BOUNCING, balancing and beaming smiles were there for all to see as Millom Recreation Centre welcomed new gymnasts into the sport.

A host of youngsters flocked to the centre for a two-hour Easter holidays session aimed specifically at beginners.

The children found themselves enjoying working on the floor, beam, uneven bars and vault, as well as using the air track and trampette to help them lean new skills.

Millom Recreation Centre's Tracy Kirk was pleased with how the session went, and said: “There were quite a few new faces we hadn't seen before, which is great, and there were a few from the gymnastics club as well.

“We had a great response – the kids really enjoyed it, and they are looking forward to coming to the next one in the May holidays.

“We just got them used to the apparatus. We let them have a little walk on the beam, seeing what their balance was like, and doing some basic things like that with them.

“The ones who have been to the club, they were a bit more established with their gymnastics and we worked them at a level they could manage as well.”

The Easter holidays also saw two four-hour High-Flier camps for more advanced gymnasts, with Kirk delighted with how the sport has taken off.

She added: “Always when we put on these beginners camps, we get a good response and we get a few new faces wanting to join the club as a result.”

“The sport is doing brilliantly here at the moment. We have more than 200 children attending the club every week, built up over the past three or four years.

“We've started pre-school gymnastics now as well, so we're getting the children in in sessions for three to five-year-olds, and they're progressing on through the club.”

Pre-school gymnastics sessions take place at Millom Recreation Centre on Wednesdays and Fridays, between 3.45pm and 4.30pm, and on Saturdays, from 8.15am until 9am.