CONSULTANTS have been drafted in to look at potential future developments on Clayton Playing Fields.
Despite being used by thousands of Oldhamers, the sports pitches next to Boundary Park stadium have fallen into disrepair.
The Football Association has already identified the site as one of six areas in the country where they it is willing to invest to develop further involvement and achievement in amateur football.
As a result, the Oldham Partnership has commissioned sports and leisure management consultants Knight Kavanagh and Page (KKP) to identify feasible options.
These could range from simply replacing the demolished changing rooms to something as dramatic as a sports village.
John Rice, of Oldham Partnership, said: "Clayton Playing Fields is obviously an important green space which has been given Town Green status controlled by a charitable trust made up of all the elected members of the council. At the moment it is almost a blank canvas. Everyone is singing from the same hymn sheet and we’re looking for something that will give Clayton a sustainable life. There have been concerns about previous developments but this approach is nothing like that or anything associated with it. It does give a really positive future for the fields. It’s up to the consultants to come back with options. They will try to get balanced views from different groups."
KKP is currently consulting and some of the suggestions put forward so far have included:
Mr Rice added: "One of the key issues is the replacement of the changing rooms, which then creates a series of options on where they are located. At the top end of any proposals would be a sports village. This could just be a changing room with a pitch or a number of pitches, or a building with meeting rooms and community space. This is the very early stages and once we’ve come up with something much firmer it will go to Oldham Council – hopefully in December."
Cllr John McCann, cabinet member for community services, said: "I must emphasise that, at this stage, there is no agreed option – we all very much want to hear a wide range of views about the sort of use that will support Clayton Playing Fields in the future.
"Nothing is ruled in or out, although any changes will be undertaken in the context of preserving the Town Green status of Clayton Playing Fields."
