Educational Establishments GETTING Personal...
Neil Dixon - calm, honest and personable - unless it’s last orders at the bar. Time gentlemen, please
Who are you? Neil Dixon, Head of Grounds and Gardens, St Paul’s School.
Family status? Married to Jo for fourteen years, no children, but a 2½ yr old Boxer dog called George.
Who’s your hero and why? Those serving in the armed forces … they do a very tough job on our behalf and are fearless in doing it.
What would you change about yourself? I would like to be able to eat what I want!
What’s your guilty pleasure? I enjoy a nice Whisky Bourbon.
What do you drop everything for? Last orders!!!
What’s been the highlight of your career so far? Preparing pitches for Middlesex 2nd XI fixtures we held a few years ago; a fantastic experience of competitive pro cricket.
Glass half full or half empty? Depends who’s buying ... half full.
Climate change - fact or fiction? Fact, because it is happening. Whether it is down to man or not, I think is yet unproven.
What’s your favourite season? Autumn.
What are your pet peeves? Rudeness and arrogance.
If you could go anywhere right now, where would it be? Disney World, Florida.
What’s the best part of your job? Looking back on a well striped pitch.
… and the worst? Coming in to a mud bath after a wet fixture.
Do you have a lifetime ambition? Apart from live forever, I would like to travel the world.
Who wouldn’t you like to be? Any politician: they are pompous buffoons who have a zero grip on reality, yet tell the rest how to live their life; the worrying thing is, we elect them!!!
Favourite record, and why? Probably Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen, a timeless and stirring song.
Who would you choose to spend a romantic evening with? My wife.
If you won the lottery, what is the first thing you would do? Book a holiday.
If you were to describe yourself as a musical instrument, what would you be and why? Drums, can be very
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mellow and calm but, within a split second, that can change!
What’s the best advice you have ever been given? Work hard, respect and treat others how you want to be treated yourself.
What’s your favourite smell? Indian food.
What do you do in your spare time? Walk the dog, enjoy cycling, and socialising with friends.
What's the daftest work related question you have ever been asked? Why is the turf white? - we had just sprayed some fungicide that left a white tinge to the grass. When someone asked why it was white I replied grass is like hair, that the older it gets the grass leaf goes white ... the member walked off chuffed to bits with his new bit of info!
What’s your favourite piece of kit? Wiedenmann Terra Spike or our Sam 5 composter.
What three words would you use to describe yourself? Calm, honest, personable.
What talent would you like to have? To turn water into wine (or beer).
What law/legislation would you like to see introduced? I would hang the young drivers who feel the need to have bass speakers the size of a small house in the boot of their 1.1 Fiesta and turn them full up.
“We recently had six new sand dressed tennis courts constructed (as part of the building project), so we now have a maintenance contract in place with a specialist company who visit us three times a year for decompaction work; we will simply keep the surface clear of leaves and brush the surface in between.” “Last summer, we relocated a rugby pitch by just a few metres, following the installation of a barrier fence around our 1st team rugby/football pitch, and we’ve recently completed the installation of an eleven lane cricket net area. In addition, the newly opened science building and the future work will need to be complemented by landscaping and play areas.” Interestingly, the new ‘Founders Court’ quad has lawns where, at the southern end with poor light and reduced air movement, outbreaks of fusarium have been seen, whilst the northern end, with good light and air movement has suffered from red thread; “both very good examples of disease being specific to environment,” says Neil. “These lawns are currently under the control of the landscape contractor, but we take ownership this January - there’s always something to do.”
Neil believes that televised sport is giving our industry a higher profile, which is helping to raise standards across the board. “I do think, with the exposure live sport has given us, it has raised the expectations of those who use our facilities and, if our surfaces are not pristine, they want to know why. This is where communication and education comes into it. I see a big part of my role here as helping the teaching staff to understand what and why we do things, and then they are in an informed position about why a particular pitch may be unplayable.” “A lot of our current sports staff have played professional cricket and rugby. Our High Master, for example, has represented England and the Barbarians at rugby, so it is not unreasonable for them to expect the surfaces to be of good standards.” “Organisations within the industry, such as
Pitchcare, could certainly help our cause by giving talks at various conferences up and down the country to senior management level.” “We need to highlight just how diverse
our role is within an organisation to those who manage them. Whilst I am in no doubt that most do value the groundstaff, it is always nice to be recognised.” “Most grounds managers at organisations such as St Paul’s will have responsibility for Health & Safety, budgets, capital expenditure, COSHH, staff management, and be responsible for several hundred thousand pounds worth of machinery. They will be expected to produce budgets, timesheets and reports, and all at the same time as ensuring the bins are empty, roads are swept and the surfaces are maintained to the highest standards.” Neil remains pragmatic about soil profiles, budgets, staffing levels and bin emptying, but states that it was always drummed into him that, to succeed in life you have to work hard. “Doing a job you enjoy helps of course,” he concludes.
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