19 August 2025 Pavilion Committee
Minutes of a meeting of the New Pavilion Committee held 19:00hrs, Tuesday, 19 August 2025, in the Bridge Room at the Curlew Centre, Sutton Bridge.
Present: Cllr D Cook, Cllr M Middleton, Cllr Philpott, Mrs K Croxford (Admin. Asst.).
Co-opted non-voting members Mr L Marchant, Mrs V Smith.
One member of the public from 19:20hrs.
Absent: Cllr A Scarlett, Mr D Earth (SBUFC)
25.033. Apologies were received from Cllr S Mclaughlin, Cllr A Scarlett & Mr D Earth.
25.034. There were no declarations of interest or requests for dispensation.
25.035. There were no Public Representations
25.036. It was resolved to approve the minutes of the meeting held on 15 April 2025.
25.037. Playzone Project
01. In the absence of Cllr Mclaughlin, Cllr Middleton read out a report and confirmed that once all final grants and if required loan all being received, we should now be in a good position to proceed.
02. A very productive meeting was held on Thursday 14 August with Edge (The Football Foundation Management team) and S.I.S Pitches (The Football Foundation Construction Company).
03. The Memorial Park had been measured and marked out with the new positions of the New Sports Pavilion and Playzone. However, the markings had been removed and redone several times. Thanks were expressed to Cllr Middleton, Mr R Middleton, and Mr D Wall for their time and effort in doing this .
04. The drawings and supporting information would now be submitted for full planning permission.
05. Construction was anticipated to commence later this year or early 2026. The estimated construction period was 10 weeks.
06. Investigations would now be undertaken into how the Playzone would be managed in the future. Volunteers, Councillors or members of the wider community, would be sought to form a management team to oversee the facility.
07. Mrs V. Smith asked if someone could assist with measuring the Memorial Park to help reposition the Football Club container. Cllr. Middleton agreed to assist and would contact Mr. D. Wall if available to help.
08. Cllr. Cook reported that she had been in contact with an archery group who may be interested in using the facility. Cllr. Middleton advised that any potential interested parties should provide their details directly to the Parish Office.
19:20hrs A member of the Public entered the meeting.
25.038. Pavilion Project
01. Following a meeting with Sir John Hayes and the committee, it was agreed that the approach to funding should change. Going forward, applications should initially focus on smaller amounts of funding. It was noted that Cowbit Parish Council had successfully secured funding for a new pavilion through the use of a professional agent operating on a “no funds, no fee” basis. Cllr. Middleton agreed to contact the Cowbit Parish Clerk for further details and report back.
02. Cllr Middleton reported that the new owners of the Henry Smith Charity Land, Farmland Reserve, had indicated their intention to reclaim land from tenants for their own farming operations. The possibility of requesting their support in funding a new pavilion for the community was discussed. A further meeting would be arranged with Sir John Hayes, District Councillor M. Booth, Mrs. V. Smith (SBUFC), Cllr. Middleton and the Clerk to take this forward.
03. Cllr. Cook raised the possibility of holding a car boot sale or farmers’ market on nearby land as a means of generating funds. It was also suggested that, should planning permission for new housing be sought, a request could be made for the inclusion of a community project contribution towards the construction of a new pavilion.
04. Investigations had been made into the possibility of providing a temporary changing room facility for the Football Club. Sir John Hayes had confirmed in a previous meeting that he could assist with transport costs. Mrs. V. Smith presented members with details of a two-bay modular building, which included showers and toilets, available to purchase online at approximately £3000,00 per unit. It was agreed that this option would be further investigated, and the Memorial Park site would be measured to determine whether the building could be accommodated.
25.039. Public Representations
01. A member of the public asked if we would need planning for the temporary building. Cllr Middleton replied that she thought so and would looked into it.
25.040. The next committee meeting was scheduled to take place on 16 September 2025 in the Bridge Room of The Curlew Centre.
The chair closed the meeting at 20:04 hrs.