Table 7.1 - Recommended Playing Pitch Provision by 2021

I am commenting as the youth section manager and a committee member of Rayleigh Fairview Cricket Club. I agree with the conclusion in table 7.1 at chapter 7.4 that the Rayleigh sub-area should have another 3 cricket pitches by 2021, but, as explained in my contribution at chapter 5.8 of this document, at the time it was published there was a shortfall of 2 cricket pitches in the Rayleigh sub-area rather than the shortage of 1.2 identified at paragraph 5.8. There is therefore a serious current shortfall of cricket pitches that has come about because Rayleigh is the largest and fastest growing area of population in Rochford District and demand for cricket there has soared because the two clubs in Rayleigh have been very proactive in the community in introducing young people to cricket either by providing coaching in schools or staging their own coaching outside of school hours. As shown at paragraph 5.16 of this document, Rayleigh Cricket Club now puts out 6 teams on a Saturday afternoon, and sometimes this is increased to 7. My club, Rayleigh Fairview Cricket Club, has 4 teams on a Saturday afternoon and therefore the current 3 pitches in Rayleigh are insufficient to cater for the 10 regular senior Saturday teams of these two clubs.

Rayleigh Fairview's 3rd and 4th teams have to play their home games at a pitch outside of the Rochford boundary. The club also has three junior teams that play at the Under 11, U13 and U15 age levels. Due to the fact that the club provides coaching to the local primary and secondary schools, the numbers attending junior practices indicate a demand for my club to increase the number of junior teams at each age level. However, at the moment we are unable to meet this demand because we have only one ground and it would not be cost effective to use the other ground outside of the Rochford area which the senior players have to use. I propose that as part of the development of 550 houses north of London Road as shown in the Allocations DPD in the Local Development Framework document, an additional cricket pitch should be made available to Rayleigh Fairview Cricket Club and be sited adjacent to the club's current ground which is on the playing field at Rayleigh Town Sports and Social Club, which rents its site in London Road from Rochford Council. The cricket club is already part of the social fabric of the community through the practices it stages for young people and its coaching in schools, and siting an extra pitch near to London Road would provide good accessibility for the adults and children in the area, whose numbers are bound to increase in view of the above housing development.

It has been reported in the media that a significant proportion of this development will be on brownfield sites in London Road at the old E.On site and at Timber Grove, both of which are close to Rayleigh Town Sports and Social Club. Putting a cricket pitch adjacent to Rayleigh Fairview's existing pitch would therefore be in line with paragraphs 2.8 and 2.23 of the document which recommend the provision of pitches close to brownfield sites and in accessible locations. The good road links to London Road would also facilitate accessibility for the wider population of Rayleigh. This would enable the players using the new pitch to also use the existing changing and social facilities at the Rayleigh Town site, and by bringing all the club's adult and junior players together at the same site it would foster club spirit and community cohesion in the London Road area.

I also propose that developers be asked to improve the cricket changing facilities on the existing Rayleigh Fairview pitch to help the club expand its provision of cricket to young people and women, which is one of the club's main aims.