Industry Didn’t they do well
Prees Cricket and Recreation Club
Case study 1 – Prees Cricket and Recreation Club
Seeking funding for grounds maintenance is a popular option for QEII fields, FIT told us, with money being channelled into drainage improvements or to create, literally, a level playing field.
Others are on a more ambitious journey, but started out with pump-priming from QEII Fields Challenge funding. Like Prees Cricket and Recreation Club in Shropshire, for example, which received £2,500 to help meet the costs of relaying the all-weather cricket pitch.
Prees Cricket and Recreation Club
and it has supported more than 3,000 projects, totalling more than £87m since it began funding in 1997.
SITA Trust.
T: 01454 262910. Email:
info@sitatrust.org.uk or visit the website at:
http://www.sitatrust.org.uk/projects/qe2fields
Sport England
Sport England’s People, Places, Play Legacy Fund: QEII Fields, or those who apply for funding and would consider becoming a QEII Field, gain added weighting. More at:
http://www.qe2fields.com/funding.aspx
County funding
Fields in Trust has funds available in each county across Britain for sites to apply for. In the first round, it awarded over £55,000.
http://www.qe2fields.com/countyfund.aspx http://www.qe2fields.com/news_details.aspx?ne wsid=53fea5a6-7245-4a8b-89c9- 16691b850807
London
A £1m fund is available exclusively for fields in London to apply to.
http://www.qe2fields.com/londonlegacy.aspx
Prees is an old friend of Fields in Trust. The club has been operating in its present form since 1932, although there are records of tennis, cricket and football taking place in the village dating back to 1862.
FIT has a long history of supporting sports clubs and, in fact, grant-aided Prees back in 1932, kicking off its life as a registered charity.
Club secretary Brian Hughes and his colleagues saw the potential of the QEII Fields Challenge to help them celebrate the Diamond Jubilee by protecting the land as a sports facility in perpetuity, and to possibly access funds for improvements to the club.
Since nominating its ground last November and being granted QEII status in April, Prees has accessed money from FIT's Legacy Fund. As Brian explains: “Our old all-weather pitch was in such a poor condition that we were at risk of having to cancel our cricket but, with this help, we can renew our pitch, continue to play with our existing teams and hopefully start another U13 Team this year.' FIT plans a further round of the Legacy Fund later this year.”
First things first, however: “We knew we owned the land, but had acquired it in dribs and drabs over the years. We had to trace the deeds of ownership to show Fields in Trust before we could gain QEII status, and we were already a registered charity, so we met that criterion.”
The £7,500 cost to re-lay the all-weather with a tarmac-based surface has been fully met, Brian reports. On top of the FIT funding, the club attracted £3,000 from
Lord’s Taverners – “the maximum sum they will award for an all-weather pitch”, Brian adds. “We had to apply for the money through the Shropshire ECB rather than apply direct.
Determined to fully meet the capital cost, the club successfully approached Shropshire council – its Community Fund Joint Committee providing the remaining £2,000. The new surface was due to be laid “imminently” as we went to press.
Besides its cricket square, with “four or five natural strips” and the all-weather surface, Prees runs two grass full-size football pitches, a junior playing area and an “Astroturf” sand-based training pitch – all tended by volunteers.
Turning his attention to the issue of improvements, Brian explains: “We can control our revenue costs but its capital projects that we cannot fund.” But, that hasn’t stopped Prees moving forward once again as it bids to install a 3G training pitch to improve sporting provision further still.
This time, Sport England is a key funding target for the expected £50,000 project cost, under the agency’s £10m Protecting Playing Fields Fund <
http://www.sportengland.org/funding/prot ecting_playing_fields.aspx > Applying as a QEII site is seen as a positive for a club seeking funding, FIT says.
“You have to apply to Sport England online. It’s not overly complicated, but there is a bit of work involved to give yourself the best chance of success,” Brian reports, “such as making sure you hit the hot buttons with the right terminology. We’re still waiting to hear back.”
In March, the club applied to the SITA Trust for a £25,000 input under its £1m QEII Fields Fund
http://www.sitatrust.org.uk/qe2- fields which is available for `physical improvements'.
“This application will be for funding towards equipment to help us with the ground maintenance of our cricket and football pitches,” Brian continues.
Does he have any top tips for others seeking funding? “Be sure to search around – explore as many options as you can,” are his words of advice.
JUNE/JULY 2012 PC 37
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