​A junior football club has called on council chiefs to honour a funding pledge for a new full-sized 3G pitch in a North Yorkshire market town.

North Yorkshire Council is set to remove a commitment to provide £330,000 towards an all-weather pitch in Bedale from its list of funding allocations.  A council report says the allocation will then be considered in future years when the scheme is closer to being delivered.

A decision will be made by senior councillors at next week’s executive committee meeting.

But leaders at Bedale Junior Football Club, which as part of the 3G4Bedale group has been working on plans to build a 3G pitch in the town for a number of years, have called on council chiefs to maintain their commitment to the project.

The club says work could be underway in 12 to 18 months — but they are waiting for the authority to finish its delayed playing pitch strategy, which is now expected in the Spring.

The location of the new pitch has not been confirmed, but could be at the club’s Dobson’s Field ground.
Ian Cross, head coach at Bedale JFC, said: “It would appear that when it comes to North Yorkshire Council and football, the right foot doesn’t know what the left foot is doing.  Contrary to the report to executive, a 3G pitch for Bedale is a clearly deliverable project as the council’s own recently released Local Football Facility Plan has confirmed.  Drawn up by North Yorkshire Council, the FA and others, the plan identifies Bedale as a priority area for 3G development and scored deliverability at the maximum possible, 4/4.”

Mr Cross said once the council’s playing pitch strategy was complete, a formal application would be made to the Football Foundation, which would provide the remainder of the funding needed for the scheme.

The £330,000 was allocated by the former Hambleton District Council from money received by developers for infrastructure projects.
The club said it received written assurances when North Yorkshire Council was formed that the funding would remain ringfenced for the Bedale 3G pitch.

Mr Cross added: “If North Yorkshire Council keeps its end of the bargain, the building of a 3G pitch in Bedale could be underway within 12 to 18 months.  If, however, North Yorkshire Council reneges on its commitment now, then the whole project will be jeopardised, delivering a kick in the teeth to the thousands of people of all ages who would benefit from the facility.  The council would also be slamming shut the door on plans to ensure equal opportunities for girls and the creation of the town’s first-ever female football team.  In light of this we will be calling on elected representatives to reject the proposal and to ensure that the North Yorkshire Council’s commitment to supporting a 3G in Bedale is honoured.”

The football club, which has 400 young members, said the lack of a 3G pitch for training meant it was now having to turn away new players.
Council officers are recommending that the funding for the pitch is removed from the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) allocations and then reconsidered alongside other projects next year.

Their report adds: “The reason for this recommendation is to ensure all committed strategic CIL is allocated to deliverable projects.  Tying up a significant amount of CIL money for a further two to three years means that there is limited scope to fund other projects in the interim.  The CIL pots will continue to grow meaning that there will be additional funds in the pot in future years.”

The report notes that an existing commitment for Thirsk multi-use games area of £40,000 is no longer required as the project is not proceeding.

The only remaining commitment in the Hambleton area is for £39,632 for Northallerton Sports Village.