The Oldham Partnership has commissioned a study to consider a range of options for the future development of the sports and leisure provision at the Clayton Playing Fields in Oldham.

Clayton Playing Fields is one of only two sites in Oldham to offer more than six playing pitches. It is a popular site for junior football and serves a range of senior football teams. The Council's Playing Pitch Strategy for Oldham (2004) rated the site as inadequate due to the regularly waterlogged pitches and heavily vandalised changing facilities.

The site is used for a wide variety of leisure uses from Lacrosse to people jogging and has been identified in the recently published Football Association (FA) Local Area Plan as ideally placed to further develop involvement and achievement in football.

The Oldham Partnership has appointed Knight Kavanagh & Page, Sport and Leisure Management Consultants to determine feasible site developments, outlining a series of options with associated costs, potential for income generation, and users' benefits.

The study will inform and support the decision making process for future development of the site. Appropriate investment would benefit a large number of Oldham residents due to the accessible location of the Playing Fields and its potential to service a range of formal sports and informal leisure activities.

The study is in its initial stages. KKP is currently consulting with community and special interest groups, key officers, partners and other interested parties to gauge views and opinions on a number of options. These range from re-instating changing provision on the site through to considering a sports village approach that could develop the site beyond its existing remit.

Its consultants are attending Area Committee meetings across the Borough to discuss the options and to identify any challenges or difficulties that may arise - an ideal opportunity for residents from all over Oldham to have their say.

KKP is well placed to deliver this study. It has a specialist background in playing pitch development projects across the Country balanced with strong local knowledge from producing Oldham's Local Area Plan for Football. In addition, it has supported development of several sports villages across the North West, combining sport, cultural, learning and health services to provide a convenient and welcoming community environment - most notably Leverhulme Park in Bolton and Litherland Sports Park in Merseyside.

Cllr John McCann, Cabinet member for community services and housing at Oldham Council said, "We are delighted to be working with the Oldham Partnership and our specialist consultants KKP on exploring the options for how the sports and leisure facilities could be improved on Clayton Playing Fields. However, I must emphasise that at this stage there is no agreed option - we all very much want to hear a wide range of views and interests about the sort of use that will support Clayton Playing Fields facilities into the future. Nothing is either ruled in or out, although any changes will be undertaken in the context of preserving the Town Green status of Clayton Playing Fields. We hope to report the results of this study to a meeting of the Clayton Trustees in December."

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