Sports Pavilion update

QEII New Recreation Ground Pavilion upgrade

In previous magazines we have highlighted the problems of the Pavilion in the New Recreation ground, which is long over due for an upgrade. It is far from a showpiece for the village and does not encourage other groups to use it. To improve the site the Parish Council has been looking at ways of adapting the building to make it more inclusive and secure. A concept design put together in 2012, addressed many of the problems, both inside and outside of the building, and the proposed improvements will make the building more inclusive, with disabled facilities very high on the agenda. In addition improving the toilets and general appeal of the inside of the building is equally important. As those who have used the building over the years will agree, at the moment it has a dark and unpleasant atmosphere. Making the building secure

The security measures at the front of the building shown in the illustration below will be the most visible sign of change to the Pavilion. This handcrafted metalwork will not only provide security, but give it an attractive appeal. A steel balustrade will be fixed between each of the brick columns and topped with a wooden handrail. These static panels will contain large steel hand-drawn sporting silhouettes, which will adorn the front of the balustrade. Above this will be a retractable steel shuttering system fixed to the top of the timber roof rail and hinged, allowing them to be folded back to the brick columns when the building is in use, providing an unobstructed view. The floor in the porch area will to be raised to the level of the doorsills of the building.

At both ends of the pavilion, a wide disabled-friendly curved path will slope upwards from the main path to new wide steel security entrance gates, for wheelchair accessibility. The design of the gates will reflect the frontage, but the security grilles will be static.

Once the security measures are in place, the porch area of the building will be renovated to make it a more attractive attribute to the village. The shuttered windows will be replaced with bright French doors, allowing more light into the building. The doors will also allow easy access into the building for wheelchair users and disabled motorised vehicles. The entrance doors to the changing rooms either side of the windows will be replaced with modern bright fittings – also disabled friendly. The two additional doors on the protruding wall will be removed and blocked up.

These design changes will not only enhance the building, but also provide a secure frontage, preventing the level of damage experienced to date. A significant change to the inside of the building will be the new disabled facilities and baby changing area. The two main toilet areas will also be improved. With the exception of the kitchen, the ladies and gents toilets, all internal doors will be replaced with disabled doors.

At the rear of the building the exit door will also be replaced with a disabled access door. The small window to the left and the wall below it will be removed and this area filled with highly toughened glass blocks. With this glass wall together with the new French doors, the building will become a light and amenable space.

The carpets in the main meeting area and entrances to both changing areas will be replaced with non-slip easy-clean flooring. The inside of the building will be redecorated throughout. The area at the rear of the building will be re-fenced and the ground levelled and completely paved.

Funding

Following the presentation to the Parish Council of the Pavilion concept design, it was agreed to fund the much-needed upgrade by allocating £53,000 of community funds to the project. This will include the internal structural work and the security measures at the front, plus the area at the back of the building. However, the Pavilion is in a unique position with funders today. Following on from the 2012 Olympics it is hoped

that everybody will be encouraged to take up a sport of some kind. To this end funding has been made available for sports facilities. So it will come as no surprise that the Parish Council have looked at funding from various sources to help upgrade the Pavilion. Sport England lottery fund were first approached. The funding was based on matched funding and equals the money already allocated by the Parish Council. It is with great pleasure that we announce we have been awarded the funding from Sport England which gives a total fund value of just over £100,000 towards the refurbishment of the Pavilion. With this extra funding we are now in a position to improve other areas in the building, such as the changing rooms and showers.

A second potential funding source comes from South Cambridgeshire District Council in the way of equipment and other resources. SCDC have offered to install Solar PV panels on the roof of the Pavilion. Savills Ltd have been undertaking a large solar PV installation project for the Council using a unique funding partnership which enables the panels to be installed through private investment and for others to benefit from free day time electricity. The responsible for the safety, security and maintenance of the system will be the installer, Sustain Solar. Linked with the Solar PV panels could be a SolarImmersion system. This would enable electricity generated by the Solar PVs to help with water heating. This would be boosted by an electric immersion system to insure we have hot water at all times. The benefit of free electricity and hot water is a much-needed commodity for the football clubs.

An Air-Source heating system could also be installed by Fosters Property Maintenance who are a contractor employed by South Cambridgeshire District Council. This heating is a cost effective method of heating the building to a constant temperature throughout the year. Fosters will also provide maintenance for this system.

The Pavilion kitchen may also receive a much-needed makeover by Borras Construction who have agreed to replace the existing kitchen with a modern set-up. Borras Construction are a contractor of South Cambridgeshire District Council.

These contractors are using their community funds that they set aside each year, which clients such as South Cambridgeshire District Council can bid for community projects.

At the time of writing, the Parish Council has not received the full spec for any of the equipment offered by SCDC and will review them carefully before any commitment to install is made.

SITA/Fields in Trust fund were also approached for funding. Unfortunately we have just been informed we were unsuccessful with this bid. The funding was to be used to upgrade the path leading from the car park to the Pavilion with a wider disabled path. Together with the new disabled facilities in the Pavilion, many more people who currently find it difficult to use the site, would have been able to do so.

Picnic tables constructed from recycled plastics and suitable for wheelchair access had been included in this funding application. These are designed to allow wheelchair users to sit comfortably under the table. Additional bins and a recycling can/plastic bottle bin had also been included. The council will pursue other funding avenues, to take this forward.

A wealth of opportunities

Football plays a significant part in the use of the sports recreation ground which is currently used by three adult and eleven junior teams. With the forthcoming improvements there are many more possibilities to extend this building’s use and make it an important asset for the village.

Small clubs and family groups have already expressed an interest in using the building and fields for parties and family reunions. With the frontage security measures in place offering a ‘safe-space’ for young children and an improved area at the rear of the building, the Pavilion will offer an ideal summer venue for children’s parties. Interest has also been shown by businesses for functions for their employees.

It would be possible to open the Pavilion as a regular summer venue for youngsters, providing games and sporting activities. Sporting equipment for young people had been included in the SITA/Fields in Trust fund application. This included outdoor table-tennis tables, Kwik-Cricket, Softball/Baseball kit, Portable Volleyball, Rugby-Tag and Rounder’s.

Use of both the Pavilion and field for outdoor activities requiring space, is about offering a venue for a specific purpose and not about taking revenue from other venues already available in the village.

Getting youth motivated

MAYD (Melbourn Area Youth Development – see page 39) utilised this site during the Summer of 2012 and again this year with an event organised to bring the youngsters together, with the aim of introducing them to the Youth Club. With this in mind, it would be possible to open the Pavilion as a regular summer venue for youngsters, providing games and sporting activities.

Although the Youth Club is attended regularly, it could see a substantial increase in numbers if it were moved from the school grounds. Evidence of this comes from discussions with the youth and youth workers: youngsters feel inhibited by the Club’s current venue in connection to the school.

The revamped Pavilion could provide an option for an alternate Youth Club and as such would then become ‘theirs’. This would promote more respect for the building and help prevent the type of damage incurred over the years.

If additional funding becomes available, equipment such as a pool table, indoor table tennis and dartboards could be included. These are inexpensive and use very little footprint when folded up.

Work will begin at the end of August and continue for approximately 3 months. Peter Simmonett Chair Play and Recreation Committee.

As many of you will have seen the new recreational shelter is now in place in the New Recreation ground, The Moor and it’s gratifying to see it is well used by many residents and youth.

It was hoped that by the time this issue of the magazine was out, the final piece to shelter would be in place – the Bluetooth speaker. Unfortunately this has been delayed yet again due to a major component being unavailable. It is expected to be in place at the end of September.

Is renewable energy for you?

As solar panels become a common sight around our neighbourhoods, you may be wondering what options are available to you to save or even generate your own energy but it can be daunting knowing where to start. At Trading Standards we want to help you find a trader you can trust and make sure you know what you can expect of these businesses.

When considering the options available to you, the Energy Saving Trust (www. energysavingtrust.org.uk) is a good place to start. They are an independent organisation that provides free, expert advice on saving energy in your home. Their website contains extensive information, and they also have a helpline which can be contacted on 0300 1231234 (national rate).

In terms of funding any improvements, if you aren’t able to pay for them up front, you could consider the Government’s Green Deal Scheme (www.gov.uk/ green-deal-energy-saving-measures) which allows for repayment over a period of time through your energy bills. As with any finance arrangement, make sure you know how much you will have to repay in total, what the monthly charges will be, and check the interest rate is competitive with other finance options. You should also be aware that with Green Deal the debt attaches to the property, so if you sell it, your buyer will have to take over the debt. If you need advice on finance options, your local Citizens Advice Bureau will be able to help you.

There are a range of businesses that offer home assessment visits to advise you on the options most suitable for your specific circumstances. You will usually need to pay for this and you should check whether there is a tie-in clause requiring you to use a certain business to do the installation work if you decide to go ahead. The assessment will give you estimated savings projections for the first year based on a specific level of energy usage. Unfortunately this means you won’t know exactly what you will save, but you can at least check to make sure the estimate is based on a realistic level of energy usage for your situation.

In terms of finding a trader, it is important to shop around to ensure the business is reputable and that the price is fair before agreeing to any work.

Green Deal has its own approved assessors and installers, but if you are not using Green Deal we would recommend that you find an installer and products that are part of the Micro Generation Certification Scheme (MCS) or are Renewable Energy Assurance Limited (REAL) approved. These organisations have codes of practice that traders have to comply with and standards that the products have to meet. The Energy Saving Trust website allows you to search for local installers who belong to MCS. Some members also sit on our Buy With Confidence approved trader scheme giving you even greater assurance that they are businesses you can trust. Visit www. buywithconfidence.gov.uk for more details.

As always, we would recommend getting three quotes to ensure the installation price and projections are reasonable, and check the terms and conditions carefully before agreeing to anything.

If you encounter any problems with an assessor, installer or any other type of business and need some advice, please contact our advice partner, the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline, on 08454 040506 (national rate).

£300K for A10 Cycle Path Improvements

Cambridgeshire County Council’s bid to the Department for Transport for £300K toward cycling infrastructure in our area has been successful. This is part of a larger £4 million bid for the greater Cambridge area. The A10 portion of the bid was made specifically in response to the A10 Corridor Cycling Campaign initiative and indeed one of the criteria for the grant is a demonstration by the County Council that it is working with community groups. Officially our section of the bid is called ‘Cycle Links to Foxton Station’ – again meeting various criteria and designed to give us the best chance of success.

The Campaign was asked by the County Council at its June meeting how it would recommend any funding be spent, and to indicate whether it would support a 2 metre-wide cycle path or a 2.5 metre-standard. The sum of £300K will pay for roughly 1 kilometre of cycle path so it is a case of patiently working the A10 section by section. The consensus was to tackle the worst stretch of the A10 off-road path in the vicinity of Foxton, from Foxton Bottom to the Shepreth Frog End junction, and to go for a 2.5 metre path in order to establish a high standard for the future. One benefit of improving this particular stretch is that it helps to link several villages, including places of work and education. There are many details to be worked out and confirmed but at least this is a very positive first step.

Foxton, Meldreth and Melbourn Parish Councils have all agreed to pay for one set of A10 Corridor Cycling Campaign room hire costs per year, and this seems very fitting in view of the successful bid. A matching request has been made to Shepreth Parish Council.

The A10 Corridor Cycling Campaign meets next on 24 September, 7 for 7:30, at Foxton Village Hall. All welcome and please do plan on arriving at 7 for a cuppa and to meet others. We are a group of low-key village cyclists and you won’t see much lycra! Susan van de Ven County Councillor 01763 261833