GARDENERS have been saddened that after more than 70 years of meeting Wordsley Gardening Club is set to fold.

At the club’s recent AGM, all of the club's officers stood down and with no current members willing to take on the reins, a decision was made to disband.

Although committee members had hoped there would be enough interest to keep the club afloat, dwindling membership numbers have finally taken its toll.

In her meeting report, club secretary Brenda Phipps wrote: “The Annual General Meeting of the club took place at Wordsley Green Community Centre on Wednesday, January 11, 2017.

“Following procedure, all the existing officers stood down but, as intimated at the last meeting, they did not wish to be re-elected.

“Unfortunately no one was willing to take on any of the official duties, so with a great deal of sadness the club, where local gardeners have been meeting for 70 years or so, will cease to exist.”

Jim Skidmore, vice-chairman of Wordsley History Society, whose wife Mary has been part of the gardening club for the past three years, said: “It is such a shame that a great community club which has been going for more than 70 years in Wordsley is having to close.

“There has been a lack of members and support for people to join the committee for a while, and it’s the same few people on it all the time.

“It’s not just the gardening club where this is happening though, many community groups are going to same way and really do need to increase their membership, otherwise we will see more closing.”

Following the decision to fold, gardening club members agreed on how its accrued funds would be distributed between local charities and voluntary groups.