The Sir John Bayley club was formed in 1921 at an address known then as 23, Haygate rd.

The original name of the club was “Comrades of the Great War (Wellington) Club Limited”

The club came into being when John Bayley (The founder of Wrekin College), made a gift to the ex-servicemen of the 1914-18 war of a large timber building in 1920.

The rules for the Comrades club did not permit civilian members and the gift was specifically made to Ex-servicemen of the 1914-18 war. The irony was that Sir John Bayley was barred from the club that would eventually bear his name as he was over 60 years old at the start of the war and outside the age for military service.

To get round that potentially embarrassing problem John Bayley and Robert Gwynne (solicitor), who was also ineligible, had to be granted special membership of the new club. As a point of interest the firm of Gwynne and local branch of Barclays Bank retain an unbroken chain of service to the club since 1921.

In July 1921 John Bayley and Lieutenant Colonel Blockley of Admaston , were credited with buying the land which the club was erected on, with Arthur Pearce acting as advisor.

In 1937 the name of the club was changed to (The Sir John Bayley Social and Ex-Services Club Limited) which would open up the membership to men other than Great War survivors.

In September 1949 the name was changed again to “The Sir John Bayley Social Club Limited” dropping the “and Ex-servicemen’s’ words from the title.