Running track news update

RUNNING TRACK NEWS in reverse date order.
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Extract from The November 2006 Newsletter

Those of you that live in Crowborough should have received a copy of Crowborough News, a Town Council publication. On the reverse of the newsletter there is some great news about the track after all the campaigning. The article says;

"Good news for all sports enthusiasts. The new design for the Running Track at Goldsmiths has been agreed by Crowborough Town Council and we will be going out to tender for this improvement shortly. The new track will be a six lane x 400 metres, with a 100m straight (especially for Kev to do his sprinting!), laid with a modern tartan track. Included within this track will be a new netball area and new bastketball area with access for disabled people - these facilities will be in the same position as at present.

Running Track Update October 2006
Dear James
I am sure you will be pleased to know the work to upgrade the running track is on schedule and the contract to do this work is being linked to the drainage so we are hoping to keep everyone happy. For your information Mike Murphy is no longer a councillor but I have forwarded your e-mail to all Members of the Town Council as I am sure they will be interested in the news letter.
Regards
Linda
Town Clerk, Crowborough Town Council, Town Hall, The Broadway, Crowborough, TN6 1DA

Elspeth,
Thought you may be interested in the latest Crowborough Runners junior newsletter. I'm afraid we've had to stop training on our old cinder track due to poor lighting and the puddles at the moment !
We are still hoping the Council will upgrade the track, but we understand it will be dug up for football pitch drainage early next year. We hope the Council, who say they are committed to replacing the track, will do so after that, otherwise we will have problems next year. After all the hard work Mary and the Club volunteers and parents have all put in, it would be a shame if we have to turn away all the juniors who are so enthousiastic and who helped Wealden to do so well at the Sussex Youth Games, the first time Wealden have won anything in athletics events.
Regards James

Running Track Update August 2006
Unfortunately, we have not been invited to submit a stage two application for 'Living Landmarks'. The rejection letter from the Town Clerk is as follows :-

The Living Landmarks Committee considered your application in competition with other applications and considered it to be not as strong as other applications received. The review team identified high risks and key issues and these influenced the Committee’s decision not to invite you to stage two:

In September a copy of the independent technical assessors’ project review report will be sent to us and they will be pleased to meet with us in October to provide further clarification of any of the issues raised.

If you feel a meeting would be help, please let me know and I will telephone and make an appointment.

Revised quotes have now been received to resurface the track, to improve the lighting and to upgrade the fencing. The figures are now about £250,000. The Town Council have already pledged £135,000, with the possibility of pledging a further £50,000 next year. That doesn't leave much funding to raise. James is working with CADSA to seek extra funding and also hopes to persuade the Council to borrow the rest, with the money being raised through track access charges if no grants can be found. He will be writing to UK athletics again and to large businesses like Waitrose, to see if they would like to become funding partners. Watch this space............

Letter sent on May 13th 2003 by James Welbury to Mrs. Hilary Lyon of Crowborough Town Council

Dear Mrs. Lyon,
                                  RE: Poor state of Goldsmiths running track.
    I am writing to you on behalf of Crowborough Runners regarding the above as the state of the track has been steadily deteriorating for some years now, although it has been getting worse over the last few months in particular. I believe the problem has been and is being exacerbated by contractors using the track to park vehicles, plant and machinery and who use the track as access to the football pitches. The track now has some serious holes and dips with the underlying hard core and sacking coming through the surface, with large lumps of free standing clinker on the track.
    Could I suggest that you approach the contractors who have recently being installing improved drainage into the Goldsmith’s football pitches and request they make good the damage I have personally seen them make on the track.
   I would invite you or any member of the council to make an urgent inspection of the track so that, in the first instance, emergency or interim repairs can be made in order to improve the its safety.
    Could I suggest that you attend on a Tuesday evening between 6.30 and 7.30 when our club has it’s main track training session to appreciate the aforementioned problems, although we would be happy to meet you there at a mutually convenient time for you and ourselves.
     In the meantime, please would you let me know how matters are progressing in respect of replacing the track with a proper all-weather surface. I wrote to Linda Butcher on 15^th October 2001, of 5^th April 2002 and to Cllr Waller on 28^th April 2002 regarding the poor state of the track, which has not been resolved, and also about the possibility of replacing the same.
     Following a Sports and Recreation meeting this year, when Tony Roxburgh outlined proposals for the redevelopment of the recreational land around the Goldsmith’s leisure centre, I understand the Council would monitor the position as regards planning permission for the new development. I understand, however, that a new track would not need planning permission. It is my opinion that the Council should still be actively pursuing our request to replace the track. (It is likely that development of the whole area would take several years so I believe that any areas that can be improved now, such as the running track, should be improved immediately, rather than delayed just because of a plan to develop other areas of the Goldsmith’s site.)
      I personally undertook some research regarding possible Sport England funding and sent details of the same, including details of who to contact, to Cllr Waller last year. Would you please let me know what progress has been made by the Council as regards making any lottery or Sport England Funding bid. I understood the Council agreed to follow up this suggestion during a meeting I attended last year.
      Having written to the Council over the past few years about the track I am disappointed in the lack of progress regarding repairing and replacing the running track and in developing and improving sporting facilities in the town generally.
    Yours sincerely,
                                     James Welbury
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E mail from James Welbury dated 21st August 2002 to Andy Paul of UK Athletics

Please can you confirm to who a bid should be made as Sport England have given information as per below and, as you said, have referred me back to UKA. Can you send our Town Council, who own the Crowborough Track, an application for funding please as Sport England don't seem to do this (the Town Council seem to be unaware of the process you mentioned? They are based at the Town Hall, The Broadway, Crowborough, East Sussex TN6 1DA. The Town clerk is Linda Butcher on 01892 652907.)

If you need to send a representative down to see the track or discus it with the club, feel free to ring me on 01892 664189 or our club secretary, Julie Harker on 01892 654949. Generally, our club will always be at the track next to the Goldsmiths Leisure centre in Crowborough on Tuesdays at 6.30- 7.30 pm, but also other days.

Thank you for your email. I am unable to confirm if any application to the Sport England Lottery Fund has been made as we do not have access to the lottery administration process. However, lottery funding is not available to carry out routine repair or maintenance of facilities that have fallen into disrepair. That remains the responsibility of the owners, in this case the Town Council.

It is correct that Sport England have recently announced a £4 million funding package to UK Athletics, the governing body for athletics. Of this £5 million will be for the refurbishment of tracks accross the country. You can read the press release announcing this on our website at: http://www.sportengland.org/press_releases/funding.htm This says that all applications must be in the context of an agreed business plan for UK Athletics which stipulates clear milestones and outcomes.

You can contact UK Athletics at: http://www.ukathletics.net/ tel: 0121 456 5098.There is also a guide to sources of funding for sport that you can download from our website at: http://www.sportengland.org/resources/download/download_1.htm

I hope this information is helpful.

Katy Reid - Information Executive
Sport England, 16 Upper Woburn Place, London, WC1H 0QP
Tel 020 7273 1700 Fax 020 7273 1868
Email info@sportengland.org
Website www.sportengland.org

Please see letter attached requesting details about funding for our local running track.(Hard copy in the post as the Courier Newpaper article will not scan very well).

Letter to James Welbury from Cllr. N.H. Waller, Crowborough Town Council, dated 14th May 2002

Letter to James Welbury from Linda A. Butcher, Town Clerk, Crowborough Town Council, dated 10th May 2002

Letter to James Welbury from Linda A. Butcher, Town Clerk, Crowborough Town Council, dated 10th October 2001.

I acknowledge safe receipt of your letter delivered to the office today.The running track at Goldsmith's is the responsibility of Crowborough Town Council and as such the Council has previously agreed to improve the surface. However there is no information on file to confirm that a lottery application in the sum of £300,000 has been successful.
With regard to the usage of the running track it is very encouraging to know that an improved track would benefit large numbers of people and I am in the process of making contact with Beacon School over several such issues.

I am sure the Council will want to consult widely before entering into any contracts for improvement work and I will contact you again about this matter.

Finally I aplogise for the delay in replying to you but there was a considerable backlog of work when I started earlier this year.

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Dear Mrs. Butcher,
                                     RE: Goldsmith's Running Track
     Many thanks for your letter regarding the track and potential future developments for improving the track, in response to my letter of August 22nd 2001. I will let our club, Crowborough Runners, know of the contents of your letter.
     We would welcome being consulted about any improvements or developments, and would be happy to send representatives to any meetings you organise about the same.
     I would be grateful if you could let me know when the council will be able to do any repairs to the current surface. May I also take this opportunity to let inform you that our club is hosting the annual Crowborough 10K road race on Sunday 2nd December.      Details of the race and application forms for runners wishing to participate can be found at www.crowboroughrunners.org.uk I will arrange for a few hard copy running applications to be handed into the Town Hall for display if possible.
       Details of the club, it's activities and history can also be found on our internet site. You may want to add our site name to any future town guides or to any relevant town publications.
        Regards      James Welbury

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