Our History

The Rotary Club of Telford Centre was chartered in 1993 on the initiative of Wellington Rotary Club.

Wellington Club, one of the most senior Rotary Clubs in District 1210, set out to establish a brand new Rotary Club which would reflect the modern ethos of the then still 'New Town' image of Telford and it was very much with this in mind that Telford Centre Club was set up.

From the beginning Telford Centre Club reflected the latest thinking in the Rotary movement, it was initiated as a breakfast club and a concerted effort was made to introduce female Rotarians – something quite unusual for Rotary at the time. From the earliest days women Rotarians have contributed greatly to the success of the Club, indeed the current president of Telford Centre Rotary Club, is Sarah Williams who has made and continues to make, a huge contribution to the Club’s continued success.

At its Charter Night in 1993 (a new Rotary Club is 'chartered' when it is formally accepted as part of the Rotary movement) the club got off to a flying start, with its 33 new Rotarians receiving the good wishes of clubs from across the District especially from Wellington Club, which presented the new club with much of its Rotary Regalia.

Rotary is largely about its members joining together in fellowship so that they to be of service to the community, and from the start Telford Centre Rotarians engaged enthusiastically in a broad range of Rotary activities to assist the community locally, nationally, and internationally.

For many years the Club took part in a key local Rotary fund raising event, the Christmas collection at Telford Centre, involving Rotarians getting out with collection tins and appealing to local people for cash, generally on behalf of local charities. In the 1990’s this appeal was highly successful and many tens of thousands of pounds were raised.

In recent years the emphasis for the Christmas Appeal has moved away from the traditional collection to the Tree of Light fund raising initiative. This involves local Rotarians providing a very personal opportunity for people to remember loved ones at Christmas time and has been enormously successful. The Rotary “Tree of Light” project raised £26,000 last year alone for local charities.

Telford Centre Rotary Club has been at the forefront of the Tree of Light initiative, indeed for a number of years it was led by a Telford Centre Club Rotarian. The Club is immensely proud of its involvement in the project, and of how it has enabled us to give significant help to local charities such as the Severn Hospice and the Air Ambulance.

Over the years the Club has also been active in Rotary projects at National and International level, both by fund raising and by direct personal participation of individual Rotarians. Many of the fund raising efforts of course have the added benefit of providing great entertainment for the Rotarians involved, as witness the Club President of the time getting soaked whilst on a “Water Ride” at Drayton Manor Park when taking local disadvantaged children on “A kids out” day.

Of course, Rotary like any other organisation which wishes to thrive, must constantly be prepared to adjust to changing circumstances. Over the years since its inception Telford Centre Club has shown itself very willing to adapt. For example, some time ago it became clear that the most favoured time for meetings was no longer at breakfast time but instead as people left work, in the early evening. Accordingly, our weekly meetings now take place at “twilight”(6.30 pm) so that Members can come along immediately after work, contribute to meetings, and still be home at a reasonable time in the evenings.

The Club now holds its regular Tuesday weekly meeting at the Clarion Hotel Madeley Court in Castlefields Way, Telford. For details of how to find us, CLICK HERE