Andrew Dumbleton

Laurence Fryer

I have been involved with the Mildmay Club since 2008, when I started running 80s discos. At that time, we had just 140 members. I encouraged 70 of my disco regulars to become members themselves and when the club was threatened with closure a few years later, those who’d joined helped save the club by voting against selling it off to developers.

As Entertainment Secretary, I organised a wide range of music events, comedy nights, junior bands, discos, regular jazz and swing nights. These have driven the rapid growth in membership, now standing at over 1000 mostly from our local community.

I am standing as Vice President to have a stronger voice on how the club is run as a building, a membership institution and as a venue. I would bring a strategic outlook to committee decisions, strengthen community engagement, increase active membership, reach out to other clubs, and seek exciting entertainment, whilst being protective of the heritage and individuality of our club and its amazing members.

We’re incredibly lucky to have the Mildmay on our doorstep. I’ll do everything I can to make sure it achieves its full potential.

Our wonderful Club building is old and needs care to sympathetically modernise. The transformational improvements you have seen to the electrics, roofs , snooker hall, dance floors, tartan bar and plans for the flats are testament to this strategy. I am closely involved throughout and am fully committed to a strategy of incremental improvement.

With improved choice and value in our drinks choice and club social events we must, nonetheless, remain a traditional social club, including bingo, firmly at the heart of our community.

The Club is never a solely commercial venue. Its soul lies with its members.

My commitment to you is to continue to grow our inclusive community club, with a growing membership base, to ensure financial resilience and for the Club to remain fully independent.

I am proud of all that we have achieved so far. There is much more that I want to do and needs to be done and I ask for your continued support.

Please re-elect me as your VP in 2022.