Building a community through padel

Surge Padel has formed links with a mosque local to its Bristol site to get more muslim women and girls involved in the sport. Rich Wingfield, MD of Surge Padel, outlines how the collaboration works

At Surge Padel Bristol, inclusion and accessibility are at the heart of everything we do. From the moment we opened our doors, we’ve been committed to building a club that truly reflects the community around us - and that means going beyond the courts to create opportunities for everyone to get involved. One of the partnerships we’re most proud of this year has been our collaboration with Bristol’s local Mosque community. Through a series of sessions designed to introduce padel to new audiences, we’ve been welcoming women and girls to Surge in a warm, supportive and judgment-free environment - many of whom had never picked up a padel racket before. The response has been nothing short of incredible.

Padel’s unique combination of fun, accessibility and social energy makes it the perfect entry point for people who might not have engaged with sport before. It’s a game where beginners can enjoy a rally within minutes, where laughter comes as naturally as competition, and where the focus is always on participation over perfection. For many of the women and girls who have joined us through this partnership, that’s made all the difference.

What’s been most rewarding isn’t just the growth in participation - it’s the genuine connections that have formed. Players who arrived not knowing anyone have left having made friends. Families have come together on court. And a community that perhaps felt sport wasn’t for them has discovered a new passion, a new social outlet and a new reason to keep coming back.

What’s been most rewarding isn’t just the growth in participation - it’s the genuine connections that have formed

At Surge, we believe padel has the power to do more than just fill courts. When the game is introduced in the right way, in the right environment, it becomes a vehicle for something much bigger - belonging, confidence, health and joy.

We’re incredibly grateful to the Mosque community for their openness, their enthusiasm and their trust in us. This is exactly the kind of partnership we want to build more of - reaching into different communities across Bristol and showing that padel truly is a sport for everyone.

This is just the beginning. We can’t wait to see where this journey takes us next.