Monton, they had “dwindled to nothing”:
She said: “I found them in Monton, in the middle of nowhere. And I said, ‘is this all there is?’ So I found another venue.”
After hosting online matches during lockdown, the club was briefly held at Malaga Drift and the Station Bar, also on Church Street, before having to relocate into Barbara’s dining room, which she converted into a playing area.
Now, Stephen has been able to invest in their current space, hoping it can support the club long term.
Stephen added: “I liked Eccles because it had a similar vibe to where I am from, but sadly over the last 20 years its declined. When this place became vacant – it used to be my hairdressers – and I thought, well maybe I can do something to make a difference.
“I’m not interested in making money. I just wanted to do something for Eccles. It’s about providing that opportunity to play chess in a lovely social environment.”
Now, with the help of government support, the couple hope they can continue using the space as a community venue, and as a secure home for the club.
On Wednesday January 30, Deputy Mayor John Merry paid a visit to the club, hanging a vertical chess board designed and donated by David Sherman onto the wall.
Merry praised the club, saying: “I’m very impressed with what I see, it’s a fantastic facility and I know they’re going to go from strength to strength.
“Belonging to a club or society is really important to people as they get older, to make contact with other people, to have an interest in life, and to have something that they can look forward to. Chess is a wonderful way of occupying yourself.”
Barbara is passionate about the social benefits of the game, having seen the strong impact they have on the Eccles community.
“There are people who come here who don’t speak a word of English, but chess is the same in all languages,” she said.
“So many people from all walks of life, just get together and enjoy chess”.
Christine, 70, started coming to the club around 12 months ago, knowing only the basics of the game.
She said: “I was worried because my mother had Alzheimer’s, and I thought I need to do something to keep my brain working.
“I rang up, I came down, and I met Barbara. She’s so enthusiastic about it, and so welcoming and I thoroughly enjoy it, I find the game utterly fascinating.”
Jake, 17, began coming to the club around just a month ago.
He said: “I’ve always been interested in chess…it’s better than sitting in my room watching films all day, or playing chess on my phone. So I went, ‘yeah, I’ll try it’.
“Chess has a lot of social aspects, but not a lot of people look at it that way. It really shows how strong your mind is, and at the end of it, you can teach others.”
Barbara has many plans for the future of the club, including professional coaching and a women and girls chess evening, to help bridge the gender gap in the game.
“It’s become a full time job and I absolutely love it. I wouldn’t do anything else,” she said.
“It just makes me feel good to be able to give to the community, and that’s a reward in itself.”
For more information contact Barbara: 07743888585
Recent Comments