South Kintyre Sports Council has called on Argyll & Bute Council to reconsider the playing field charges that will be implemented with effect from 1st April this year. The charges for the new financial year (2010/11) revealed an increase of over 90% from the current year’s charges. An adult pitch hire will increase from £31.50 to £60.00 per game whilst concession hires for the likes of kids will rocket from £15.75 to £30.00 per match hire and a training hire will increase from £8.30 to £15.00.
South Kintyre Sports Council have contacted the Council to ask for more information on the increases but by the end of business yesterday their was no comment. A Sports Council representative said "We need to understand exactly what these costs are based on - if for example there is an element of staffing from other areas is included in the new costs we surely should not be paying the same here in Campbeltown? For example we don’t have groundsmen like there is in Oban and Dunoon who attend on match days and open changing rooms and put up and down the nets - something we have repeatedly asked for in Campbeltown but has been ignored.
If the increase in cost is due to the reduction of games on grass elsewhere (which increases the maintenance costs) because of the All Weather Pitch facilities then we again, have to ask why should Campbeltown pay the same when we still remain the only community without an All Weather Pitch? The use of pitches has increased in the last 5 years in Campbeltown with the introduction of firstly the Kintyre Amateur League and now the Campbeltown and District Amateur Football League. In fact only last weekend we saw four matches played in Campbeltown - I doubt if any community in Argyll has had that many matches on grass in the last month. I'm sure our clubs are quite happy to pay good money for modern day facilities but we simply don't have these.
Argyll & Bute Council can't just go about implementing 90% increases with no written explanation as to why this is happening. Yet again the dialogue between the Council and our sports club is poor. Our sports clubs are made up of volunteers who give up their time to the benefit of their sport. They shouldn't have to waste valuable time chasing the Council for an answer as to why this has come about. Ironically enough the Council had consultants PMR here in Campbeltown last week and again this week and one of the strongest messages was the lack of communication between the Council and the sports clubs!
Campbeltown remains the only town without an All Weather Pitch and as such our grass parks are fundamental to the development of our sports clubs. To increase pitch hires by over 90% will have a detrimental affect on sports like football which are already suffering due to the lack of key facilities and increased costs. By the time two teams pay for changing rooms and the referee it will be over £100 per match. The Youth Football are already paying a huge amount to the local council for hire of parks for training and they are now faced with having to ask kids and their parents to pay more. Campbeltown Boys AFC who play in the Scottish Amateur League are now facing the prospect of paying anything up to £160.00 to play a home tie."
Interestingly changing room charges have increase only by 3%. Adults using the Council changing room facilities at the likes of Lochgilphead and Oban will pay £18.25 from the 1st April - an increase of 55p from this financial year. These are facilities not provided by the Council in Campbeltown and the increase in pitch prices means there will be a knock on affect on the hires of the likes of changing rooms at the Meadows. These are amongst the best changing facilities in Argyll and are owned and run by the Campbeltown and District Juvenile Football Association. Hires are imperative to ensure these facilities survive and there is no doubt the increase in charges will have a knock on affect to hires.
The Kintyre Forum will provide a further update once this is received from the Sports Council, Argyll & Bute Council.