The Springs Resort & Golf Club has retained the highly respected GEO Certified® status, recognising an outstanding commitment and effort to promote environmental and social…
The Springs Resort & Golf Club has retained the highly respected GEO Certified® status, recognising an outstanding commitment and effort to promote environmental and social sustainability.
The Oxfordshire resort, operated by Darwin Escapes, is part of an elite list of GEO Certified venues in the UK to achieve the credible standard for sustainable golf course operations.
Travel & Stays
Macdonald Hotels & Resorts
20% off pay & play rates at Macdonald golf resorts
Ireland Top 75Donegal Golf ClubCounty Donegal
Club partnerships
Put your club in front of thousands of golfers
From major course investments to visitor packages, showcase your venue across The Golf Guide's news, directory and social channels.
To meet the high sustainability standards required, golf venues must demonstrate excellence in key areas: nature, including turfgrass management and pollution prevention; resources such as water usage and energy consumption; and community, which examines employment, partnerships and outreach among other factors. The Springs Resort & Golf Club first achieved GEO Certified® status in 2020 with renewal demonstrating continuous improvement.
Designed by former Ryder Cup captain Brian Huggett, The Springs’ course plays out from a restored 19th century manor house and is complemented by a boutique hotel and spa, all of which are subject to the GEO Sustainable Golf Foundation’s rigorous assessment processes.
Some of the outstanding initiatives that saw The Springs become GEO Certified once again include:
Dedicating over 47 per cent of the golf course to nature conservation, with a marked reduction in play areas and many offline grasslands left unmanaged to allow nature to thrive
Targeting course irrigation to essential surfaces – tees, greens and approaches – only, minimising water usage
Transitioning to electric maintenance equipment such as grass mowers, which in turn greatly reduces overall fuel consumption
Spending time at local Oxfordshire schools, educating pupils about sustainability and nature – as well as introducing golf to more children
The details
Supporting a number of charitable causes, including raising funds for a community support dog Wendy, and raising money for a local guide dog organisation
Hosting a Turkish Banquet evening, led by the resort’s head chef, to raise money for earthquake appeal work in Turkey
Matthew Kimber, director of golf at the Springs Resort & Golf Club, said: “We’re very proud to become GEO Certified once again, which is the result of many years of work from the whole team across every department.
“Sustainability in everything we do is at the centre of our strategy and to remain in very select group of clubs to be verified by the GEO Foundation is a crucial step in the right direction.”
GEO Certification is assured by GEO Foundation – the not-for-profit organisation dedicated to delivering programmes that help people on the ground to evaluate, improve and credibly communicate their sustainability work across the agenda of nature, resources, community and climate action.
Bob Taylor, a GEO accredited independent verifier, said: “Darwin Escapes as a whole has a very clear vision and drive, all of which is directed by sustainable best practice. They are at the forefront of the industry and should be awarded for the extent, passion and enthusiasm given to sustainable development and management.”
The Springs Resort & Golf Club is one of three golf courses within the Darwin Escapes network, alongside Ayrshire’s Dundonald Links and Kilnwick Percy Resort & Golf Club in East Yorkshire. Following the venue’s acquisition by Darwin Escapes, The Springs underwent a multi-million pound investment to add a refurbished modern clubhouse, The Ridgeway Restaurant, bar, golf practice facilities and luxurious Alder Lodges as alternative accommodation.
For more information on The Springs Resort & Golf Club and to book, click here.