How much does it cost?
The yearly membership fee for 2026 is £80, and this is reduced pro-rata for people joining later in the year – we don’t think it’s fair to charge a full year’s fees for someone joining in November, for example. Juniors pay half-price. For new joiners, there’s a one-off £15 admin fee. In terms of running costs, we charge a range fee of £2.50/session, with no separate charge for targets. Rimfire ammunition can be supplied from £6.50/box.
Who can join?
It’s easier to say who can’t join. We would like you to be at least fourteen years old (there is no upper age limit), and we’re not legally allowed to recruit anyone who is prohibited under Section 21 of the Firearms Act 1968 from having access to firearms or ammunition. (NB: Section 21 applies to people who have been sentenced to three months or more in prison. You will be asked as part of your joining form to sign a declaration that you are not a prohibited person, and there is a police check on this bit.) And no, you don’t have to be an Old Silhillian.
Do I have to join? Can’t I just turn up and shoot?
You do have to join, because we have to make sure we’re handling things properly as regards our Home Office Approval, Section 21, and access to firearms. We’ve tried to make the joining process easy to follow – it’s only one form, we’ve tried to keep it as simple as possible, and we’re more than happy to explain any parts of it you don’t understand.
I just bought a new air rifle and don’t quite know what to do with it – can I come and use it at your club?
Yes, provided that you formally join us. Your new rifle is probably quite “sporter” in styling, so our Monday and Wednesday sport rifle sessions will probably be quite a good fit, or for something closer to Olympic-style shooting you could try our 10-metre air sessions. Both of these have competitions to enter once you’ve got the hang of it and want to challenge yourself.
Why don’t you do my style of shooting? Everyone likes to do tactical puntgun*, surely?
“Shooting sports” covers a huge range of different shooting types, and we can’t accommodate all of them, especially given that we are a relatively small indoor range staffed by volunteer club members. So, we’ve chosen to concentrate on a small number of disciplines (Prone, LSR, 10m Air Rifle/Pistol, and Benchrest), but do those well. If your preferred shooting style is something we don’t do, we’re not the only club in the area!
I’d like to learn to shoot, but my mate said you need a firearms certificate and the paperwork sounds really complicated!
Rimfire rifles, and air rifles with a muzzle energy of over 12 foot-pounds, need to be held on a certificate, but we have club kit available for members’ use, so this isn’t a hurdle you need to tackle yet if you’re just starting out.
To buy air pistols and sub-12-ft-lb air rifles (in England and Wales – Scotland has different rules), you don’t currently need a certificate, although any responsible retailer will log your name and address and will want to see some proof of ID.
I’m already a FAC holder, and I’m moving to the area. Would I be able to use you as my nominated club?
Yes, provided that you join us properly and you turn up and use the firearms on your ticket with a reasonable degree of frequency.
How good do I have to be to take part in competitions?
In general, you just need to be good enough to use the range safely and to hit the target without assistance. Most of the competitions we shoot are split by average, meaning that you’ll be grouped in a division with people of a similar standard.
If I turn out to be good at this, are there any bigger competitions I could have a go at?
The next level up from club shooting is selection for the county team. We’re in regular communication with the people who captain the county teams in various disciplines, and if you reach the right sort of standard you may find yourself being asked if you would like to be considered. (We currently have members representing Warwickshire in Prone, 10m Air Pistol, and Benchrest.)
How do I improve my shooting?
Practise regularly, practise with intent (as in, try to work on specific areas of your shooting rather than just shooting for the sake of it), and take proper notes so that what you learn gets retained from one session to the next. There’s no magic bullet here (pun intentional) – it’s all about regular, meaningful practice.
* Not a real sport, thank goodness.