History of the club

Hainault Bowls Club

The club was formed in 1983 when it changed its name from the Kelvin Hughes Bowls Club to Hainault Bowls Club. Kelvin Hughes Ltd was the largest employer in the Hainault area from 1947 to 2017.

The following article was placed in the Ilford Recorder the local newspaper in 1983.

Kelvin Hughes Bowls Club will operate under the new name of Hainault Bowls Club. The secretary, Mr J. Webb told the Recorder that the present membership plan was to stay together as a private club. He went on to say;

“We wish to thank all clubs for their goodwill and friendship shown to us in the past and hope they will continue to do so under our new banner.”

Fairlop Plain

The Hainault recreation ground is part of the wider geographical feature known as Fairlop Plain. 

In the early twentieth century Fairlop Plain was the location of a number of airfields. Fairlop Plain’s name, suggesting a wide flat area of grassy land, is a clue to why it was so attractive to aviation pioneers before tarmac runways were the norm.

Where the club is located was in the First World War from 1916-1918 a Royal Naval Air Service airfield which later became a Royal Air Force airfield from 1918 to 1919. Little remains of these airfields nowadays. Because of its location between the coast and London, aeroplanes based on Fairlop Plain were crucial for home defence against Zeppelin and bombing raids.

Flying was incredibly dangerous. Many airmen died before the end of the war. Second Lieutenant Harry Jassby, a Canadian who joined the newly formed RAF was killed in a flying accident a few days before war ended. Despite being Jewish, he is buried in nearby St. Peter’s churchyard, Aldborough Hatch on the South side of the plain, where he is remembered each November on Remembrance Day.