A PIONEERING pilot project to help grass roots sports clubs have their grounds maintained at affordable prices is being rolled out across Hambleton.

The scheme will offer sports clubs within a 20-mile radius of Thirsk access to affordable quality pitch maintenance advice, labour and machinery.

It is being run from a golf club in North Yorkshire where a ‘machinery bank’ with eight pieces of maintenance equipment will potentially assist hundreds of eligible sports clubs.

Qualified greens staff will carry out the work at affordable rates in the joint project between IOG and Sport England.

The project co-ordinator is Ian Powell, Grounds and Natural Turf Improvement Plan (GaNTIP) regional pitch advisor for Yorkshire and the North East.

He said: “Essentially it’s a mechanism to help least-resourced club teams play on a better surface for more of the playing season.

“But it’s not just for golf; football, rugby and cricket can all get a boost.

“It’s radical because conventional thinking has been turned on its head.

“It’s not one contractor or a club that’s behind it.”

The company set up to deliver the work is called Hambleton Sports Improvements and Mr Powell said the the scheme should be a “win-win” for everyone playing on natural turf locally.

He added: “At the heart of the scheme is the greenkeeping team of Thirsk and Northallerton Golf Club led by course manager, Roger Mackerell and his deputy, Simon Todd.

“They are the the project champions if you like.”

Mr Powell said that the scheme has a competitive pricing structure in place based on square meterage.

He explained: “If a club has funds to only do the 18-yard box, or the centre circle that’s good enough for us.

“Same goes for rugby or cricket.

“We won’t insist they do low traffic areas just for the sake of it as well.”

With links through the National Governing bodies, as well as Sport England, a complete data base of hours, type of work as well as costs will be kept for all to monitor and follow for future projects.

If it is successful, it could be rolled out nationally.