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GroundsFest Academy Launches with Successful First Event

May 16, 2025/in Events, News, Press Release/by Admin

GroundsFest Academy Launches with Successful First Event: The first ever GroundsFest Academy event has been hailed a huge success, as delegates from across the industry gathered for a free day of hands-on education at DLF UK’s state-of-the-art facility. With a packed schedule of insightful sessions and interactive learning, the event marked the beginning of a […]

Dennis ES-510 Delivers Electric Performance

May 16, 2025/in Machinery, News, Press Release/by Admin

Dennis ES-510 Delivers Electric Performance: Keswick’s two flagship parks – Hope Park and Fitz Park – nestled in the heart of the Lake District in Cumbria, are setting the standard for sustainable grounds maintenance thanks to the exceptional performance of three Dennis ES-510 battery-powered mowers. The move to electric machinery was spearheaded by Christine Fawcett, […]

GroundsFest Academy Launches with Successful First Event

May 16, 2025/in Events, News, Press Release/by Admin

Dennis ES-510 Delivers Electric Performance

May 16, 2025/in Machinery, News, Press Release/by Admin

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

GroundsFest Academy Launches with Successful First Event

May 16, 2025/in Events, News, Press Release/by Admin

GroundsFest Academy Launches with Successful First Event: The first ever GroundsFest Academy event has been hailed a huge success, as delegates from across the industry gathered for a free day of hands-on education at DLF UK’s state-of-the-art facility. With a packed schedule of insightful sessions and interactive learning, the event marked the beginning of a new era in accessible, high-quality training for the grounds care and landscaping sectors.

The day kicked off with a welcome reception and a full introduction to DLF and the hosts for the day, followed by a series of educational activities including seed and grass plant identification, germination tests, and a pre-germination session. After a tour of the DLF site, the afternoon was dedicated to sowing, aftercare and maintenance techniques, rounded off with a recap and open Q&A.

GroundsFest Academy Launches with Successful First Event

Each session was designed to give attendees practical skills and a deeper understanding of seed science – knowledge they could take away and apply immediately in their work. From seasoned professionals to volunteers and educators, the event offered something for everyone.

David Newell, Deputy Head Groundsman at Reading FC, praised the event’s unique approach:

“You never know what to expect from a new event but it has been really educational. It’s different to anything you get anywhere else – learning all about the different varieties of seed, what they do and why they do it, has been fantastic. The wildflower seeding talk was very educational too. Our football club wants to start doing that, so hopefully I can take that back and give something back to Reading FC.”

For Jo Shepherd, Horticulture Apprenticeship Skills Coach at Windsor College, the day was a valuable upskilling opportunity:

“I teach horticulture apprentices – many of them love turf – and my background is more in garden design and maintenance, so I wanted to upskill myself to better support them.

Identifying grasses was a great experience; it’s much harder than plant ID. Seeing the site and understanding the production side was really helpful too.”

The event also attracted professionals from outside of traditional turf roles. Rich Young, Product Director at Mowd, highlighted the networking and CPD value:

“DLF are one of our seed suppliers, so seeing their operation and the science behind it was eye-opening. It’s reassuring to know our customers are getting the best. But for me, the value came from networking and learning – that’s going to benefit me and the business throughout the year.”

Mike Green, a volunteer groundsman at Winterborne Cricket Club, represented the grassroots level of the industry and found the day equally rewarding:

“Free educational days like this are a massive help for volunteers like me. I picked up loads of useful info, spoke to people working in sports turf, and just found the day incredibly beneficial. It’s been a really successful day for me.”

The GroundsFest Academy is the latest initiative from the team behind GroundsFest, made possible through reinvestment of profits from the show directly back into the industry.

Bradley Tennant, Director of Education for GroundsFest Academy, said:

“There’s a big skills gap in the industry, and the GroundsFest Academy has been created to help address that. Whether someone is new to the sector or has decades of experience, these events are designed to support ongoing development. Seeing everyone smiling, learning and sharing knowledge today has been incredible – and it’s just the beginning.”

Matt Gresty, MM and Designer Sales and Brand Manager at DLF UK, added:

“We felt honoured to be asked to host the first event. It’s great to show what we do, but even better to contribute to education and understanding in the industry. It is good to give something back to the industry. From wildflower seeds to sports turf, we want to help people improve their work through better knowledge.”

This is just the first of many free educational events from the GroundsFest Academy, with future events already planned.

Keep an eye out for announcements on upcoming GroundsFest Academy events – and take your place at the forefront of industry education.

Registration to GroundsFest 2025 is now open. Please visit www.groundsfest.com

You can also follow GroundsFest on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @GroundsFest for much more news, reviews and insightful views.

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

Get all of the big headlines, pictures, opinions and videos on stories that matter to you.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram for fun, fresh and engaging content.

You can also find us on Facebook for more of your must-see news, features, videos and pictures from Turf Matters.

Dennis ES-510 Delivers Electric Performance

May 16, 2025/in Machinery, News, Press Release/by Admin

Dennis ES-510 Delivers Electric Performance: Keswick’s two flagship parks – Hope Park and Fitz Park – nestled in the heart of the Lake District in Cumbria, are setting the standard for sustainable grounds maintenance thanks to the exceptional performance of three Dennis ES-510 battery-powered mowers.

The move to electric machinery was spearheaded by Christine Fawcett, Parks Manager at Keswick Town Council, following the council’s bold step to declare a climate emergency. “Keswick Town Council and Keswick Parks declared a climate emergency six years ago,” Christine explains. “So obviously things had to change with fossil fuelled maintenance machinery, and we started looking for battery alternatives.”

Dennis ES-510 Delivers Electric Performance

The parks team had been long-time users of the petrol-powered Dennis FT510, known for its reliability and versatility – particularly its interchangeable cassette system. When Dennis introduced the battery-powered ES-510, which retained compatibility with the same range of cassettes, the transition was a natural progression.

“We’d built up a full suite of cassettes over the years,” says Christine. “From scarifiers to brushes, verticutter, sorrel roller and cutting cassettes – we rely on all of them throughout the year to deliver high standards of turf care. When the ES-510 came out, it looked like the perfect time to make the change to battery. And because the cassettes were compatible, we didn’t need to start from scratch.”

In fact, Keswick’s parks team became the first users in the UK to adopt an electric Dennis machine three years ago and now operate three ES-510s across both Hope and Fitz Parks.

Hope Park is a popular destination for visitors, featuring a nine-hole pitch and putt course and a large putting green. Fitz Park, affectionately known as the ‘people’s park’, is home to a bowling green, five grass tennis courts, an 18-hole putting course, and serves as the base for local sports clubs including Keswick Football Club, the bowling and tennis clubs, athletics, and cricket. Both parks are owned by charitable trusts and maintained by a dedicated in-house team overseen by Christine.

One ES-510 can handle a significant workload in a single day – cutting the bowling green, two grass-court tennis courts, and nine holes on the pitch and putt – with the battery lasting comfortably through the day. “It gets charged overnight and it’s ready to go again the next day,” says Christine.

The machines play a crucial role in Keswick’s fine turf maintenance regime. Christine explains: “We start the season with light verticutting and brushing to clean the surfaces and remove debris. Once the season starts, we usually verticut every three weeks or so, depending on the weather. Cutting typically happens twice a week, usually on a Monday and Thursday. At the end of the season, we scarify the greens and tennis courts before overseeding in late September.”

For the team, the switch to battery has brought many advantages. “We really like the flexibility – you can adjust the walking pace, set the cylinder speed depending on the task, and even keep track of how far you’ve walked in a day,” Christine adds. “It makes the job easier and more tailored to the person using it.”

Now in their third season, the Dennis ES-510s are proving their worth across Keswick’s green spaces – helping the town meet its sustainability goals without compromising on quality. “The ES-510s have helped us maintain our sports surfaces to a high standard while reducing our environmental impact – and that’s something we’re really proud of.”

For further information or a no obligation demonstration, please contact Dennis 01332 824 777 or visit www.dennisuk.com

For more news, reviews and insightful views, you can follow Dennis on X and Instagram @DennisMowers and like the company’s Facebook page – www.facebook.com/DennisMowersUK. You can also view the latest Dennis videos by visiting www.youtube.com/DennisMowers

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

Get all of the big headlines, pictures, opinions and videos on stories that matter to you.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram for fun, fresh and engaging content.

You can also find us on Facebook for more of your must-see news, features, videos and pictures from Turf Matters.

Half Sized Blog Element (Single Author Style)

Half Sized Blog Element (Multi Author Style)

GroundsFest Academy Launches with Successful First Event

Dennis ES-510 Delivers Electric Performance

GroundsFest Academy Launches with Successful First Event

Dennis ES-510 Delivers Electric Performance

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GroundsFest Academy Launches with Successful First Event

Dennis ES-510 Delivers Electric Performance

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