Mepal Parish Council

Recreation Ground

FIELD/PITCH HIRE WITH/WITHOUT PAVILION HIRE IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS

Seasonal hire of any part of the recreation field for competitive sports use with or without the use of the Pavilion will require a club to sign up to an agreed Memorandum of Understanding in regards to managing any additional maintenance that results from regular sports use of the area compared to general recreational use. (The Parish Council are unable to fund additional grass cutting and regular maintenance over and above the basic maintenance of a recreation field.)

The costs of the additional grass cutting and repairs and end of season maintenance are likely to be more than a single club can afford, and we are able to work with any club to help them to secure any additional grants.

Memorandum of Understanding – Template

Facilities Hire Terms and Conditions

Mepal’s large recreation ground is located on the land backing onto Laurel Close, Chestnut way and Witcham Road. With pedestrian access from Laurel Close and vehicular and pedestrian access via Witcham road, the Mepal recreation field is the ideal space for events and sports, or just a gentle walk around the perimeter. Whilst the gates are kept locked, if you would like us to open the gates for you or to provide you with the code to unlock the gates, please contact us and we will facilitate access if we can.

A permanent basketball net is located on a tarmac area near to the play park and providing owners correctly dispose of any dog waste, dog walkers are currently permitted to use the perimeter of the area for dog walking on lead only and dog bins are provided at each end – please could we remind dog walkers to pick up and properly dispose of your dog’s poop! We have even installed a poop station with bags provided if you forget to bring your own or just run out. Please use them responsibly.

The resurfacing and renovation work on the field was completed in Spring 2022, and included the installation of a new larger attenuation pond to resolve flooding issues in the PlayPark. It should be noted that due to the fact that irrigation is not possible in prolonged drought conditions, the inevitable shrinkage or heave of the heavy clay soil on the field, may continue to cause seasonal issues that require weekly line top up. The Grounds Management Association advice is that with only some 10-12 weeks available after the end of one season before the start of the next season, renovation of the pitch must commence and be completed in as short a time span as possible to give the rejuvenated pitch as long a period as possible to build up a reasonable level of resilience, as well as to achieve the desired performance standards.

The playing of competitive sport on a regular basis will require an annual commitment from any team(s) wanting to use the field regularly to manage the maintenance and cover the additional costs that will be likely due to increases sporting use, but we will help where we can.

 

 

 

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