1979 – Club formation, under the name ‘Cardinham Tennis and Sports Club’
1980 – Planning permission granted for construction of a tennis court
1981 – Tennis court opened
Cardinham Sports Club – Upgraded facilities opened 1997 – by Mr Paul Tyler MP”
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1987 – Small storage shed was erected
1997 – Formal opening by MP Mr Paul Tyler of upgraded facilities for what was now known as ‘Cardinham Sports Club’, with floodlights installed, and clubhouse constructed
2013 – Court repaired, repainted and lines repainted (supported by Cornwall Council Community Grant
Events fondly remembered by members and community alike include Fireworks nights, barbecues, croquet, skittles, treasure hunts, Ten Tors walks, quizzes, etc., but as per the AGM of 2010, it was clear that interest in such events was waning, and that “each member could have just put in £10 each and raised the same money as the quiz made, with less work”.
Over the following years, the club continued to hold croquet afternoons, open tennis days, cycle rides and quizzes, but fireworks nights were stopped, largely due to insurance costs.
2020 – “Only touch your own balls” – although Covid-19 pandemic forced us all to stay home for long periods, tennis became one of the first activities that could be held, outdoors, but we had special rules in place. Each player had to bring their own set of balls and in each game it was the server’s tennis balls that were used, and any ball to be returned to the server had to be kicked or lobbed to the server without hand contact. There was no handshaking and players were encouraged to keep their distance especially when playing doubles. On the plus side, membership increased!
Minor running repairs were carried out to the clubhouse and court, but it was recognised that in the longer term a more fundamental revamp was required.
2024 – The Club applied for and was awarded charity status, as a ‘charitable incorporated organisation’ on the basis of its new constitution of December 2023.