Ping combined with pizza and prosecco as a community group celebrated its 100th session
The Ping in the Community group in Brandsby, North Yorkshire, has been meeting at the village hall since February 2023
The group has recorded more than 650 individual attendances since club opened at the Village Hall. The average age is just over 70 and the two oldest players are in their early 90s
The club was originally set up by Matt Pennington, a keen table tennis player now in his early 60s
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As well as underlining that our sport is fully inclusive, the players can all tell how the club benefits their mental and physical health and wellbeing, as the below illustrates
Aynsley’s story
“I was never any good at ball sports when I was young – always one of those kids who had to suffer being (at least one of) the last to be picked for any team
“Occasionally, though, I’d come across a table tennis table and someone to play with when on holiday and found that I enjoyed ping pong. Sadly, I never had the opportunity to play it at any other stage though
“So, many decades later – when it was suggested for Brandsby Village Hall and at a very affordable price, I was full of slightly nervous but excited anticipation – would my damaged 75-year-old knee be able to cope with all that bouncing about?!
“Thanks largely to the kind and patient encouragement from our wonderful leader, Matt, it has proved to be the regular highlight of my week! No-one takes it too seriously, and our little group of lovely friends and neighbours are great company, and we all enjoy the social side of it as much as the health and fitness benefits
“It is the only regular aerobic exercise I generally get, and the main opportunity to meet up with some of the others in my community
“Sometimes it is quite to drag myself out of my comfy chair, maybe feeling sleepy in front of a roaring fire, to head out into the cold to have a game or two of ping pong, but I ALWAYS come back, maybe nursing a sore knee, but feeling more cheerful and energised, and perhaps just that little bit closer to my lovely Ping Pong friends and neighbours. I do hope it continues for as long as I can manage it.”
More about Brandsby Ping in the Community
Here’s what some of the other participants said:
“The well-being and general fitness benefits I feel are fantastic”
“Sometimes I feel tired in the afternoon before the sessions, but I convince and remind myself that Ping! is so enjoyable and good for me that I should make an extra effort to attend”
“It’s such a friendly sociable group that I really enjoy attending and the table tennis is a bonus”
Matt Pennington, who had seen similar community benefits of table tennis through his involvement with the charity organisation Sporting Memories Network, set up the club with guidance from Table Tennis England and the help of Ping! and Sport England funding, and with very generous matched funding from the local village hall committee
Matt received the Ping! new club equipment package and was able to help finance the purchase of two brand new table tennis tables
More than 25 individuals have so far taken part and the club now has an established core group of around 14 regular players
Matt, who started playing at school in East Sussex as a teenager and attended TeesSport coaching at Durham University in the early 1980s, said: “The sessions are fun and mostly non-competitive, with a fantastic community spirit, much laughter and clear improvements in everyone’s table tennis skills
“All players enjoy a well-deserved cuppa and biscuits at each session and the club is run on a £3 pay and play weekly fee simply cover hire of the hall costs and refreshments, with any surplus saved for any future equipment needs
“The benefits are clearly appreciated by all that attend: a community activity, reducing isolation and loneliness impact, new friendships, general physical fitness and mental health wellbeing improvements.”
Matt is hoping to extend table tennis to local Junior players in the future, potentially alongside qualified coaching
The 100th session celebration on Tuesday 4 August featured an extended two-hour session to include pizza and prosecco
