A GYMNASTICS club which uses the gym at Court Fields School in Wellington has raised thousands of pounds for new equipment.

Excelsior Athletic Development Club has bought more than £12,000 worth of equipment including special air mats for Freestyle Gymnastics, similar to indoor Parkour.

Grants from British Gymnastics, donations from local trusts and companies, including Viridor, contributed to the £12,245 raised last year.

Head coach James Marshall said: “Gymnastics equipment costs a lot of money and we set some pretty ambitious targets to raise.

“We beat them all and this has meant we can offer more variety and a safer experience for all our gymnasts.

“We have done some traditional activities too, such as raffles and bag packing at supermarkets, so that all the gymnasts and parents could get involved.”

Freestyle gymnastics has proved popular with students from Court Fields.

It is less formal than the gymnastics seen, for example, in the Olympics and participants can take it up without any previous experience.

Excelsior ADC has spaces in its secondary school sessions on Wednesday afternoon for boys aged 11-plus and in its primary school session for boys in Years 1-6.

Contact James Marshall at [email protected] for more information.