Hillside Rural Activities Park – Executive Summary

November 2006

The Hillside Rural Activities Park is to be located at a site close to the A19 trunk road, between the villages of Borrowby and Knayton, North Yorkshire (grid reference SE 42918 88091).

Covering 28 acres, the site will host 2500 visitors for the Borrowby Show in July each year. At all other times it will feature a combined Scout meeting hall and indoor sport facility, a cricket pitch, football pitch, 3 tennis courts, a 1400m jogging / walking track and an open grassed area suitable for pony and riding club rallies.

The rural area that this park would serve, lacks a basic range of amenities and commercial facilities, which other communities would take for granted. This park will alleviate this situation by providing a permanent co-location for key existing community organisations that, without this, are currently suffering serious operational difficulties.

Borrowby Show, who currently have to require a farmer set aside a field several weeks on either side of the show as a result of the new constraints introduced after the foot and mouth epidemic in 2001, would see

• Improved Safety of show jumping and gymkhana rings
• Built in access for the disabled
• Enhanced First Aid facilities
• Better livestock pens
• Improved toilet facilities
• Better site within walking distance of the villages for Borrowby and Knayton
• Growth in visitor numbers and financial turnover for the show and traders.
• The availability of indoor pitches in the new building with better hygiene and protection bringing in new crafts and food traders that normally only serve indoor events.
• The ability to hone a better layout, traffic flow etc. each year
• Bio Security measures for Livestock to conform with DEFRA and Sheep and Goat Schemes. 
• Wheel washing facilities to eliminate mud being taken on to the highway.

Hillside Scout Group, who are a growing Scout group currently limited by the need to operate out of a village hall with no storage facilities or outside area, would benefit through:

• Continued growth of group, retention of scout leaders, teenagers
• Protection of equipment
• Ability to carryout the Scout outdoor programme more effectively
• Ability to host events and engage with other Scout groups

Leake Cricket Club, Leake Tennis Club and Knayton Football Club whose current facilities, provided on a "grace and favour" basis or short term lease, are currently in doubt will secure a long-term future. Further the new higher standard facilities including changing, showering and toilet facilities, which are not currently available will enable these clubs to:

• Gain an increased more active membership
• Train & retain/ pass through new, particularly young, players
• Play more competitively and at higher standards
• Entertain opposing teams thus providing a better social aspect to the clubs

Pony Club / Northallerton Riding Club, whose activities are currently affected by regulatory restrictions and variable drainage of the agricultural land they currently use would benefit from the consistent well drained area planned for them in the park.

In additional the Hillside Rural Activities Park will provide access to other rural activities and sports to those who currently do not have the opportunity to take part.

New activities include badminton, basketball, carpet bowls and climbing in the new sport hall and jogging by the provision of a safe track around the perimeter of the site.

In this way the development of such a facility:

- Will ensure there is opportunity for the full cross section of local people; young and old, able-bodied and disabled, to play sport and take part in rural activities, thus benefiting their long term health and well being.

 

- Will help sustain socially and culturally important rural activities and the local economy and provide a showpiece for sport and rural culture.

Care is being taken that these facilities are complementary and additive to other local amenities by:

- Co-ordinating with the local authority on its effect on sport provision

 

- Ensuring that the character of the central hall has a greater focus on sport than social events, so as to minimise any effect on the viability of the small existing village halls.

 

- Setting up a charitable management company, with wide-ranging representation from all parts of the community, to oversee fair play in the use of these facility between the partners and to maximise benefit to the community as a whole.

The planning and execution of the project itself will both bolster the local economy and will educate local people and firms in how to manage 'Community Economic Development' (CED) projects and in sustainable design and construction.

The capital cost of this project is estimated at approximately £990,000 of which the major parts are £218,000 land purchase, £120,000 Infrastructure and £320,000 for the building and its fittings.

We estimate that the operational income and expenditure will balance even at ~£7500 p.a. at the minimum 'base case' level of usage by the core project partners them selves. On top of this there is opportunity to raise up to £2000 extra per annum through new sports and hire of the facilities to external parties. These facts indicate that, once set up, the overall facility will remain viable.

We have now completed the purchase of the land and have installed a drainage system suitable for recreational use. At the same time as the drainage work we constructed the football pitch and a seven wicket cricket square.

The Hillside Scout Group will commit a further £110,000 from their capital fund towards the development of the Scout and Community Sports Hall. Also we expect members of the community and local traders will make a significant proportion of further donations, in-kind.

We are now in the process of making the further applications necessary to raise the remaining capital for the Scouts and Community Sports Hall, the tennis courts and the children's playground.

The facilities will start to be used in 2007 firstly by Leake Cricket Club in the Northallerton and District Evening League, then by Borrowby Show in July and finally by Knayton Football Club playing in the Hambleton Ales Combination League.

this project is supported under the England Rural Development Programme by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund

This project is part funded by Yorkshire Forward through the Rural Target Fund for North Yorkshire Programme