Great Melton Park now boasts a bigger, better Pavilion to host the highly successful Great Melton Cricket Club, the Great Melton Bowls Club, and which also serves as parish room and village hall. It will be available for use as the new 2023 sporting season begins, and is the result of a highly successful fundraising campaign by the Cricket Club whose increased membership, particularly of girls, necessitated bigger premises. The new facilities include improved and enlarged changing rooms, better kitchen, bar and toilet provision, together with an improved meeting room and more covered space for watching team games.

Meanwhile, the much smaller bowls club, whose outdoor rink adjoins the cricket pitch, is looking forward to sharing the new building for the social side of its programme. Outdoor play is likely to start at the end of April, and the club would welcome anyone who has not played bowls before to come and try their hand, with free tuition from existing members at set times over the first few weeks of the season. Spare sets of bowls are available and all ages are welcome. Anyone interested should contact the chairman, Philip Richardson on 07715 699211 or email prichardson@downhammanor.co.uk. The club website greatmeltonbowlsclub.co.uk is a good place to see what the members get up to.