About

Badminton is a great game for all ages and abilities including a growing para-badminton scene. We have players in the area from 5 to over 70 and the activity itself can range from an easy-going knock-about in the garden or on the beach to the extreme athleticism of the Olympic Games. The sport holds the record for the fastest hit - over 400 kph (250 mph), well ahead of golf (340 kph), squash and tennis to mention just a few.

It’s a world-wide activity – the national game in some far-eastern countries. Here the national body is BADMINTON England (abbreviated to BE) with further bodies at county level such as Kent Badminton Ltd in our area. Kent is further divided into regions – locally North Foreland (in full the North Foreland Regional Badminton Association or NFRBA) for the north-east corner of the county and South Foreland for the south-east area. These regions overlap somewhat but it’s North Foreland which is covered by this website.

If you are new to badminton in this area – perhaps never played before or just moved to East Kent - then we hope this information will help.

Facilities to play are basically through booking at a leisure centre to play with a group of friends, attending one of the open sessions where you join in with whoever else has come or joining a formal club or a purely social group.

Formal clubs belong to local regions which organise leagues and competitions and their playing members are affiliated to BE and the county.

The availability of and contacts for clubs change all the time and it isn’t always easy to find what you want using an on-line search engine. Some of the results have gaps while others are out of date. We hope that the information on this website is comprehensive and accurate.

Whatever facility you seek, please contact us if you find difficulty in locating details.

Play for Adults

There are leisure centres offering public booking sessions in some of the main towns in the area. You simply contact the centre and book an hour or so on one of their courts, usually paying on the door. Current providers include Active Life. Their booking times can be found on-line or in the leisure centres themselves.

There are clubs which operate purely socially, playing no part in formal activities. You should find details of these on leisure centre notice boards or on-line.

‘Pay and play’ sessions are where you just turn up as an individual or in a group and mix in with whoever else has come to that session. They are advertised under various names such as ‘No Strings’. You will find a range of ages and abilities and it’s a good way of seeing how your strength fits in with others if you are new to the area, perhaps taking up play again after a break or just at an early stage of play. Quite often people come fairly regularly so they almost act like standard clubs.

Beyond these social sessions there is the formal structure of registered clubs. Each club has its own membership requirements – some only accept experienced players while others can provide time and coaching for those just starting to play. Local clubs are listed here. The formal leagues operate from September to April; some clubs close during the summer break while others continue but on a fairly informal basis.

If you are new to the sport or want a refresher course, then -as well as the club sessions which provide coaching - there are also formal coaching courses which operate from time to time often under the banner of ‘Essentials’. We advertise local courses on this website.

Play for Juniors

Some of the adult sessions already described are open to teenagers but there are special provisions laid on for juniors either in schools or in formal junior clubs.

Within the formal regional framework there are designated junior clubs which provide training by qualified coaches within a safe, properly supervised environment. The ages of the children range from 5 to 19. Young players with particular talent can progress to specialist coaching locally or with the county squad – some of our local youngsters have risen to a high level in the national rankings.

Local junior clubs are included in the club info.