An action plan has been launched to get more young people playing golf and joining clubs in Co Durham. The four year plan has been drawn up by the Durham men’s union and women’s county association, working in partnership with England Golf, to offer more opportunities to youngsters. Christine Mair, Chair of the Durham Golf Development Group, said: “We’ve got some great successes, like club events and coaching, county competitions, the Northern Junior Golf Tour, the Order of Merit and Girls Golf Rocks. We’re also thrilled that 11 young people from Co Durham are currently studying at university in the USA on golf scholarships. “So, we know there’s plenty of interest in golf. But we want to get more young people involved. This plan will help us to show them that golf is a great game and that golf clubs are a good place to be, where they can enjoy themselves with their friends.” Lee Dolby, England Golf Young People Manager, added: “It has been really good to work with the county to help them look at how they plan to grow participation amongst young people and change their perception of the sport. “We hope that the clubs will support this plan and get involved with the projects so that we can be successful.” The aims of the new plan include getting clubs to sign a junior pledge to develop the game; to have a junior action plan in place by 2022; and to offer short courses or forward tees. It also wants to encourage clubs to put players forward for county coaching and to have 30 clubs playing in the Durham County League by 2022. The plan also envisages 30 clubs achieving the SafeGolf accreditation by 2022, to show they offer a safe place for young golfers. The county organisations will be providing six-monthly updates on progress. • Durham is one of five counties working with England Golf on special projects to get more juniors involved in the sport. The others are Cheshire, Lincolnshire, Shropshire & Herefordshire and Somerset.