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WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR EDUCATION, SPORT AND CULTURE BY DEPUTY S.Y. MÉZEC OF ST. HELIER
ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 14th JULY 2015
Question
"Following the successful conclusion of the Island Games, what plans, if any, does the Minister have to ensure that Springfield Stadium continues to meet its potential as a sports venue and what consultations, if any, will he be conducting with the local residents to ensure that the community nearby is included in this process?"
Answer
The NatWest Island Games was a great success for the whole community at all of the venues and I take this opportunity to thank Phil Austin, the Organising Committee and the many volunteers who spent so much time ensuring the Games went so well.
The new 3G Pitch at Springfield was used for 12 football matches during the week and I was delighted to see so many spectators attending these matches. The pitch was well received and admired by the competitors who played on it.
The decision to develop an artificial pitch has been key to ensuring that the venue meets its potential as a sports facility. Since the artificial pitch has opened the number of players using it is about 750 each week for training and matches. The previous grass pitch could only accommodate 50 football matches – that is approximately 1,500 players (based on 30 players taking part in each match) – in the entire year. This means that as many people now use it in two weeks as used to use it all year.
Further, I am pleased to report that Springfield pitch is now used by people of all ages from football affiliated groups as well as up to 140 local young people who use it under the guidance of the Community Development team each Friday evening. In the past the majority of users were senior footballers.
There are plans to increase usage even further and the aim is to have up to 1,000 players on the pitch each week. This will be in addition to the other user groups who use the gym, Blue Room, sports hall and nursery. Springfield is an excellent community facility which is well used by a wide range of islanders each week. These include many people on the Exercise Referral scheme. One of the challenges that the staff face is providing sufficient car parking spaces.
As someone that lives in the Parish, I have played an active role in meeting neighbours and constituents to listen to their concerns and protect their interests. It was my initial involvement with residents that resulted in some of the changes made by the department to accommodate their wishes.
Meetings have previously been called to inform the local residents of the developments planned for Springfield. These were arranged in partnership with the local Deputies and Constable. Recently, one of my officers met Deputy Mezec to discuss issues. I can confirm that we would be happy to support any residents' meeting the Deputy organises and are happy to meet residents at any time.