This is one of the most common questions that we are asked when people contact us. Before you are able to join Meriden Archery Club, you must be able to shoot safely. ArcheryGB have ruled that newcomers to the sport must undergo training, not least in order to be insured. To enable a new archer to join the club, we hold a number of beginners’ courses that are run by qualified coaches. The courses last 5-6 weeks and all equipment is provided.
The cost of a beginner’s course is £100.00 for adults and £80.00 for juniors.
Email us to find out more about our Beginners’ Courses and when they will be running. Information on currently scheduled courses can be found here.
At Meriden we welcome younger archers into the club. Children from the age of 10 years are able to join the Beginners’ Courses, however a great deal also depends on the individual child. The coaches may on occasions suggest that a child age 8 or above may be better waiting a year or two before they start.
Our main concern is that any archer can handle their equipment safely, reducing the risk of injury to themselves as well as to other archers, or people around the shooting field.
Meriden is a friendly club, welcoming members from a wide area. Established archers can apply to join the club after an assessment of their shooting safety by one of our coaches. Use the Contact Us link to arrange this.
When you have completed a Beginners’ Course, your coaches will advise you on suitable equipment – do not buy equipment before starting a beginners’ course!
A set of equipment for an archer can start from around £350-400.
You should join an archery club to ensure that you have insurance when you are shooting and, of course, somewhere to shoot. Meriden’s membership fees are based on the age of the person joining (adult, senior or junior) – for the first year of membership, for an adult the cost is around £195 a year. This includes the Club Fees, membership of ArcheryGB and affiliation to the County and Regional Archery Associations, and the first year joining fee.
Quite simply, membership of one of the best archery clubs around. Members are welcome to shoot 24 hours a day, 365 days per year. The club has its own extensive shooting grounds which makes this possible, and targets bosses are permanently laid out at a variety of distances on the field. Safety fencing has been installed to ensure safe shooting at all times. Our grounds also include a paddock with a covered shooting area and permanent floodlit targets up to 50 meters. There are some rare occasions during the year when our neighbours (The Woodmen of Arden, a private member’s archery club) shoot traditional, long distance rounds. On these days, there may be some restrictions on which lanes can be used to shoot the longer distances.
We run regular ‘Improvers’ Sessions’ where our experienced coaches will provide support for all levels of Archer, and they will also provide one-off support on request.
Refreshments are always available on a self-service basis in the club house – please bring your own milk.
Yes, we can organise archery “Taster Sessions” for clubs, societies, schools and individuals, providing all necessary equipment and expert tuition by experienced coaches.
You can find more further details on our Taster Sessions page.
Junior Members must be accompanied at all times at Meriden AC by a parent/guardian or nominated supervising adult. This person may be a Member of the Club, who should not shoot when acting in a supervisory capacity. If the supervising adult is not a shooting member then that person must pay the appropriate fee for a Non-Shooting Supervising Adult, and in addition, the Junior Member may only shoot when an Archery GB Member is present. This is to ensure all safety and insurance requirements are met.
Although this may sound a little complicated everything will be taken care of when the Junior Member enrols. There is also a very active Junior Club which meets on Saturday morning and all the necessary support and guidance will be provided.
We are continuing to build our FAQ in response to feedback from people. If you have a specific enquiry that hasn’t been dealt with here, please get in touch with the Club’s Secretary via the Contact Us link.