Thanks to Roy for this …
I am an athlete who trains at Tilsley Park. Now I am not sure if you are aware but Abingdon School are going to change the centre of the track dramatically. The throwing area in the centre of the track is going to be replaced with a 3G rubgy pitch. This will mean track training will be impacted. Worse still, the throwers will not be able to do winter training, because they have to move the throw cage to a new location and they cannot put up lights as they would be too close to residences.
Our club has produced some incredible world class throwers at Tilsley Park in recent years.
Emma O’Hara:
Emma qualifies final Eugene
O’hara comes close to England gold medal
Ossy Muskwe who is now in Team GB:
Osman gets his GB call cards
Radley’s Muskwe lands English crown/
Muskwe breaks Radley record/
But sadly they will not be able to train in the winter at Tilsley any more.
The equipment and bulldozers are on site for work this weekend. We are puzzled as why we were not consulted beforehand. More at Radley Athletics Club.
How could the council have let this happen?
There must be more football/rugby resources around than specialist athletics facilities?
More loss of public amenities via sneaking privatisation
I understand prices have risen too, and there’s been a loss of availability.
Tisley park is owned/run by the school ?!?!?! who knew.
To be fair they can do what they want with their land, I imagine that’s why it happened in the blink of an eye.
Thomas – the land is still actually owned by the Vale District Council who were given the land 30-40 years ago by a local philanthropist who wanted it used for the community. Last year it was then “gifted” to Abingdon School on a long lease – apparently with some sort of covenants to ensure it remained available for community use at reasonable rates. Efforts to find out the nature of those covenants have been unsuccessful.
Last November the school put in a planning application for these changes: no objections were received so it was approved in January. There is no evidence from the Vale website as to whether user groups were consulted,. The Vale Leisure dept (who one assumes monitor the mysterious covenants) said “Leisure is supportive of the proposals to further improve the sporting provision on offer at Tilsley Park and the addition of an artificial surface that will also accommodate rugby use will be a
welcome addition for both school and community users of the facility.”
I thought, in someway -shape – or form the changes didn’t necessarily constitute a “change of use” ( from a planning POV) and so no consultation etc was necessary. I could be wrong.
I do think it quaint how people STILL think that The Veil is working for the good of our community. There’s been no evidence of late of any such aspiration by them.
Still; mustn’t grumble.
“Welcome addition for both school and community users of the facility”
But perhaps not so welcome for all the athletes who currently use the facility?
Abingdon School seem to think the site is suddenly a private boarding school so must be run as one. The way they treat users is disgusting. In effect they are trying to push users out esp the athletics so they can use it for themselves but say the athletes left of their own accord thus keep their ‘reputation’. As tenants they should be abiding by their contract to the landlord (vale) and continue to offer excellent service to users. Why are aren’t remains a mystery but i think money is the key. Felicity Lusk Head has a lot to answer for.
Having recently moved in across the road from Tilsley park I have had the opportunity to walk my dog around the site many times. my memories of Tilsley park (having played in the 5 a side league there many years ago) were of a tired worn facility that looked to me to be slowly deteriorating, however after exploring the site and seeing that the litter has pretty much been abolished, the overgrown bushes being tamed and the site looking generally a nicer place it pleases me to see that the current owners are looking after the facility. I think it’s great that new additions are being added to Tilsley to keep the place moving forward instead of regressing into the slump in which it had fallen into. I can only imagine Tilsley is going to continue to grow and become a brilliant sporting area for all the adults and children of Abingdon.
Adam…on the assumption they want to play rugby, rather than learn to throw a javlin, it would seem.
This IS a sad story, but there are some great independent shops in Abingdon.
The link you have to Emma O’hara and Eugene is broken it should be
http://www.radleyathleticsclub.co.uk/emma-qualifies-final-eugene
and not:
https://www.abingdonblog.co.uk/www.radleyathleticsclub.co.uk/emma-qualifies-final-eugene
Hi Alastair, now fixed. Thanks. Thought I’d tested them all.
The real issue here is once more the vale district councillors have given, yes given a bit more of the family silver away without public consultation? And that then opens a real can of worms, 1 , this chunk of land was given to the people of Abingdon for their benefit and I bet somewhere in the original conveyance is a caviate prohibiting it’s off loading? 2 of the vale aren’t competent enough o run it then why not give it to the county council who in turn could make sure all the schools in Abingdon could benefit from it. How much rent are we getting from it? Or is it another old gaol not for public info stuff! And so it goes on and on and on !
A conservative controlled district council hands over a community asset to a private school.
Why is anyone surprised at this?
Abingdon school ‘said’ a great many things during and when they won the bid…They have covered up back tracked and used the facility to greater enhance themselves only (yes i have proof from my athletics club)
They re did the hockey pitches for their pupils (then hiked up the price and made availability hard for hockey teams)
The clearing of bushes etc was for their CCTV water and electric.
As for walking your dog; you will be lucky if you can get through the front gates soon.
Being Conservative has nothing to do with it; the tenant and landlord are taking away a facility and replacing it with something that could have gone elsewhere on the site.
It was a bid? Does that mean it was a competitive process with other agencies involved? That is no the impression I have received.
Actually, I think the political hue of the tenant and landlord DO have something to do with stuff like this. Perhaps I am overly cynical?
Will be interesting to see if the bill being proposed to make independent schools actively report on how they are supporting state schools (who’ve also been disadvantaged by this transfer of lease through loss of free use of the facility for their sportsdays) and the wider community, in return for the financial adbantages they receive as a charity.
Does anyone know how much Tilsley now charge for schools to use the park for their sports days?
Athletes using Tilsey park facilities were not consulted over the planned changes. Planning permission for this major change to the throws capability was placed in May. Nothing was said to any of the clubs using the track facilities. No objections were submitted because nobody knew about the plans. The first any of the users knew about this redevelopment was 8th July when users received a very enthusiastic e-mail from tilsley park advising the middle area was to be converted into a 3G pitch and the trhowing area moved to the back. Bookings to use it were now being taken! Their proposals would half the throwing capability of the stadium, effecting training AND the capability to hold competitions there. Any concerns e-mailed to the school following this e-mail have not responded to. Users were then sent another e-mail on Friday 17th July that the track could not be used that weekend as the pitch was being constructed. This would result in no javelin facility at all as the throws area had not been developed before the 3G pitch was built. Basically Abingdon School did not consult with any athlete about how they could use the existing land to create the 3G pitch in the middle AND develop an outside throwing area to still comply with UKA regulations for athletics competitions. Not only will their proposals not comply, training will be impossible in the winter as their are no floodlights. They are about to destroy a first class athletics facility that attracts athletes from across Abingdon and the county to train there, and the capability to hold competitons in leagues across the south. The throws groups at Tilsey have county, national and international athletes that have been developed there. Their propsals will mean many throws athletes will have to go elsewhere and change clubs. Many of these Abingdon athletes have successfully been developed at clubs using Tilsley from the age of 8. This will be no more if Abingdon School plough ahead with these propsals without any consultation of how best to serve both athletes and football/rubby players.
They are charging £200 for local schools to use the facilities for sports day, could be slightly more
The schools used to get one day a year free for their sports day – they are now charged – not sure exact rate but several hundred pounds
Blimey Ian you’re now talking like a socialist ! Better change party’s ?
Is this debate really about what’s best for the community or is it a witch hunt for Abingdon school.I have children that use the track and the football pitches just to make that clear, so do have a conflict of interests.
Tilsley was not fit for purpose, the outside pitches and lighting were of a poor standard, the running track and throwing area were near hazardous so the upgrades are more than welcome (would we have got that through this council i think not)
The issue seems to be the communication coming out of Abingdon School to it’s users, which by all accounts has been lacking.This needs looking at in respect to the clubs that have been using the site for some time.
But from someone looking from the outside,is the community going to benefit more(and the previous comments keep using this ‘community’ word)from this 3 g pitch.
Well the hard facts are that yes they will,to try and get my sons club and many other youngsters clubs onto a 3g pitch in the area (including oxford) in the winter is basically not going to happen.This will give more youngsters the opportunity to use this kind of facility.
If my daughter was not a runner and more into field events would i have a different view….probably, for selfish reasons, but you have to look at the bigger picture.
These facilities need revenue to help with the upkeep.Are you going to get that through a handful of people using the throwing cage a couple of nights a week in the winter, or a pitch that is going to be booked to the max over the same period….you do the maths.
i have lived in Abingdon all my life and seen it’s decline, this was just another facility falling into that category.
Might there not have been other places where a 3g pitch could have been placed, rather than in the middle of an existing athletics track.
Perhaps the existing outside pitches could have been upgraded?
In response to Toms comments. We are resigned to the fact that a 3G pitch will be built in place of the existing throws area. I think its something many clubs will do to gain extra revenue from other sports. However, Abingdon School did not have a consultation over how best to build the pitch and still keep the throwing area to UKA standard. Their current proposal would mean that many of the competitions that are usually held there would no longer be allowed. This wouldn’t just effect a handfull of throwers, but all clubs that use the facility for athletics matches, and would also result in loss of revenue for Tilsley park. Any javelin facility would not exist from when the diggers go in, and there are no floodlights to enable use of the new throws area from the Autumn through to Spring. Through consultation with experienced athletes and officials who already use Tilsley park and have done for many years, they could have created a plan to keep both the UKA standard facility and a 3G pitch. Instead they consulted nobody, and didn’t respond to any concerns over their plans when they eventually went public at the beginning of July of their plans for the 3G pitch.
Interesting connection with Steve Richards’ article in this morning’s (Tuesday’s) i newspaper, where he contrasts the current government’s speed in bringing in irreversible changes, despite a tiny majority, with the Blair government’s timidity, despite its landslide in 1997. The link of course is that the Labour manifesto pledged to take away the charitable status of private education, something which is entirely unjustifiable, as this development shows, and which could have been reversed with the creation of substantial income by the time of the 2007-8 world banking crash, thus reducing the potential deficit. Instead, the private schools promised to do more to show they benefited the community. I had direct experience of the supposed efforts made by Abingdon School to show their community links by helping out comprehensives and they were, to be blunt, pathetic.
Alison Hi
I did read your comment first before i added mine, and that is why i highlighted the fact that the communication between Abingdon School and it’s users was simply not good enough.
But some people are using this blog for either an attack on Abingdon School, or as a party political broadcast, instead of what the real issue is, and that is what is best for the kids and adults of abingdon.
Alison i don’t know if there have been any talks with Abingdon School, is there no possibility that where the cage has been moved to can’t be bought up to the standard you require.
To go back to the 3g pitch,when i spoke to the groundsman about their pitch at oxford city and hiring it, his response was that it was fully booked so it would be a great acquisition to tilsley. I would presume they are putting it the centre of the track because the lights are already there, and other areas flood on that site which i have witnessed.
Hopefully something can be resolved
Ha ha Daniel, touché 🙂
Having lived in the local area and being a frequent user of the Tilsley park facilities including the track I must say the impact that the 4G pitch will have on the community massively outweighs the impact that staying as we are at the moment will. Surely it is better for the community for a majority to benefit from change as well as to cater for the minority, than to stay as the site is and neglect its responsibility to the local community not just one aspect of it.
If Tilsley park played host to athletes of the same calibre as for example Lee valley, then there would be no issue. The fact of the matter is that they host just as many talented and gifted athletes as they do football and hockey players so surely creating a facility where they can add to this by bringing in more footballers and perhaps rugby players can only benefit the community surely.
Community = Everybody. Not just Athletics. I implore those opposed to look at the larger picture and attempt to find ways to make this work for everyone.
Thanks Angela; I look forward to your correspondingly opposite comment on the next ‘good’ article… 😉