Tag Archive for: Provides

Durapost fencing system provides alternative to timber

Durapost fencing system provides alternative to timber: Recently at a property in Leeds, a failing timber fencing system has been replaced with a range of high performance DuraPost products. Incorporating fence posts, Urban Slatted Composite fence panels and an Aluminium Gate, the holistic solution from Birkdale Sales provided all the necessary aesthetic and performance requirements.

While timber fencing can look attractive initially, it inevitably begins to rot, weaken and deteriorate over time. This was the case at the property of Mr Edwards, whose ageing timber fencing was losing its appeal and beginning to fail – so a replacement was needed.

Durapost fencing system provides alternative to timber

Durapost fencing system provides alternative to timber

“We wanted something that would look neater and not require much maintenance. DuraPost by Birkdale seemed to tick all the boxes,” said Mr Edwards. “The slim and tidy galvanised steel posts in anthracite grey give me more space in my garden and come with up to a 25-year guarantee – although it is likely they will last much longer. I then opted for the DuraPost® Urban Slatted Composite fence panels in the Natural colour option. It looks just like cedar, but has greater longevity, thanks to its ability to resist mould and rot.”

Birkdale’s Urban Slatted Composite fence panels are manufactured from a combination of materials, including rice husks – a natural bi-product from the rice industry – which accounts for 55% of the panel. Recycled HDPE (high-density polyethylene) is also incorporated into the design. These robust panels are incredibly strong and wind tested to high speeds.

Steve Ward from Silver Fern Fencing installed the new system. “Thanks to the low weight and slimness of the posts, we could carry and install them easily and quickly. They are so much better to work with than concrete systems, which are far harder to carry and install. The panel boards were then installed horizontally. I always recommend DuraPost® to my customers and will continue to do so.”

Once the project was finished, Mr Edwards was delighted, “Compared to the original timber system, our new fencing is worlds apart. The post works incredibly well with the Urban Slatted Panel to provide fencing that is neat and tidy, very strong and does not require maintenance. All the products in the system helped us to achieve exactly what we set out to do.”

For more information on products within the DuraPost® range, please visit: www.birkdalesales.com/durapost

To watch a video about this project, please visit: https://youtu.be/Wzrqtb_5pSY

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SALTEX provides boost to the industry

SALTEX provides boost to the industry: SALTEX 2023 welcomed over 7,900 visitors to the bustling two-day exhibition. But it’s not just the quantity of visitors that was so impressive in the face of Storm Ciaran but the quality, say show organisers, the GMA.

Geoff Webb, CEO, Grounds Management Association says: “The show data demonstrates that SALTEX continues to deliver on an extremely high level of quality attendees: 25 percent of visitors hold senior managerial positions at their place of work and nearly 80 percent play a role in the purchasing decision-making.”

SALTEX provides boost to the industry

SALTEX provides boost to the industry

It’s certainly a view held by exhibitors too as Rob Edwards, marketing manager of tractor business unit at Kubota, confirms: “Without doubt, SALTEX ‘23 was a great success for Kubota. As the leading event in the UK for grounds management, it was the ideal way for us to showcase our range, as well as launch our innovative new products to the market.

“The format, where products, services, forums, and training are brought together in one place attracts the right customers and we were very busy throughout the show. The GMA does an excellent job of delivering SALTEX, and we are very pleased with the sales, press and marketing opportunities that the show delivered.”

This year, visitors attended from every corner of the UK, as well as a growing international attendance from across the globe. It’s clear that the global appeal of the show continues to grow, with a 20 percent increase in international exhibitors attending SALTEX this year.

The addition of new feature areas including The Clubhouse brought together people from across different sporting communities including women in turf and the cricketing world. The exciting new Community Sports Zone, also saw buoyant business which proved of great benefit to the grassroots and volunteer audience.

Geoff Webb adds, “SALTEX has delivered for the industry once again – it’s the perfect platform to showcase the UK turf sector globally and is a success story for the UK as a whole. For the show to maintain its position as the leading free grounds management show in Europe is testament to how highly regarded and valuable the show is perceived to be in the industry.”

SALTEX will be back at Birmingham NEC on 30-31 October 2024.

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Green-tech provides lightweight soil and laser-cut grilles

Green-tech provides lightweight soil and laser-cut grilles: The area around the North and East of Manchester city centre has been undergoing a renaissance over recent years, with exciting development and refurbishment taking place. One such scheme is the stunning new bio-diverse, cubist-style Leonardo Hotel.

Situated on the corner of Adair Street and Great Ancoats Street, the new 14-storey Leonardo Hotel replaced a weary looking 2-storey office building and adds a welcome link between the busy Piccadilly Station and the East Village Regeneration Zone.

Green-tech provides lightweight soil and laser-cut grilles

Green-tech provides lightweight soil and laser-cut grilles

Even before construction began, the scheme won a Society of Architects design award, one of the contributing factors undoubtedly being the 17 stunning Jenga-style tiered planting boxes: the architects, Stephenson Hamilton Risley Studio taking their inspiration from Milan’s Bosco Verticale (vertical forest).

The planters jut out from the main building at various heights, creating a juxtaposition of cantilevers not unlike a half-finished game of Jenga. Indeed, the planters were referred to as ‘Jenga blocks’ in the planning documents. Each planter is filled with shrubs, trees, and ferns, individually selected to thrive in the micro-climate created by each planting block.

The idea was to make an impact and add some much-needed green infrastructure and bio-diversity to Piccadilly’s East neighbourhood. The building certainly makes a statement and will house 275 luxury hotel rooms along with a ground floor bar, restaurant, gym and wellness suite, and outside seating area.

Green-tech involvement:

Green-tech was invited to landscape architects’ Re-form’s offices in Beehive Mills back in 2019, to discuss options for the high-level planters. As a result, the planters were specified with Green-tech’s Green-tree lightweight intensive roof soil, as well as a layer of expanded clay granules to bring up the level in the base, rather than using a heavier sub-soil or some other man-made void former. The intensive lightweight roof soil is around 30% lighter than standard topsoil, and due to the deeper planting of the trees, needs to contain more organic content and hold on to a little more water than the extensive substrate often found on sedum and wildflower green roofs.

A total of 48 cubic metres of lightweight roof soil was used for the 17 Jenga blocks, along with over 4,000 litres of lightweight expanded clay aggregate. This was supplemented on the ground planting with over 400 tonnes of topsoil and subsoil, 2,000 litres of compost and 48 tonnes of pea gravel and decorative silver-grey gravel. The ground level landscaping incorporated a mix of trees in hard and soft, irrigated by a mix of Mona underground capillary tanks and Mona Relief perforated pipes, and supported by Green-tech strap anchors.

The trees in hard were finished off with permeable resin-bound grilles, and for the trees along the front, custom-made grilles, featuring laser-cut Piccadilly East branding and drainage slots. These grilles are made from heavy-duty steel and finished by being hot-dip galvanised, then acid-etched and powder coated in a classic bronze finish, including the normally silver Piazza irrigation inlet. All the steel used in the production of these decorative grilles is recycled by our foundry in West Yorkshire.

To finish off the landscaping, over 200 square metres of Premium Weed Control matting and Ecomatt was supplied along with 2,000 litres of ornamental wood bark for ground cover.

Alasdair Innes – Green-tech Specification Advisor comments, “it’s fantastic to see striking building design incorporating green-infrastructure, in a way that makes it really stand out in the local area. It was a pleasure to be asked to get involved supplying the lightweight soil and other ancillary landscaping materials.”

For any further product information or to request a CPD in person or remotely on any of Green-tech’s urban or rural modules please contact sales@green-tech.co.uk or call 01423 332100

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BODPAVE Provides the Ideal Stabilising Solution

BODPAVE Provides the Ideal Stabilising Solution: Barratt Homes Northeast acquired a parcel of derelict land opposite the North Shore Academy on the outskirts of Stockton-on-Tees. The land is of particular historical interest, being the site of the wagon works for the world’s first ever passenger railway line, from Stockton to Darlington. The works were later used during World War 2 for the manufacture of de Havilland Mosquito bombers.

The development comprised 300 new homes, with a combined direct and indirect investment of £160 million. As with most housing developments nowadays, care was taken to include sufficient green space area for residents to enjoy. Along with play areas, part of this included a large swale at the front of the development bordering North Road, to help cope with excess water runoff or flooding during heavy rain events.

BODPAVE Provides the Ideal Stabilising Solution

BODPAVE Provides the Ideal Stabilising Solution

Green-tech’s involvement:

Several areas around the main swale and service areas, although grassed, needed additional ground stabilisation to avoid the surface becoming rutted or worn. Green-tech has been working with Northeast builders’ merchants, James Burrell Ltd for 17 years, and they came to Green-tech to order 300 square metres of BODPAVE 85, to stabilise the grass top surface.

BODPAVE is an interlocking, porous, cellular plastic paving grid system used as an effective ground reinforcement solution, that can be backfilled with either gravel, hardcore or a soil/grass mix. The design of the units resists lateral movement yet allows for expansion and contraction.

It is an ideal base for sown grass, as the units both stabilise the ground and protect the roots, allowing the grass to grow through the cells and rendering the units practically invisible over time, especially if the green colourway is used. It is ideally suited for:

  • Car/Coach parking
  • Overspill grass car parks
  • Emergency Service (Fire access routes)
  • Walkways and access routes
  • Golf buggy paths
  • Driveways or on-grass parking
  • Grass aircraft taxiways and helipads

BODPAVE is made here in the UK from UV stabilised. 100% recycled waste plastic. Completely non-toxic, once backfilled the units can stand up to 400 tonnes/m2, transferring the load laterally across the surrounding units. With each paver having 18 ground spikes, BODPAVE can be used on slopes up to 12%/7°.

As well as BODPAVE 85, we also offer the slightly shallower, new improved BODPAVE 40, available in green or black, but with a load bearing capacity of 250 tonnes/m2. This provides a stable base car parks and it can be supplied with white markers for parking spaces.

The swale area was finished off with tree planting to soften the boundaries around the perimeter, and for which Green-tech supplied the necessary stakes and rubber ties and blocks.

Alasdair Innes – Green-tech Specification Advisor comments, “Although a fairly straightforward project, it is always nice to see the landscaping around new developments settling in. As time goes on, the BODPAVE will become less noticeable as the grass grows and covers the units.

For any further product information or to request a CPD in person or remotely on any of our urban or rural modules please contact Alasdair Innes at alasdairi@green-tech.co.uk  or telephone 01423 332177.

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Green-tech provides automated irrigation

Green-tech provides automated irrigation: The latest 4-star hotel to open its doors in Bristol’s Old City area has a fascinating history. The Clayton Hotel sits just within the medieval walls of St Johns, on the site of the original Grade 2 listed Everards printing works, first built in 1900.

Visitors are greeted by a gloriously colourful, tiled Art Nouveau frontage, designed by W.J. Neatby, the Chief Designer at Royal Doulton. His design depicts several facets of Bristol’s history; the female figure in the centre representing Light and Truth, and the two figures to either side, printing and literature, for which Bristol was becoming increasingly known.

Green-tech provides automated irrigation

Green-tech provides automated irrigation

Situated in the heart of the old city, outdoor space is practically non-existent, so plans were drawn up to utilise a small space on the lower level at the back to create a rain-forest inspired sunken garden, planted with mature tree ferns, raised beds and seating.

Green-tech involvement:

Having a good working relationship going back over a decade, Bath-based landscape architects MacGregor Smith had no hesitation in specifying Green-tech’s lightweight intensive topsoil and subsoil for all the planting beds in the sunken garden.

For the tree pits at ground level, the decision was taken to use Green-tech’s Green-tree Amenity Tree Soil; a fertile, load bearing structural tree soil from Green-tech, specifically developed to BS3882:2015 for use in the urban environment. Having a naturally open structure, Green-tree Amenity Tree Soil allows for compaction without sacrificing any water percolation or aeration properties of the soil.

To complete the tree pits, MacGregor Smith specified the Fortress tree grille tray. This is designed to accept block paving to ensure a seamless transition to the surrounding paved finish. Each pit included an irrigation pipe topped with Green-tech’s Mono Relief Piazza aluminium filler cap, which was set flush into the paving.

To ensure that the tree ferns in the sunken garden received adequate irrigation, the decision was made to fit a fully automated Rain Bird irrigation system, also from Green-tech. The system was custom designed for the area and featured micro-sprays and drip-lines, along with the all-important pressure regulators and solenoids. The pressure regulators are critical to any automated system, as they ensure that each emitter or drip line provides the same amount of water no matter how far down the line from the water source they are.

Jamie Cusack, Senior Associate from MacGregor Smith comments,This was a challenging project, not only with the sunken garden, but also the tight spaces in which to work and get deliveries in. On this project Green-tech were particularly helpful in respect of providing detailed design input into the automated Rain Bird irrigation system, which helped ensure the successful establishment and longevity of the distinctive tree ferns.

Alasdair Innes, Green-tech Specification Advisor adds, “It’s always a pleasure to work on any MacGregor Smith project, and we first visited the site in February 2022 as the exterior trees were going in but before the sunken garden was in place. It was great to go back and see that everything has come together, especially the automated irrigation in the sunken garden.

For any further product information or to request a CPD in person or remotely on any of  Green-tech’s urban or rural modules please contact sales@green-tech.co.uk or call 01423 332100

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GrasPro provides critical analytics

GrasPro provides critical analytics:Leading Greek turf consultants and laboratory, Grassform, is using GrasPro as their analytical tool of choice on Greek Super League pitches.

Pitch inputs and usage are the main areas being tracked, with GrasPro’s detailed reporting function being used to deliver an insightful time and cost-saving maintenance strategy for clients.

GrasPro provides critical analytics

GrasPro provides critical analytics

Co-founder of Grassform, Antonis Grimotsis, started his career in 2004 as an agronomic manager in sports pitch construction and maintenance projects. As an experienced independent consultant, he was accepted to join the Register of Independent Professional Turfgrass Agronomists (RIPTA) in February 2022.

Independence has a large part to play at Grassform as a company that focuses on using the best options available, GrasPro for analysis being a must-have among them. Antonis, alongside co-founder Fontini Mentesidi, started Grassform in 2017 and now utilise Greece’s only ISO 17025 specialised mobile laboratory to evaluate the quality of pitches according to FIFA and EN specifications. Using GrasPro to process this data is now a crucial part of the Grassform process and one that Antonis’ clients have quickly benefitted from.

“In the upper echelons of professional sports, such as high-ranking football clubs and stadia, the client’s need to achieve the best standards of performance and gain the highest ROI remains a constant and goes hand in hand with technological advances in the sports turf industry,” Antonis begins. “Advisers, therefore, must satisfy expanded expectations while readily adapting their services and operations within this very demanding and ever-evolving sector.

“Monitoring the maintenance of a playing surface properly, especially for professional sports, is a key stage in the process of assessment, and to ensure playing quality and the safety of players.

“GrasPro is an immensely valuable tool when it comes to identifying issues and problem patterns and then working to resolve them quickly.

“When it comes to developing and evaluating the maintenance programme for a playing surface including renovations, repairs, irrigation, application of fertilisers and nutrients, turf problem diagnoses and treatments, a consultant needs a reliable tool to log and analyse all the important task-related information to monitor progress, report to the client, and devise solutions.

“GrasPro allows me to follow up on what’s being done step by step and the effects of inputs on the pitch conditions. Thus, it enables me to make informed decisions about further actions.

“Based on data, a consultant can propose tailor-made solutions and precise interventions. This includes limiting amounts to what is required, and a combination of products such as type of fertiliser and biostimulants, etc. So, by optimising the outcomes, both quality and cost-effectiveness are achieved.

“A comprehensive collection of data can facilitate a more insightful and time-saving management strategy, and I feel confident of my sources, knowing that the proposals I put forward are data-driven and based on measurable results.

“Importantly, the platform is easy to use with a straightforward interface that allows for quick data entry, and it was easy for administrative staff to pick up without prior knowledge.”

Since 2021 Grassform has been applying its three-axis of observation, evaluation and design to Greek Super League pitches as part of the league’s pitch upgrading scheme for 2021-2022. This includes 14 football pitches and their associated training grounds.

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Enstar provides concentrated control

Enstar provides concentrated control: Enstar from Headland Amenity is a powerful three-way selective herbicide for the control of a wide range of weeds including Slender Speedwell, Creeping Buttercup and Yellow Suckling Clover. Suitable for use in both fine turf and sports turf applications, Enstar is also suitable for use on young turf when applied at a lower rate.

Part of the Headland selective herbicide portfolio, Enstar offers the safe, efficient and targeted control of invasive, broad-leaved and difficult-to-manage turfgrass weed species, without detriment to the health of the surrounding grass plants. It contains three active ingredients – 2,4-D, dicamba and fluroxypyr – to control weeds in golf fairways, sports pitches, lawns and other amenity grass.

Enstar provides concentrated control

Enstar provides concentrated control

Enstar is most effective when applied while weeds are actively growing, the soil is moist and temperatures are warm, at a rate of 2L in 200-1000L of water per hectare. It can also be applied safely on newly-sown managed amenity turf, at least two months after grass emergence, at a reduced rate of 0.95L per hectare. In addition to application through vehicle mounted equipment, Enstar is approved for use in boom and knapsack sprayers. Areas can be treated with Enstar up to twice per year, with a minimum interval of 21 days between applications.

At Heythrop Park in Oxfordshire, Estates Manager Paul Young has been using Enstar for the last three years, on an area of approximately 80 hectares – including estate lawns, and the fairways, tees & roughs of the 18-hole golf course. “Enstar is a fantastically versatile and simple-to-use herbicide that, after a single annual application, keeps everything in check” explains Paul. “While we’re not a particularly ‘weedy’ course, Enstar has controlled some issues we’ve had with daisies and dandelions, with minimal re-growth and the benefit of a second application if required.”

Daisies are also an issue for Darren Lee, Course Manager at Salisbury & South Wilts Golf Club. “Some of our 27 fairways suffer so badly that it becomes difficult for players to see their ball at times!” he explains. “We used Enstar for the first time this year, in a tank mix with Headland’s Xtend® 46-0-0 and Elevate Fe®, which we applied in mid-May. Along with fantastic results on daisies, it appears to have killed some Speedwell we had which, with previous products, we’d only really managed to knock back.”

Enstar carries a LERAP requirement, please refer to the label or www.headlandamenity.com for full details.

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Suståne provides the organic solution

Suståne provides the organic solution: Organic solutions to plant nutrition and soil management are becoming an ever-increasing choice at leading sports facilities around the globe, as attention turns to both the impacts of more traditional chemicals and the benefits to the environment of more natural approaches.

Built on over 40 years of research, Suståne Natural Fertiliser has one of the largest ranges of organic-based fertilisers and soil builders developed for all landscape and turf applications.

Suståne provides the organic solution

Suståne provides the organic solution

Suståne is the most comprehensively researched organic fertiliser brand available in today’s market. Over 800 independent studies have been conducted in areas including turf establishment, disease suppression, environmental impact, effects on wildlife and soil improvement – the result of this research is a biologically-active, organic product range built for agronomic performance. Suståne’s aerobic, thermophilic composting process is the most environmentally sound method for recycling of agricultural residue, generating no methane and fewer greenhouse gases than other organic stabilisation processes. With the manufacturing impact on the environment low, the benefits of Suståne to the landscape are many.

Through the unique process, the organic feedstock is concentrated into a nutrient rich humus – rich in microbial diversity yet low in biological oxygen demand. Suståne’s microbial diversity index of 4.5 is critical to many soil and plant functions, providing optimal microbiology for plants to thrive. The release of nitrogen is slow, predictable and efficient, reducing loss to the environment through volatilisation, leaching or immobilisation and provides a long-lasting, sustainable source of plant nutrition and soil improvements.

There are formulations within the Suståne range suitable for every turf type and agronomic application, from 100% organic to higher nitrogen natural-base formulations, each with unique release rates and nutrient profiles. New to the range in 2021 is Suståne Soil Regen® – a soil amendment product formulated to improve soil structure by increasing infiltration rates and the profiles’ ability to hold nutrients and moisture.

The Suståne range is available through a network of approved distributors globally, with dedicated Regional Managers on hand to provide tailored, technical advice.

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Top-Brush provides worm cast solution

Top-Brush provides worm cast solution: Constructed on a heavy clay soil profile, the two 18-hole courses at Welwyn Garden City’s Brocket Hall Estate fell victim last year to what arguably has become one of the biggest challenges for fine turf managers – worm casts.

Without available curative chemistry, Golf Course Manager John Moorhouse turned to his local dealer for advice who recommended the Redexim Top-Brush. Three months on from taking delivery, the Top-Brush has proven itself to be a true multi-tasker – not only tackling the issue of worm casts but leaves and surface moisture too.

Top-Brush provides worm cast solution

Top-Brush provides worm cast solution

Quintessentially British in their design, but very different in terms of their challenge to golfers and greenkeepers alike, the Palmerston and Melbourne courses are overseen by a dedicated team of 10. “The combination of our heavy soil and milder, wetter autumns has seen a huge spike in the number of worm casts we’re seeing” explains John. “I spoke with David Fisher of George Browns to see if there was a way of removing the casts prior to cutting. He straight away organised a demonstration of the Top-Brush.”

The Redexim Top-Brush is a six-metre-wide poly-brush, comprised of three sections, that can quickly and effectively rid large areas, such as fairways, of worm casts, organic matter and dew. Because the brushes can rotate in or against the direction of travel, it can be used to remove lateral growth and stand the plant upright – contributing to better airflow into the canopy and a cleaner quality of cut.

“It’s really easy to hook-up via the 3-point linkage and it’s quick and straight forward to adjust the rotation direction and working depth. It has not only done exactly as we hoped in clearing surface casts, but it also played a major part in leaf clearance on the heavily tree-lined Palmerston course – using the brushes anti-clockwise to lift and move the leaves and other debris such as pine needles out of play and giving us a great, clean finish.”

When used with clockwise rotation, John has been impressed with the Top-Brush’s ability to remove dew and improve course presentation. “It has given us a quick and effective method of reducing surface moisture, especially early mornings, not only contributing to improvements in plant health but giving us a beautiful striped finish on the fairways.” He concludes, “As we head into the spring, in addition to all of its existing uses, we plan to use the Top-Brush to help with incorporation of topdressing material. The versatility demonstrated by this piece of kit means it has done exactly what we hoped for, and so much more.”

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New 3G Pitch Provides Opportunity

New 3G Pitch Provides Opportunity: A new third generation (3G) artificial grass pitch (AGP) which was opened at Philip Morant School and College in Essex recently (Monday 11 March) will support nearly 100 women and girls playing competitive football in Essex over the next five years.

The new full-size pitch was made possible thanks to investment from the Premier League, The FA and Government, through their charity, the Football Foundation.

New 3G Pitch Provides Opportunity

After netting a £498,959 grant from the Football Foundation, work begun on the site in November 2017. The new pitch not only provides the school’s PE Department with a first-class facility, but the local community will also benefit from an all-weather training site for youth development and community projects.

Philip Morant School and College has formed a partnership with Disability4Sport UK to provide soccability and hearing-impaired sessions for the local community on the new pitch. The site will also be used by Essex County FA to deliver coach and referee education courses.

Partner club, Stanway Rovers FC, will focus on establishing three new girls’ teams within the first year of the pitch being in operation, growing to five teams by year five. This will contribute to 98 girls and women starting to play competitive football in Essex – which is one of the County FA’s key focuses.

Scott Holder, Headteacher at Philip Morant School and College, said:“The 3G AGP pitch has improved sport at Philip Morant. Students love the quality of the FIFA Approved Surface, which has led to an increase in the number of young people joining clubs, particularly football.”

“We have also been able to increase the range of sports available throughout the year as the area has floodlights, which means clubs and activities can continue in the winter months.”

Paul Thorogood, Chief Executive of the Football Foundation, said: “The support of the Premier League, The FA and government enables the Football Foundation to help improve community sports facilities like this one across the country. Their funding has played a key role in delivering this new all-weather pitch in Essex and I am delighted for everyone associated with Philip Morant School and College.

“This is one example we want to make people in Essex aware of, that they have the kind of quality pitches and changing rooms that are taken for granted in other counties. We will continue to support projects nationwide, but we cannot do this on our own, so we are encouraging organisations in the area to join our movement to deliver quality football facilities for people in Essex once and for all.

“Taking part in community sport at any level offers many benefits and rewards, not least the opportunity for people to enjoy themselves and socialise with different members of the community.”

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