Iain Lancaster is stepping down as Lancashire County Golf Partnership development officer to take over as regional manager for England Golf.
He succeeds Sean Hammill, who left in May, and will oversee Lancashire, Staffordshire, Cheshire and Derbyshire.
Lancaster has made considerable progress in the Red Rose region since taking up the appointment earlier this year and has already signed up 15 clubs and driving ranges as development centres delivering the Get into Golf programme across the county.
His successor will be Bev Dodd, a 10 handicap Rossendale member and volunteer junior development organiser at the club where she has also enjoyed success in growing the junior and ladies sections over last four years.
Her background is in HR and learning and development and she has been running her own consultancy since 2004. In 2013 she won the England Volunteer Coach of the Year award.
Lancaster said: “It has been a pleasure to be involved with the launch of the CGP, all the Lancashire clubs and facilities, and the CGP team, albeit in the short time as county development officer.
“However, I will still be heavily involved in the county overseeing my replacement and ensuring that Lancashire continues to surpass its aims and objectives within golf development.”
LCGP chairman Tom Cuttill said: “Iain has worked tirelessly to raise our profile in the county and as a result has made a significant contribution to the partnership. It has quite rightly been recognised and has resulted in a well-deserved promotion to regional development officer. Fortunately for us, Iain will still be working with Lancashire in his new role.”
Meanwhile, all contact details remain the same for Lancashire CGP and the county development officer. Lancaster and Dodd will work closely to ensure a smooth transition in roles and seamless handover later this month. All CGP and Get into Golf activity will continue as normal.
Get into golf is a national campaign to inspire adults to take up the game and is run by the England Golf Partnership through its network of County Golf Partnerships, supported by Sport England and National Lottery funding.
Get into Golf www.getintogolf.org