Club Watch

Club Watch – Winterbourne CC – Ground Development

A Gallery has been set up to show you all how the project develops - see the bottom of this page

3 Years ago Winterbourne CC had a vision to build a new pavilion on their second ground and for this to become the ‘home’ for their club. They applied for planning permission which was granted by South Gloucestershire Council. Planning permission only lasts for a 3 year period and at the end of August 2011 it was due to run out so the urgency of developing the project became a higher priority for the club in the 2010/11 close season.

Meeting - The club met with the GCB and talked about the project and it was during this conversation that they were informed about the possibility of receiving an ECB Interest Free Loan and also the possibility of working with one of the new GCB partners, the Filton College Construction Department.

Costs - With initial drawings and plans the project was costed at around £250,000, a big ask for any club to find, even one the size of Winterbourne CC who has 4 senior Saturday teams, 120+ juniors and 40+ senior playing members.

Consultation – Whilst the club committee believed the project to be the right thing to do for the future of Winterbourne CC, they knew that due to the amount of effort needed in both human resource and finances a meeting was required to get an understanding of the support from the club and its community members.

A meeting on the 12^th July was held at the local, adjoining, Primary School where all members and local community members were invited. The committee members led the meeting and explained the proposal. Many good thoughts came from the floor, which have now helped shape the project. Each person in attendance was asked to complete a simple form on whether or not they agreed with the plan and if so in what way they could support it.

Agreement – With all supporting the project the next steps for the club were to get updated drawings of the plan that would meet both the ECB and Sport Englands technical specifications and to arrange meetings with the ECB and Filton College. Once this had been done the club believed that it could happen and at a cut price due to the partnerships formed.

Filton College – The college has a large construction department with courses in Electrical work, Plumbing, Building, Roofing, Plastering, Carpentry and Painting & Decorating. All of the students, as part of their course, have practical elements to complete which takes place in a class room or a 'dummy' site. Following each assessment the work is taken to pieces and there is nothing to show for it. This is the joy of working with the Cricket Board as it is aware of ‘real life’ projects that the students can work on and get real life experience, help to build up a portfolio and give them something in the community that they can be proud of.

Next Steps – With a cut price project now going ahead due to the ‘free’ labour from the college students and the buying power of the College for cheaper materials, the club are now well placed to make their dream a reality. As a result of this they have now started work on the footings in time to beat the planning permission deadline, and they are working with the ECB to submit their application for their Interest Free Loan.