Richard's Diary.....Barbury Shooting School

Last week I had the pleasure of visiting Barbury Shooting School in Wroughton, near Swindon, Wiltshire and met with the ground owner Huw Stephens who took over the School approximately 5 years ago.

The ground is situated in a beautiful location surrounded by farmland and within close proximity to Barbury Castle which is an iron-age hill fort.

Barbury Castle Country Park is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, Local Nature Reserve, County Wildlife Site, Country Park and part of the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).



Huw took me on a tour of the ground and explained how they had increased the car park area and provided more Sporting stands and a Sporttrap layout within a new part of the ground and planned to extend the Sporting layout further to provide yet more opportunities. Huw would also like to hold Registered Sporttrap fixtures at the ground so is shortly to become a CPSA Registered Ground which is great news.

Membership has grown from about 80 when Huw took over to approx. 350 now and the School is open 6 full days per week from Monday to Saturday and half day on Sundays for tuition and practice.

During June - September the ground stays open late on Wednesdays with last entry at 7pm for practice so an excellent opportunity to get a few rounds in after work!!

Single Membership costs £105 and includes a 1 hour lesson or £80 for the experienced shot who doesn't require a lesson but considering a lesson costs £70 this represents very good value for money.

Family Membership costs £115 with a shared lesson and £90 without.

Junior Membership costs £60 with a lesson and £25 without.

Membership gets you the usual benefits at the desk on clay rates and various events during the year and if you introduce a new member to the school you can claim a free 50 target round once their membership has been approved.

They also run a Have a Go day every month which costs £8 for 10 shots and includes a voucher for a half price lesson which is an excellent idea. Their next day is Saturday 11th August.

There is also a Young Shots Beginners Program on Tuesday 21st August which costs £49 and guests will benefit from professional tuition in clay shooting, air rifles and archery so contact the Club to find out more.

For more information on Barbury Shooting School which was voted Shooting Ground of the Year in 2010 at The Shooting Industry Awards call them on 07872 666154 or e-mail them via enquiries@barburyshoot.com Alternatively visit the website www.barburyshoot.com