Educational Establishments
keeping lawns and all aspects of non-sports surroundings in top order. He made such a mark that, two years ago, the school’s Bursar asked him to be acting Grounds Manager, in charge of both the estate and sports pitch teams, for a six-month trial period. The position became a permanent one, Guy having made a real difference to the quality of the playing fields and, in particular, in the way the two grounds care teams operated more efficiently. The two maintenance teams - a 5-man one
for the pitches and 6-man for the estate - operated as separate entities when Guy first came to the school. He could see that this had its limitations. When he was appointed Grounds Manager
Every day (except Sundays), the students at Christ’s Hospital march into lunch to the sound of the school band
overseeing both teams, Bursar Keith Wilder MBE told him he was keen to see a change in the whole operation and Guy has since been instrumental in bringing the teams together. “Previously, there had been no crossover at all and this, I felt, hampered overall productivity,” said Guy. “Everyone has now attended courses on everything from pitch maintenance and marking to tractor driving and hedge cutting, so we can now cover for each other, if necessary. There is a rota- system so that, every three or four months, everyone moves on to a fresh task. This keeps skills active and everyone on their toes with a much broader interest in what’s going on.” “Amalgamation was necessary and has
proved very successful. We still have the two team structure, Vince Bowyer leading the Estate team, and Joe Cox, the Sports Pitch team, but there’s a constant flexibility.” “At present, I’m the only one with a
Christ’s Hospital, a great school with a great outdoors “ 52 I PC APRIL/MAY 2016
chainsaw licence, but three team members are about to go on a chainsaw course so, much as I like tree work, the pressure on me to do all necessary felling will ease a bit.” Guy started out as a £55-a-week
Everyone has now attended courses on everything from pitch maintenance and marking to tractor driving and hedge cutting, so we can now cover for each other if necessary
apprentice greenkeeper at Mannings Heath Golf Club, not too far away, where day release to Brinsbury College at Pulborough helped him achieve Level 2 Greenkeeping and Sportsturf Management. After four years there and spells at two other local courses - the Cottesmore Hotel Golf and Country Club near Crawley and Horsham Council’s Rookwood Golf Centre - he progressed to Level 3 and added chainsaw and spraying qualifications to his CV. He needed a wider challenge than the golf
course though and took a job on the grounds team at Cranleigh College, an independent school in Surrey, where, under Grounds Manager Denis Bloomfield, he broadened his skills greatly. After six months there, a bigger challenge at Christ’s Hospital came up. Christ’s Hospital has twenty-two natural
An additional sand dressed hockey pitch will address the balance between boys’ and girls’ sports provision
grass winter pitches for both rugby and football and these are heavily used throughout the Michaelmas and Lent terms. During the summer term, ten cricket squares are in action, together with four 3-bay artificial surface nets. A sand-filled Astro pitch, constructed in the 1990s and refurbished in 2013, caters for hockey, and there are fifteen tarmac tennis and netball courts.
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