A bridge club which has campaigned for years to find a suitable venue to meet has secured a new home.

From the beginning of the new year, members of Hitchin Bridge Club meet at the Church of Our Lady Immaculate and St Andrew on Nightingale Road, Hitchin.

The club had been faced with uncertainty after North Herts District Council announced the club’s current venue in Bancroft Hall would be demolished to refurbish Bancroft Recreation Ground.

Margaret Eddleston, chairman of Hitchin Bridge Club, said: “The club has been looking for a new home for over three years without success.

“The decision by the church to hire its hall to community groups and clubs is very welcome. It provides the club with a secure base where we can continue to expand the sessions and classes we offer to the public. We look forward to a long and mutually beneficial association with the church.”

Hitchin Forum has been involved in discussions on how best to redevelop Bancroft Gardens without losing some of the best-used facilities in the area.

Chairman Mike Clarke said: “Hitchin Forum has supported Hitchin Bridge Club in its efforts to find a suitable venue for their activities in Bancroft Recreation Ground. We are very pleased that they have found a new home at a local church, and that the uncertainty of the past few years is no more.

“However we feel that their move is a loss for Bancroft Recreation Ground and its future. They have resources which we expected would be used in any future developments. Their large membership could have helped in many ways if the council pursues its stated aim of renovating the bowls pavilion and developing its use ‘as a community space for events and activities’.”