Henbury Golf Club is celebrating a landmark achievement after being named the winner of the Women in Golf Charter Club Award at the 2026 England Golf Awards.
The honour recognises a year of profound cultural and structural change, marking one of the most significant equality shifts in the club’s 134‑year history.
Following the club’s incorporation in 2020 and the appointment of its first Board of Directors, Henbury accelerated its modernisation by signing the Women in Golf Charter in 2024. The Charter provided the framework and confidence to tackle long‑standing inequalities, leading to reforms once considered out of reach.
Within a year, full equal weekend course access was approved for the 2025 season, ending 27 years of disparity. Weekend competitions open to all increased from five to more than 20, including first‑ever access for women to the prestigious Captain’s Bowl.
Female representation on the Board and key committees rose from 9% to 30%, with women stepping into senior leadership roles and ED&I now embedded across governance. These changes have reshaped the rhythm and culture of club life. Saturdays—once a symbol of exclusion—are now shared and vibrant, supported by integrated events, expanded roll‑ups and six competitions on the traditional Women’s Day now open to all.
The Ladies’ Section has evolved into the Women’s Section, reflecting a confident, modern identity, and preparations are underway for Ability Tees in 2026.
Targeted initiatives have strengthened recruitment and retention, growing the Women’s Section to 140 members—21.5% of total membership—with a clear ambition to reach 25% by 2030.
Jill Thorpe, Former Women’s Captain at Henbury Golf Club, who initiated the Women in Golf Charter commitments, said: “It's really special because for 27 years, the women in the golf club paid the same as the men and didn’t have equal access to the course at weekends, equal representation on committees, on governance, and the general running of the club. So to actually transform that in a year, which is what we've done when we signed up to the Women in Golf Charter, it's only taken us a year to do it and the club got right behind it and it's so impressive to do that so quickly. I'm just so proud of everyone.
“To get that recognition from England Golf saying you're doing the right things and what you've achieved has been brilliant, it's just fabulous for everyone at the club who's put the effort, time and energy into making this happen.
“It's important because we hadn't even contemplated doing this - it was our England Golf rep who said to us, "You guys have done a brilliant job. I don't think you realise what you've done."
“In terms of getting women and girls into golf, the most important thing is to sort the issues out because if you want to attract younger women and girls into golf, they can't walk into a club that's antiquated. They need one that feels like it's modern, welcoming, and got the sort of culture that would encourage and want women to take part. If we can address those areas, we can do a major drive to get more women and girls into golf, which is our plan for 2026.
“We've got a working group at the moment that's reviewing the Club Captain structure and whether or not we remain with, a Club Captain and a Women's Captain, and we're considering changing that. We’re also looking at the drive for women and girls into golf, and the board has agreed that we're targeting by 2030 to have 25% of our membership to be women. So we've got a lot of work to do but we've started already. We've got a big women's golf taster day coming up, and we're planning to do a number of those over the year, which will make it a lot easier having won this award!
“We will try and attract women into Henbury who already play golf because obviously we can prove that we're heading in the right direction and doing the right things.”
Henbury’s award reflects a club united by fairness, opportunity and a shared commitment to progress.
Following the club’s incorporation in 2020 and the appointment of its first Board of Directors, Henbury accelerated its modernisation by signing the Women in Golf Charter in 2024. The Charter provided the framework and confidence to tackle long‑standing inequalities, leading to reforms once considered out of reach.
Within a year, full equal weekend course access was approved for the 2025 season, ending 27 years of disparity. Weekend competitions open to all increased from five to more than 20, including first‑ever access for women to the prestigious Captain’s Bowl.
Female representation on the Board and key committees rose from 9% to 30%, with women stepping into senior leadership roles and ED&I now embedded across governance. These changes have reshaped the rhythm and culture of club life. Saturdays—once a symbol of exclusion—are now shared and vibrant, supported by integrated events, expanded roll‑ups and six competitions on the traditional Women’s Day now open to all.
The Ladies’ Section has evolved into the Women’s Section, reflecting a confident, modern identity, and preparations are underway for Ability Tees in 2026.
Targeted initiatives have strengthened recruitment and retention, growing the Women’s Section to 140 members—21.5% of total membership—with a clear ambition to reach 25% by 2030.
Jill Thorpe, Former Women’s Captain at Henbury Golf Club, who initiated the Women in Golf Charter commitments, said: “It's really special because for 27 years, the women in the golf club paid the same as the men and didn’t have equal access to the course at weekends, equal representation on committees, on governance, and the general running of the club. So to actually transform that in a year, which is what we've done when we signed up to the Women in Golf Charter, it's only taken us a year to do it and the club got right behind it and it's so impressive to do that so quickly. I'm just so proud of everyone.
“To get that recognition from England Golf saying you're doing the right things and what you've achieved has been brilliant, it's just fabulous for everyone at the club who's put the effort, time and energy into making this happen.
“It's important because we hadn't even contemplated doing this - it was our England Golf rep who said to us, "You guys have done a brilliant job. I don't think you realise what you've done."
“In terms of getting women and girls into golf, the most important thing is to sort the issues out because if you want to attract younger women and girls into golf, they can't walk into a club that's antiquated. They need one that feels like it's modern, welcoming, and got the sort of culture that would encourage and want women to take part. If we can address those areas, we can do a major drive to get more women and girls into golf, which is our plan for 2026.
“We've got a working group at the moment that's reviewing the Club Captain structure and whether or not we remain with, a Club Captain and a Women's Captain, and we're considering changing that. We’re also looking at the drive for women and girls into golf, and the board has agreed that we're targeting by 2030 to have 25% of our membership to be women. So we've got a lot of work to do but we've started already. We've got a big women's golf taster day coming up, and we're planning to do a number of those over the year, which will make it a lot easier having won this award!
“We will try and attract women into Henbury who already play golf because obviously we can prove that we're heading in the right direction and doing the right things.”
Henbury’s award reflects a club united by fairness, opportunity and a shared commitment to progress.
ENDS
Contact details:
Tom Vale, Press & Media Manager
Tel: 07912 240850
Email: tom.vale@englandgolf.org
www.englandgolf.org
Contact details:
Tom Vale, Press & Media Manager
Tel: 07912 240850
Email: tom.vale@englandgolf.org
www.englandgolf.org