In 2015, the Parish Council had obtained a large field next to its existing football and cricket field.  We knew we needed to expand our football facilities, but how else should we use the field? 

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We began a major public engagement and consultation exercise – this land, after all, belongs to the Claypole Community.  We started by asking everyone – households, stakeholder groups, the school, etc – just what additional amenities they needed and wanted.  

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We got lots of ideas.  Some had to be discounted because of revenue consequences (so no bowling green), and some because they were way outside our remit (so no McDonalds and no circus – sorry kids).  But we had lots of ideas that could involve community activity, and we then set up tasks groups, of councillors and community members, to look at each one and decide their feasibility.

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The next stage was to ask the community to decide which ideas they liked the most, and their feedback enabled us to produce a blueprint for a site that would include a brand new football pitch, the leisure park with its adventure play, the decrepit old tennis courts converted into a MUGA, a skateboard/bmx park and a new sports pavilion.

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The new football pitch, funded largely by Sport England, was completed by James Pugh-Lewis Ltd in early 2018.  The Leisure Park was designed for us by Stephen Welch Designs, landscaped by Freddie Allen Landscapes, and the play equipment supplied by Jupiter Play, with funding support coming from FCC, Awards for All, South Kesteven District Council’s Communities Fund and a major spend by the Parish Council.  

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The opening of the Leisure Park and the completion of the football pitch were celebrated at a community event – A Picnic in the Park – on a sunny June day in 2018, with entertainers, coaches giving introductions to a variety of sports, lectures in the outdoor classroom from our local historian, and a great deal of fun.

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In 2020, funding was obtained from the FCC Communities Foundation to build the new MUGA.  This work was carried out for us by James Pugh-Lewis Ltd, and by Xenon Electricals who installed the new floodlights.

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Next up? 

 

See “Our Plans” and how you can help.