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The project seeks to restore the open space on the St. Matthews Estate to its former glory and in doing so provide a safe useable leisure and recreation area for residents in addition to improved playing facilities for football and cricket teams.
This area of the site was left undeveloped by the developers, while the football and cricket pitches have been maintained the periphery of the site is largely overgrown and inaccessible.
The project would provide:
- Clearance of overgrown area;
- a driveway and parking area;
- a footpath/nature trail;
- provision of communal seating;
- installation of an artificial cricket wicket;
- building of a mini football pitch on reclaimed ground.
The new football and cricket facilities are targeted a children and young people specifically and would provide much needed facilities for the wider community in the Burntwood area.
My son plays cricket for St. matthews and the all weather surface would help him develop his game. Also clearing the long grass areas and improving the off road parking,would benefit both the club and the local community.
the project would be of great benefit to the area and would be a great positive impact on the local community
I feel that the money will help the cricket club not only to improve their facilities but also to help attract more members for the cricket club team. I feel the facilities we have got at the moment are not substantial and definately need some work doing on them. The overgrown grass is definately an issue for the cricket club, and so clearing this up with be very beneficial. Seating for spectators watching either cricket or football matches would also be ideal. A footpath to walk around the outside of the pitch would be superb for anyone who tends to use this piece of land.
This would be a fantastic opportunity for our local cricket ground to be preserved, it would be a huge benefit for local children and adults, and for future generations.
The planned development will be a great benefit to everyone involved with the cricket club and the whole community. The work that is put into the club by all the coaches and players is an asset to Burntwood.
Anything we can do for the kids of Burntwood has got to be for the good of the community as well. An all weather wicket would be a great help as would a 5 a side pitch and nature trail this site could then be used and enjoyed by the local community. Off road parking would, I’m sure,be appreciated by the local residents as well.
The St Matthews site and the sports clubs that use it are an important part of Burntwoods history. The cricket pitch was laid out in the 1860′s with the cricket club, as it is known today, able to trace its history back to 1897.
Since the closure of the hospital in 1995 the work of St Matthews Hospital CC in maintaining the grounds and buildings has been outstanding in the face of some extreme adversity.
In the past 15 years the club has coped with vandalism, graffiti, attempted arson and theft, deliberate damage to the ground and constant dog fouling. Yet still this club and its committed members and management committee continue, week in and week out, to improve the facilities and develop cricket within Burntwood.
We should not forget that Burntwood, with a population well in excess of 35,000 is served by a single cricket club, St Matthews.
St Matthews is, and always has been, a family and community club. The committee and members are focused on developing both senior and junior sides as well as links with the community.
For over 15 years the committee and members of the club have worked hard to maintain the facility as best they can in adverse circumstances. This they have done on a shoe string budget based on personal contributions and fundraising events.
The St Matthews estate and Burntwood as a whole deserve a facility of which they can be proud of.
The plans put forward are bold, realistic and will be an asset to the community
The development of the riddings is well overdue. My son plays cricket and would benefit from the all weather surface to improve his skills, as we know the british weather is not good and training does get canceled a lot. The lads who play cricket and look after the ground have done a fantastic job but more can be done. This would not just benefit the people already using the riddings but for the community as a whole.
I watched the kids train on Monday night (07.06.10)at the Riddings, there must have been between 30 and 40 children present (including 2 of my own).
All involved were having a great time, more inportantly these kids are given an opportunity to socialize, teambuild, improve self esteem let alone improve their cricketing skills.
Some participate in either practice or games up to 4 or 5 times a week. This means that kids are not hanging around on street corners or shopping precincts but being active and having fun – how many times do we hear that there is nothing to do for kids and teenagers, well here they do have something to do.
All of the coaches and back room staff give up so much of their free time voluntary. They do not get paid it is done for the love of the game and for the value of the community.
The required funding is genuinely deserved and will make such a positive and lasting difference.
The redevelopment of the Riddings is long over due and will not only benefit St Matthew’s Hospital Cricket Club. Plenty of people use the site for various reasons and it is only right that such an area is developed to accomodate the needs of all the local people.
St mathews is a great community a great meeting place
St Matthews Cricket Club, have maintained and improved this valuable cummunal space, and this grant would allow them to improve it further. It would not just be of benefit to the club, but also to the local community, many of whom enjoy this lovely area. The plan includes the provision for parking aswell, so would reduce the impact on the roads through the estate.
The planned development will not only improve the surroundings for local residents but also increase recreational participation for young children and adults alike.
The installation of an artificial cricket wicket will increase the amount of games and activities that club members, local children and residents can participate in and will guarantee the future success of Burntwood St. Matthews Cricket Club.
The development of the site is an ongoing struggle and this project will help to restore the grounds to their former glories and I for one will welcome this.
Developing the St Matthews site will help to promote healthy sports activities within the Burntwood and surrounding area.The facility at the moment has limited car parking and is quite overgrown. Clearing and developing the area will enhance the local neibourhood, which inturn will encourage more youngsters and adults to beome involved in sport.
This project if approved will compliment all the good work already going on within Burntwood to promote positive activities for children, young people and families. Not only will this create a safer and more appropriate environment for the sporting activities, it will provide a fantastic, useful community outdoor space in an area with limited facilities for free play. Hopefully the outcome will be, healthier children and families making a positive contribution to enjoy and achieve in a safe environment.
The development of the proposed area will improve and extend the facilities currently available in the locality….which are not many!!
The proposals are long overdue and supported by many of the residents in the immediate area.
A lot of hard work by unpaid and keen coaches will be enhanced with the proposed improvements, they encourage a lot of local children to enjoy cricket etc..which would not usually be available via any other source….local authority etc. They need our support.
The redevelopment of this communal, multi-purpose site is long overdue. Funding will support the ‘be healthy’ element of the Government initiative, Every Child Matters as improvements will provide a much needed artificial cricket wicket and mini football pitch for children in the Burntwood area, encouraging more families to reap the benefits of a healthier lifestyle. Other improvements to the parkland and introduction of a nature trail will widen the appeal of the site to walkers and bring it up to the standard of the local area for the pleasure of local residents and the wider community.
Over a number of years I know that the existing and previous members of the club have struggled to maintain a cricket club at this site and to maintain a facility for adults and children, cricketers and non-cricketers to use in a heavily built area. Their proposal to clear the remaining overgrown area; install a driveway and parking area (current congestion on road will be eased); as well as other general community facilities (and in conjunction with local residents) – i.e. seating;nature trail etc would be a much used and appreciated asset for use by the WHOLE community. Also of course it would be putting back monies into the immediate area from the very builders of the site who provided the money and yet left it as an eye sore for years !
Burntwood St Matthews Cricket Club provides a valuable service to the local community. The more children that can get involved with this club the more the local community will benefit from keeping children occupied in a useful activity. I know that the club put a tremendous amount of work into the maintenance of the grounds, but the club is not sufficiently large enough, at present, to be able to do the needed improvements. The better the facilities available at the ground, then the better for atracting the local families to join, which will benefit the whole community. Who knows, but the next Amjal Shahzad could come from Burntwood, if given the chance!
This is a much needed development for the local area, which will encourage youngsters to get health by getting involved in sports. To do this facilities need to be in a condition which encourages children.
As an estate resident we have noticed the time and effort invested by people in improving the area and the additional funding can only serve help the local area and local community clubs. We have had discussions with the St Matthews Club and they will involve the local residents in all stages of the development which was our concern.
The financial investment is minimal compared to enjoyment of the children.
As a parent of a lad who has only recently taken up cricket, I would like to see the ground at St.Matthews imporoved. It is a lovely setting as it is, but needs tidying up around the edges. The children would benefit from the all weather surface as then the weather would not play as big a factor in training being called off. I would also like to see the parking arrangements to be improved as it must be tiring for the residents of the area to find themsleves unable to park when they get home from work.
great 0pp0rtunity to enhance what always was an excellent sports facility for the hospital. The community would have a ‘village green’whilst youngsters would benefit from improving their cricket and football skills
this is a great opportunity to improve an area that was conserved from the ex- hospital site, a refurb of what always was an exellent sport facility for the area. An opportunity for youngsters to benefit from cricket and football skills whilst improving the site to enhance the area for the community in general.
I believe the development of the riddings is not only long over due, but is essential to the development of local children and adults alike. The development of the recreational area would benefit not only the St. Matthews Estate – but the Burntwood area as a whole. At the moment, there are around 5 senior cricket teams, 5 junior cricket teams, 2 senior football teams and 1 junior football team using the ‘facilities’ that are present.
I think that the installation of an artificial pitch will create a consistent playing surface for junior cricketers to develop and hone their skills. It will also allow a number of other clubs in the area to use the facilities more easily than currently.
Factored into the applied grant is enough funds to clear the general area. It will ensure a nature trail, seating for spectators, appropriate parking facilities (to ease congestion on the adjecent road) and a general cleanse of the area.