Public Places


Sporting legacy - by Royal decree


One of Britain’s


‘greenest’ villages has created sport and leisure provision newly


recognised at national level, reports Tom James


eam GB’s London Olympics triumphs seem a distant memory, but the mighty task of fulfilling our legacy commitments is the new baton to take up. Central to this Olympics pledge, which includes fostering greater sporting participation across the board, is the need to ensure future generations enjoy the same access to high quality recreation facilities as that of today’s elite sportspeople. The Fields in Trust Queen Elizabeth


T


Fields Challenge was launched to honour 2012’s landmark events - the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee - in a bid to protect as many outdoor recreational spaces in perpetuity as a grassroots legacy.


At last November’s inaugural awards


ceremony, staged at Lords Cricket Ground, scene of the London 2012 archery, host John Inverdale presided over a celebration of the cream of the entrants.


Lifting the Most Improved Field crown 86 PC FEBRUARY/MARCH 2013


was QEII Field Ashton Hayes in Cheshire and, aside from the giant steps taken by those steering the development, it’s a rounded success that stretches far beyond sportsturf.


This concerns the efforts in


transforming a farmer’s fallow field into a first-class recreation site, providing the local community with a football pitch, play area, outdoor gym, orchard and nature area. The judging panel applauded the achievement, but the residents of this little village near Chester (with a population of just 1,000) have a history of going above and beyond for their community. Fields in Trust was founded in 1925 and is the only national charity working to safeguard and improve outdoor recreational spaces. Currently, 1,506 sites have been nominated as part of the Challenge and over £3m has been secured in improvement funds for these sites.


Asda and the Asda Foundation are the principal partners of the Challenge, but


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