Walsall school looking to transform its sporting facilities – and here's why

Queen Mary’s Grammar School, in Sutton Road, has put forward a proposal to provide a hockey and tennis multi-use games area (MUGA) on its playing fields and enhance existing facilities.

Representatives for the school said the upgrade was “much needed” and would improve the ‘sporting prowess’ of both pupils and the wider community.

Walsall Council planning officers are expected to make a decision on the proposal next month.

If approved, the project will be completed in three phases, starting with the creation of the multi-use games area to increase hockey and tennis provision for the school and community.

Phase two will see an enhanced drainage strategy to address issues on the playing fields as well as the reconfiguration of the rugby and cricket pitches to ensure they are fully size compliant and fit for purpose.

And the third phase will see the extension of the sports pavilion to provide new changing rooms as well as better social and spectator facilities.

Last month, the council approved plans for new floodlights to be provided on the school’s tennis courts – a move which will help support Walsall Tennis Club which now operates from the site.

Agents Baily Garner said: “This application seeks to provide much needed sporting facilities to Queen Mary’s Grammar School and the wider community.

“The school have consulted Sport England and a number of National Governing Bodies and obtained their guidance prior to submitting this application, which has informed the design development of the scheme.

“The proposed MUGA will enable the school and wider community to play hockey at competitive level, which is much needed as the school currently do not have any suitable sporting facilities for hockey.

“The proposal includes much needed drainage works to the pitches to enable the school and wider community to use the pitches throughout the year and avoids any unnecessary costs with travel to other facilities.

“The proposal also includes bringing the current rugby pitches up to size standard, as they are currently undersized against NGB and Sport England guidance.

“The proposal will also address ball strike issues that have been identified with the current cricket pitch and overlapping pitches.

“The proposed pavilion extension addresses the current lack of changing rooms across the school and provides much needed separate home and away changing rooms, which will be a huge improvement for external partnering bodies to use, whilst also providing spectator and bar facilities for matches.

“In summary, we believe this planning application is a well -considered design proposal that addresses all of the school and wider communities’ current needs and will ultimately improve the sporting prowess of both the school and wider community.”