PADDOCK WOOD TOWN COUNCIL POLICY FOR HIRE OF PUBLIC OPEN SPACES
Paddock Wood Town Council > PADDOCK WOOD TOWN COUNCIL POLICY FOR HIRE OF PUBLIC OPEN SPACES

PADDOCK WOOD TOWN COUNCIL POLICY FOR HIRE OF PUBLIC OPEN SPACES

PADDOCK WOOD TOWN COUNCIL POLICY FOR HIRE OF PUBLIC OPEN SPACES

The Town Council owns the following sites:

St Andrews Field

Elm Tree Playing Fields

Memorial Play Fields

Putlands Play Fields

Green Lane Play Fields

 

REQUESTS FOR HIRE OF OPEN SPACES

Requests for the hire of open spaces are either from sports clubs, groups, ad hoc committees, clubs, individuals or commercial enterprises.

The Council has long standing arrangements with the following sports clubs for their home pitches

Elm Tree Playing Fields:    Paddock Wood Football Club

Memorial Play Fields:         Insulators Football Club

Putlands Play Fields:          Paddock Wood & East Peckham Rugby

Green Lane Play Fields:     Wood Lane Football Club

Cricket Wicket:                     Sahrudaya Royals CC (agreed August 2021)

1)        The Council’s practice is that the incumbent club should have first refusal to renew their regular hire of pitches annually and that the pitches should not be sub-let without the agreement of the incumbent club. Any approaches from other sports clubs would be considered provided there was no conflict with incumbent clubs.

2)         Requests for events for fun fairs, circuses, festivals, fetes, charity, or community events will be considered by the Estates Committee on their merits. The Committee will consider policies for primary and secondary uses of individual sites; past practice and traditional uses; potential to cause a nuisance to surrounding properties; potential for traffic congestion; potential to cause damage to sites; community benefits; charitable purposes (if any).

3)         Hire charges will be as set out in the Council scale of charges, unless varied by a decision of the Council. All hirers will be responsible for vacating the site promptly at the end of their period of hire and for removing all publicity from public sight.

4)         All hirers will be responsible for ensuring that they are licensed as necessary for sale or supply of alcohol, entertainment and provision of hot food or drink. All hirers will be responsible for all other regulatory or legal compliance. All hirers will be responsible for ensuring that the Council’s land is suitable and safe for the purpose of the event to be held.

5)         All requests for hire will be considered in the first instance by the Council’s Estates Committee which meets on the 2nd Monday of the month. For requests to get on the agenda they should be with the Council by first of the month.

6)         All hirers will be charged a £50 key deposit which will be refunded once the keys have been returned.

 

All requests for hire for sporting events should follow the guidance in Annexe A General Regulations and Conditions for the Hire of Sports Pitches

All requests for hire for non-sports events should follow the guidance at Annex B “GUIDANCE FOR HIRE OF RECREATION GROUNDS FOR NON-SPORTS USE.”

 

 

 

ANNEX A

General Regulations and Conditions for the Hire of Sports Pitches

  1. Applications for the use of sports pitches in Paddock Wood will only be accepted once a completed registration form has been submitted. The acceptance of this form does not constitute a contract unless the Hirer receives written confirmation from the Council. The Council must be notified of any changes to these details at the earliest opportunity. A copy of the insurance policy as per condition 11 below must be submitted with the registration form.
  2. The Estates Committee reserves the right to ask for further particulars regarding any proposed booking, and to refuse any application without stating the reason.
  3. Prior to the start of the season (which shall be deemed to extend from 1 September until the 15 May)
  4. The person signing the registration form must be 18 years of age or over. The club will be deemed to be the Hirer and responsible for the payment of hiring charges to the Town Council together with the security (including, where appropriate the locking of gates and securing of height restriction barriers), cleanliness, and tidiness of the site. If random spot checks disclose that the Club has not litter picked the pitch and immediately surrounding area, the Council will arrange for the work to be undertaken and may recharge the Club accordingly.
  5. Fees for the hire of pitches shall be in accordance with the Council’s current scale of charges (reviewed annually). Unless payment by instalment has been agreed in advance, all hire fees shall be paid in full by 30 September each year; any Hirers owing money after that date without the prior agreement of the Council may be excluded from further use of the pitch until the fee is paid.
  6. Notice in writing must be sent to Paddock Wood Town Council if a Club ceases to require the facility. In such circumstances, Clubs shall not qualify for a refund of seasonal hire fees.
  7. Hirers are responsible for ensuring that matches are played only on the pitch(es) allocated to them.
  8. Invoices will be sent out at the beginning of every month for games played the previous month.  Any amendments required to any invoice must be emailed to admin@paddockwoodtc.co.uk, so that an amended invoice can be issued. Payments should be made on receipt of an invoice amended by PWTC.  All payments should quote the relevant invoice number.
  9. Outstanding amounts will be emailed monthly to each team and any team failing to pay its bill within 30 days may be barred from playing until the bill is settled
  10. The Council reserves the right to cancel the hiring or to close or forbid the use of pitches in the event of a breach of these conditions or if at any time, in the opinion of the Estates Manager, the pitches are unfit for use. The Council shall not be liable for any expenditure incurred or loss sustained by the Hirer, or any other person arising therefrom or connected therewith.
  11. The Council accepts no responsibility for any injury to the Hirer or any other person, or loss or damage to the property of the Hirer or any other person, arising by virtue of their use of the pitch. Clubs must make their own arrangements for First Aid facilities.
  12. The Hirer shall indemnify the Council from and against all actions, costs, claims, or demands whatsoever arising under statute or common law or in consequence of the licence hereby granted to use the pitches and shall obtain a public liability insurance policy with a minimum cover of £5,000,000.

A statement from a responsible officer of the club shall be submitted to the Council confirming that they have a valid insurance, which complies with this regulation.

  1. The Hirer shall not transfer the benefit of the hiring to any other person, club, or organisation without the prior permission of the Council.
  2. The pitches shall not be used for any purpose other than that stated in the application other than with the express consent of the Parish Council.
  3. Hirers are responsible for checking the suitability of pitches for play; pitches may only be used when in a fit condition and Hirers shall take all proper precautions to avoid unnecessary damage to the playing areas. The Hirer shall be responsible for any costs incurred by the Council for repairing and making good any unnecessary damage to the pitches whether caused by the Hirer, his/her team-mates, or members of the opposing team.
  4. The Hirer shall ensure that all cars and other vehicles connected with the Hirer, his/her Club, or the opposing team are parked in a manner which does not obstruct any public or private right of way or be a nuisance or source of annoyance to any person. The Hirer shall not bring cars or other vehicles onto the grassed areas of sportsgrounds or allow them to be brought there.
  5. The Hirer shall comply with any bylaws and regulations currently in force in respect of the specific sportsground in question.
  6. The Council reserves the right to review and amend these regulations and conditions at any time. Any review will be carried out by the Policy Procedures & Protocol Committee.

 

 

 

 

ANNEX B

GUIDANCE FOR HIRE OF RECREATION GROUNDS FOR NON-SPORTS USE

 

All applicants for hire of Recreation Grounds owned by Paddock Wood Town Council are advised that all requests for hire will need to be consistent with the Council’s POLICY FOR HIRE OF PUBLIC OPEN SPACES.

The following information should be supplied to the Council in the same order:

 

Contact Details of Organiser: to include the name of the club, firm or organisation, name of main contact with address, email and telephone.

Confirmation that the organiser has read, understood and will comply with the Council’s “POLICY FOR HIRE OF PUBLIC OPEN SPACES”.

Event Details: Location for event; date and times; site plan; name of event; details of proposed activities; estimated maximum number of persons attending; arrangements for parking, sanitation, stewarding, power, water and litter; is the purpose of the event commercial, charitable or for a good cause, a community event.

Insurance: Confirmation of a minimum of £5million public liability insurance including cover for damage to property and land owned by the Council. There should be a £150 maximum excess for damage to property and land owned by the Council. (Copy of insurance certificate and policy to be sent to Council at least a week before the event.)

Risk assessment: Copy of risk assessment to be sent to the Council at least a week before the event.)

 

Paddock Wood Town Council