Sandon Park Statement

For the past 18 months AJFC have been working closely with NBBC and Birmingham Football Association about gaining access to further space and grassed areas due to the rapidly expanding size of the club and were approached about gaining a long term lease of the Sandon Park site around June 2018. Staying merely within our current facilities did not seem like a viable option anymore particularly during 2018-19 at the 9v9 level, with 9 teams due to share one pitch.

Our proposal is phased with us initially trying to move the junior age groups (9v9 and 11v11 matches) to Sandon Park leaving more space for 7v7 and 5v5 pitches at Ambleside Way.

Following close consultation with the relevant authorities we are really optimistic about funding that will be needed for redevelopment of the site being granted and the process for this has already begun. We have been informed of the avenues available to a club of our size leasing a site such as Sandon Park from organisations, such as the Football Foundation, that can hopefully be used to bring the changing facilities and pitches up to a good standard, not just for junior football, but for the community at large, whilst still staying a stone's throw away from our umbrella club and our roots at Ambleside Sports Club.

Our first thoughts once arrangements were confirmed for the lease of the site was always to work with the adult clubs highlighted in the press who played at Sandon Park last season, as it is clear they have felt frozen out and disillusioned by this process. We have held meetings with Weddington Thistle and another Sunday league football club to put together arrangements for their continued use of the site and discussed our ambitions and proposals with them. Weddington Thistle were very keen to get involved, work with us and go above and beyond, all for the benefit of the site. We feel that the opportunity for clubs and volunteers working together can only be enormously positive for the wider community.

Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Councils Cabinet Member Ian Lloyd said “We are really pleased with the potential opportunities this project could offer for local residents, encouraging more young people, both boys and girls to get involved with local football and increasing their physical activity levels. Since the adoption of the Boroughs Playing Pitch Strategy, it has been our intention to work closely with Clubs, who want to develop opportunities around self-management to facilitate such opportunities. This is one of three Clubs we are currently supporting at present”.

“We had to move quickly this year following the reduction in adult teams requesting NBBC pitches. Football teams submitted their request to NBBC in early July and only then could we look at efficient use of resources and look to consolidate at key “hub” sites. With this in mind we allocated the two Clubs from Sandon to Paul’s Land, so that we could then look to see if Ambleside would be interested with the Sandon site for delivery. However this has now worked out very positive with Clubs talking to each other for the benefit of football”. I would like to thank all involved especially Ambleside JFC the Nuneaton & District Football League for their support in this opportunity”.

Nuneaton & District Chairman Andrew Baggott said:
“The Nuneaton & District Sunday League has always been here to provide the opportunity to play football and we are pleased that an agreement has been reached with Ambleside, for Sandon to be available to the community both for Junior and Adult football. Ambleside are a well-run organisation with hardworking people behind them so Sandon is in safe hands with them”.

“It is also pleasing to see that the teams who played at Sandon last season were included in the consultations and that Weddington Thistle have been accommodated in the new plans”.

“Going forward we have always had a great working relationship with NBBC and we want to work more closely with them in their Pitch Strategy to achieve their goals relating to sports pitches and facilities”.