14/1/2010Volunteers give Lochelly's Royal Oak club a whole new look

The former Royal Oak Social Club on the Main Street is set for a major makeover, with a team of volunteers from Shell UK at Mossmorran coming to give the club a new look for the first time in 20 years, and transform it into a community club for the whole town.

The Coalfields Regeneration Trust has brought together the volunteers at the Royal Oak and Shell UK, who are sending a team of volunteers from the Fife Natural Gas Liquids Plant at Mossmorran to give the club a makeover.

The Royal Oak Social Club's Chairman Bob Thomson and his committee are transforming the Royal Oak in the Main Street into a Community Club to cater for all age groups from mums and toddlers to pensioners.

Mr Thomson said: "The social club was dying on its feet, so we decided to reinvent ourselves and provide a facility to benefit the whole of Lochgelly.

"We were delighted when the Coalfields Regneration Trust's Business Relationships Manager, Tom McAughtrie, offered to put us in touch with Shell.

"We can't thank Shell enough. The Royal Oak hasn't had a lick of paint for the last 20 years and we just don't have the funds to decorate the place on our own."

Mr McAughtrie said: "The Coalfields Regeneration Trust sees itself as more than a funder, so we try to bring together the business community and voluntary organisations like the team behind the Royal Oak Community Club."

Bill Burr, Project Manager for the Shell's Rejuvenation Project said: "We are more than happy to be able to give the Royal Oak a new look to match its new role in Lochgelly. We start work later this month and expect the project to take us a full week to complete."

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