Planning permission has been granted for the construction of an all weather sports pitch with floodlighting and peripheral fencing on the Ryleys playing fields on Wilmslow Road. The use of the site will not change but the astroturf pitch will allow the area to be used more intensively than at present.
As we announced in January, this is a joint development between The Ryleys School and the hockey section of Alderley Edge Cricket Club (AECC), which does not have its own pitch and currently hires facilities for both training and matches. The all-weather pitch will provide enhanced facilities for continued use by the school during weekdays and Saturday mornings and for use for hockey matches and for training purposes by the Club at weekends and on weekday evenings.
The Ryleys School use the playing fields for the teaching and playing of children’s sports but they can become unusable during periods of heavy rain. At such times, many activities have to be transferred to the school site on Ryleys Lane which has more limited facilities for large group numbers.
The new all weather pitch will provide a safe and reliable environment for pupils to participate in a variety of structured sporting activities including football, mini-tennis, hockey, netball, rounders, athletics, junior cricket and 'tag' rugby. The provision of floodlighting will offer the school pupils increased sporting opportunities in their after-school activity programme and enable the club to make full use of the pitch during the winter months.
The Environmental Health Officer considered that the proposed hours of use, until 10pm Monday to Friday, would be detrimental to neighbours and requested that they were reduced. Therefore it was agreed that activities will finish by 8.30pm between April and August then between September and March activities will finish by 6pm at weekends and 9.15pm during the week.
It was also agreed, at the request of the Officer that the lights will be fitted with shrouds to reduce glare, their direction be angled and cushioning will be placed in front of the kick-boards when the pitch is not in use for professional matches, in order to reduce the impact of noise and light pollution. In addition it was requested that the applicants consult with the Parish Council with regards to landscaping, prior to submitting details to the Local Planning Authority.
The Northern Planning Committee decided that whilst the all-weather pitch will introduce a significant enclosure into an otherwise open area, the urban appearance of the surrounding area together with the benefits the pitch would bring to the local community outweighed any harm that the pitch and floodlights would cause to the visual appearance of the surrounding area.
Clive Elliott, AECC Club Chairman, said "This is an important milestone for the project, and AECC and The Ryleys School are delighted that East Cheshire Council has so tangibly supported the proposed investment in a first class all-weather sporting facility which will have benefits for the wider community too. However there is still much work to be done to bring the project to fruition and it is not yet possible to confirm a definitive timetable."
