Notts Sport is helping all year round cricket become a more realistic game thanks to an inhouse designed indoor cricket system.
Indoor Cricket Centres are highly flexible facilities that can be used for a huge variety of sports and activities but sometimes cricket performance and surface longevity are overlooked in pursuit of a short-term fix.
The new Notts Sport Indoor Cricket System was developed from months of research and development led by Notts Sports Technical Manager Adam Walker. He said, “It was an exciting opportunity for me to design a system into an area of business we have not yet been in. In the past we have struggled to perfect this system and therefore it was a challenge I readily accepted.
“Now the system has passed all test requirements, and is pending the official approval from the ECB, I am excited to see new high-quality installations throughout the country as part of the Notts Sport service.”
Following in-depth research on the specific requirements for the indoor system, internal testing was completed and produced a system that passed all inhouse tests. This was communicated to Labosport, who we worked closely with Nott Sport on the official testing of the products on site and in the laboratory. Notts Sports’ Notts Grass Ultra carpet tops the system, a state of the art monofilament yarn technology, bringing non-turf cricket surfacing into the 21st century. Such fibres, coupled with the high-density specification, is substantially more durable to long term wear and tear compared to that of old-style cricket surfaces.
For more information on Notts Sports innovative Indoor Cricket System or any of the Notts sport products, contact Notts Sport at info@nottssport.com, call 01455883730 or visit http://www.nottssport.com.
NottsBase D System NGU laid at Lords Cricket Ground
Major refurbishment continues at Lords Cricket Ground, which includes the Notts Sport ECB approved Notts Base D System NGU, in the iconic stadiums’ Nursery Ground.
Following the installation of a single practice lane in 2015, Notts Sport Cricket South Licensee S & C Slatter, were contacted to lay a second strip. The work was carried out over four days in April 2021, within the second phase of the Lords Masterplan which began back in 2019. The redevelopment of the ground will continue over the next decade.
The original pitch installed in 2015 was moved to a new location in 2019 in advance of the new stands being built, with a view to it being moved back this year. The plans were amended and the relocated pitch was left in situ and a second pitch was added. This pitch, designed by Notts Sport, was the revolutionary ECB Approved NottsBase D System NGU.
NottsGrass Ultra fibres maintain critical performance characteristics for longer when compared to previous NottsGrass surface technology. It provides players with improved playing performance over a much longer period of time and a more realistic and consistent. Coaches and players are confident that ball to surface interaction will be as consistent as possible resulting in better teaching, coaching and playing experiences.
Shaun Patrick, Chairman of Notts Sport, says: “To be included in this extensive refurbishment is a real privilege and is a testament to the exceptional performance and durability of our systems that they impressed the Groundstaff at Lord’s – there really is no higher recommendation!”
Notts Sport, which has over 37 years’ experience in the synthetic sports and play surfacing industry, is the world’s leading supplier of non-turf cricket pitch systems for coaching, practice and match play.
For more information on the Notts Sport innovative cricket systems or any of their surfacing solutions contact the team by calling 01455 883730, by emailing info@nottssport.com or by visiting the website at www.nottssport.com.
England Hockey & GB Hockey renew partnership with Notts Sport
Leading synthetic surfacing supplier Notts Sport will continue its ongoing support for hockey by extending its successful relationship with England & GB Hockey as the organisation’s Official Facilities Partner.
The renewed partnership, which will run until 2023, meansNotts Sport continues their fantastic work, ensuring that clubs, schools and local authorities can deliver the best new and refurbished hockey facilities to help grow the game in communities up and down the country.
The announcement comes eight years after Notts Sport began working with England & GB Hockey, offering Facility Design, Advice & Funding opportunities. The extension of the partnership provides an emphatic endorsement of the quality of service the company provides.
As well as the renewal of the Official Facilities Partner of England & GB Hockey, Notts Sport are also proud to announce their continuation as Title Partner of the Schools Championships for Boys. Notts Sport has supported this event, which runs annually, to grow participation levels at schools around the country. In the extended partnership, the company will carry on working alongside the Facilities Team to award Club of the Year at our annual Awards Dinner plus supporting our Development Team in providing exceptional support to our Hockey Family across the country.
Notts Sport Managing Director Duncan Bennett says: “We are delighted to be renewing our partnership with England Hockey which began back in 2012 with an audit of various hockey pitches to support a wider piece of work the Facilities Team were working on at the time. Almost a decade later, we have been fortunate enough to provide hundreds of clubs across England with valuable support, information and advice that assisted them with their hockey pitch schemes and as a result, delivered many projects.
We are extremely excited to continue the relationship with England & GB Hockey because the changes we are seeing both in pitch and turf technology and for sport in general will drive innovation and improvements. Our partnership is a key relationship to Notts Sport, and we look forward to supporting the Hockey Family via new ways to educate and inform discussions around these changes and how we can all embrace the best options provided.”
England & GB Hockey CEO Nick Pink “We are delighted to have extended our partnership with Notts Sport through to 2023. The market-leading work they undertake with our clubs and schools is critical to the facility provision for hockey and the support they provide our initiatives. We look forward to working with Duncan and his team as hockey continues to make positive strides on and off the pitch.”
England & Great Britain hockey star Sam Ward took time out from his preparations for the 2021 Olympics to host a special training session for school pupils – on an artificial turf pitch designed by leading synthetic surfacing supplier Notts Sport.
Sam Ward opening the new facility at Lutterworth College
The recently completed refurbished pitch at Lutterworth College was officially opened by Sam in October this year, giving the students some much-needed excitement and fun in this strange year.
The school recently upgraded their multi-sport pitch to a synthetic hockey pitch designed by Notts Sport to meet International Hockey Federation (FIH) National category field standard.
Sam delighted pupils with a special training session and game and was enthused to see pupils benefiting from such a fantastic facility, which he believes will help develop the sport in the local area. He said “It was amazing to go back to the Midlands to open the pitch at Lutterworth College. It is a fantastic school in which a high class facility like that can really bring the community together getting more people more active. The playing surface supplied by Notts Sport is incredible and hopefully will be used to create some stars of the future.”
Within just eight weeks, the school’s original Notts Sport multi-sport pitch – which had seen 15 years of intensive use – was given a state-of-the-art make-over, creating a top-notch facility for students and community users to enjoy.
Notts Sport channel partner Cleveland Land Services were contractors for the install, lifting and removing the existing carpet and shockpad, cleaning the macadam base before installing a brand new shockpad and sand dressed synthetic grass.
The £251k refurbishment project was carried out during lockdown and the summer holidays, meaning there was minimal disruption to the school.
Laura Kendrick, School Business Leader at Lutterworth College said, “Working with England Hockey’s Official Facility Partners Notts Sport, our old pitch was stripped and then resurfaced with a new shock pad and premium sand dressed surface compliant for multi-sport activities benefiting the whole sports curriculum and the wider community. Notts Sport made the process so easy, taking away the stress and giving us the confidence that we’d get just what we were looking for. A huge success all round!”
Sam Ward’s visit ended with a Q&A with the pupils where they learnt what it is like to be a professional athlete, the amount of training is involved to be one, his inspiration and the details of Sam’s worst injury he had received, the Olympic Qualifiers in 2019, when he was hit with a hockey ball and received 8 fractures to his face and lost his sight in his left eye.
Unable to bring our roadshow seminars to you this year in these strange times, we have decided to take them online! Our first seminar highlighting our exciting funding scheme which enables the installation of state-of-the-art community sports facilities, will be avaialable on Zoom on the 26th November 2020 at 1330.
Fast Track Funding – an initiative from leading synthetic surfacing supplier Notts Sport – has funded 35 new sports facilities worth in excess of £15 million over the past 7 years.
Fast Track Funding is the only non-traditional funding route for artificial turf facilities – such as 3G football and rugby, or multi-use hockey pitches – proven to be compliant with Education Funding Agency requirements and local authority or academy auditors.
It’s an ideal and easy solution for schools and local authorities, providing high-quality, synthetic turf sports pitches, with little or no upfront capital contribution required.
That’s because most sports facilities are able to generate significant revenue through community use, and this income can be used to pay for a considerable proportion, if not all, of the cost of projects delivered under the unique scheme.
This online event will give all viewers the opportunity to find out how the scheme could benefit them and learn about the experiences of customers who have already had facilities completed thanks to Fast Track Funding.
With Fast Track Funding, Notts Sport works closely with the individual customer to design a bespoke sports facility that’s specific to their vision and strategy.
Instead of the customer spending months or years applying for grants and waiting for funding, Notts Sport will provide a flexible funding solution with repayments spread over an agreed period to suit specific budgets. So depending on the customer’s requirements, Notts Sport and its specialist funding partners, UniLink Finance Ltd, could provide full funding for the facility up front or supply part of the cost to top up existing funds or budgets.
Duncan Bennett, Managing Director of Notts Sport, says:
“Over the past 7 years our free
Fast Track Funding Seminars have proven to be an ideal opportunity to learn
about how Notts Sport can help deliver and achieve world class sport & play
facilities for their communities without any capital contribution required.
“Since 2013 we’ve completed FIFA & World Rugby compliant pitches, FIH compliant Hockey pitches covering the resurfacing of existing pitches, the construction of new pitches and even a major playground development. These projects have been delivered with funding approvals for a range of customers across Academies, Academy Trusts, Catholic Schools, Independent Schools and Primary Schools.
The Turnaround on Fast Track
Funding projects can be expedited so as an example, in 2018 we took an enquiry
from Stantonbury International School on 20th December 2018 and had
funding approval, the project tendered and as a result had the School’s
condemned artificial grass pitch resurfaced & completed to comply with FIFA
Quality standards by the end of March 2019.
Working with our partners such as England Hockey, Notts Sport provide valuable advice for customers to help maximise the external use of the new facility after completion. This means the pitch can generate income from the outset & immediately start to pay for itself. This will ensure the whole project delivers on a carefully developed business & financial plan to create a long term sustainable model bespoke for each of our customers’ requirements.”
Designing each and every facility to the specific requirements of each customer, Notts Sport has an unrivalled project portfolio illustrating the widest range of solutions. We will be showcasing a number of those recently completed projects including Liverpool College, The Hertfordshire and Essex High School and more; in addition to the world class sports grounds such as Lord’s Cricket Ground; and iconic brands such as Central Park playgrounds in New York.
The company, which has over 36 years of experience in the sports and play surfacing sector, also assures full quality control throughout the installation through its turnkey project management service.
To ‘attend’ our Fast Track Funding Seminars click on the link below:
To find out all they need to know about Notts Sport Fast Track Funding, staff from schools and local authorities can book their place at a free Fast Track Funding seminar online at Zoom. Further information is available by emailing markw@nottssport.com or calling 01455 883730.
Since joining Notts Sport in 2012, Jason has produced CAD designs for countless Play & Sport projects in the UK and abroad, ensuring they comply with industry guidelines and standards. Jason has a keen eye for detail which is reflected in all of his designs whether they be produced to shape a project vision, to support a planning application, or to support a construction tender.
Further to his design responsibilities, Jason develops and manages planning applications for new build and reconstruction developments within the UK. Jason’s good communication skills are key when engaging with local authorities, consultees and clients alike. His willingness to work hard guarantees that key considerations are made pre-application and that all deadlines are met.
St Peters High School, Gloucestershire. Completed facility via Fast Track Funding
A series of seminars will highlight an exciting funding scheme which enables the installation of state-of-the-art community sports facilities – in the face of continuing economic challenges and government cutbacks.
Fast Track Funding – an initiative from leading synthetic surfacing supplier Notts Sport – has funded 32 new sports facilities worth in excess of £12 million over the past five years.
Fast Track Funding is the only non-traditional funding route for artificial turf facilities – such as 3G football and rugby, or multi-use hockey pitches – proven to be compliant with Education Funding Agency requirements and local authority or academy auditors.
It’s an ideal and easy solution for schools and local authorities, providing high-quality, synthetic turf sports pitches, with little or no upfront capital contribution required.
That’s because most sports facilities are able to generate significant revenue through community use, and this income can be used to pay for a considerable proportion, if not all, of the cost of projects delivered under the unique scheme.
To showcase this fantastic initiative, Notts Sport is hosting free Fast Track Funding seminars at venues across England throughout November.
These events will give all attendees the opportunity to find out how the scheme could benefit them and learn about the experiences of customers who have already had facilities completed thanks to Fast Track Funding.
With Fast Track Funding, Notts Sport works closely with the individual customer to design a bespoke sports facility that’s specific to their vision and strategy.
Instead of the customer spending months or years applying for grants and waiting for funding, Notts Sport will provide a flexible funding solution with repayments spread over an agreed period to suit specific budgets. So depending on the customer’s requirements, Notts Sport and its specialist funding partners, UniLink Finance Ltd, could provide full funding for the facility up front or supply part of the cost to top up existing funds or budgets.
Shaun Patrick, Chairman of Notts Sport, says: “Our free Fast Track Funding seminar is a fantastic opportunity for staff from schools, local authorities and other sectors to discover all they need to know about how we can help them achieve top-notch sports facilities for their communities.
“Whether it’s a brand new project or the refurbishment of an existing pitch, the new facility can be installed straight away – and we can provide valuable advice for customers to help them maximise the use of the new space after completion so it can immediately start to pay for itself.”
Designing each and every facility to the specific requirements of each customer, Notts Sport has an unrivalled project portfolio illustrating the widest range of solutions. The company’s impressive recent installations include elite sports facilities at St Peter’s RC High School, Monmouth School for Boys and more; in addition to the world class sports grounds such as Lord’s Cricket Ground; and iconic brands such as Central Park playgrounds in New York.
Stuart Crabb, Head of Physical Education at St Peters RC High School said, “Fast Track Funding is simple, all organised by Notts Sport. It is a simple process, super easy to access and well managed by Notts Sport.
“I attended a Fast Track Funding seminar 3 years ago, where we came up with the idea to fund the project through Fast Track Funding, from that point on we worked really closely with Notts Sport and their employees and they dealt with all the design and build and it was super easy for us as a client.”
The company, which has over 34 years of experience in the sports and play surfacing sector, also assures full quality control throughout the installation through its turnkey project management service.
Fast Track Funding Seminars are being held in the following locations:
Newcastle: 6th November, DoubleTree Newcastle Int Airport , 8am-10am
Bury: 7th November, Village Hotel Club, 8am-10am
Sheffield: 8th November, Copthorne Hotel Sheffield, 8am-10am
Bristol: 13th November, Holiday Inn Bristol Filton, 8am-10am
Notts Sports pioneering new cricket surface NottsGrass Ultra has been recognised by the ECB as a component in the ECB Approved Non-Turf Pitch System.
Incorporating a state of the art texturised monofilament yarn brings huge advances in cricket surfacing technology & catapults cricket surfacing into the 21st Century. Combining the NottsGrass Ultra with proven non-turf cricket systems combines the best of traditional system technology with new surface & fibre advances & sets new parameters for how a cricket surface & system performs.
Creating consistent performance is at the heart of all our research & development for cricket systems and NottsGrass Ultra has been developed to maintain performance at all times. This ensures that coaches & players are confident that ball to surface interaction will be as consistent as possible resulting in better teaching, coaching and playing experiences.
Independent laboratory test results show that the NottsGrass Ultra fibre maintains critical performance characteristics for longer when compared to previous NottsGrass surface technology. This significant development will provide coaches, players and customers with improved playing performance over a much longer period of time which, in turn, creates more realistic & consistent performance throughout the life of your cricket facility.
By creating this advantage, life costs will also reduce because performance is maximised for longer, meaning resurfacing and remediation works will be required with less frequency maximising your strategic investments in cricket facilities.
Lord’s Cricket Ground & leading Independent Schools have already chosen NottsGrass Ultra for their cricket facilities, with many more schools and clubs contacting the Notts Sport cricket design specialists to discuss how Notts Sport can provide their club or school with state of the art cricket technology.
To learn more about the revolutionary NottsGrass Ultra surface visit www.nottssport.com or contact Notts Sport at 01455 883730 or info@nottssport.com.
In 2015 Jack Patrick passed away at the age of 20 from a rare disease called Goodpastures Syndrome.
Jacko was a big supporter of The Barmy Army, following England to all the home tests and also Australia. A good friend of Barmy Army MD, Paul Burnham, Jacko helped promote and organise the BAT 2015 tour around the counties of England, often sharing a few beers and fags with Paul and Billy Cooper on the way.
In 2016, The Barmy Army and Lutterworth Cricket Club, organised a Memorial Cricket Match in his memory. With help from Chris Millard from Barmy Army, and the Notts Sport staff (where Jacko worked), a staggering £8,000 was raised for Jacko’s favourite charity, Help for Heroes.
In 2017, the event was repeated and over £10,000 was raised. The fixture has now become a permanent event in South Leicestershire and will take place on Friday June 22nd. Help for Heroes send a cricket team made up of wounded servicemen, and have made sure it is the first match to appear on their fixture list.
In the last 2 years, Jacko’s friends and family have raised more than £50,000 in his memory. The latest challenge will see his Mum and Dad, Shaun and Emma, along with 30 other Help for Heroes Fundraisers, trek across Cambodia in March. Details can be found here. https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/shaun-patrick11.
Both Shaun and Emma will be sporting Barmy Army sunhats throughout the trek!
When Shaun and Emma were at this winter’s first test in Brisbane, they witnessed the first rendition of the Kangaroo song, and will be teaching the rest of the group the words when the going gets tough!
We wish them all the best for this difficult adventure. Feel free to sponsor Emma and Shaun at Just Giving
Leading sport and play surfacing specialists Notts Sport, is delighted to announce the appointment of Andy Earnshaw as new Director of Export.
Andy originally joined Notts Sport in 2014 to lead the Multi Sports project delivery team and to assist with the launch of the revolutionary ShockWave EcoBase system having worked alongside the company for over 25 years as a contract manager at leading UK sport, play and cricket contractors.
The return of Andy leading our Export division shows company’s ambition and vision for the development of an already thriving overseas business, bringing his passion, enthusiasm and unrivalled wealth of experience across construction, technical and supply chain development not only to Notts Sport but to the company’s clients in the UK and worldwide.
Commenting on the new appointment, Managing Director, Duncan Bennett said: “We are delighted that Andy has returned to Notts Sport. In his 3 years at the company, Andy had already proven himself to be a key member of the senior management team across our sports pitch & project delivery side of the business. Transferring that success, experience and unrivalled set of skills to his new role as Director of Export will ensure that we continue to deliver our strategic vision of developing existing partnerships with our 25+ distributors around the world as well as developing new global and regional opportunities across sport, play & cricket and in turn opening up exciting new opportunities for Notts Sport products and solutions such as Surface Play & ShockWave in North America.”
Andy commented, “I look forward to expanding Notts Sport’s business globally and leveraging our relationship with existing and new customers around the world as we look to help clients improve the level of safety within play areas and sports facilities.”
Supporting Andy in the Export Division is Beverley LaRosa, who has become integral to the success of the Export department since beginning in her role 12 months ago.
Creating consistent performance is at the heart of all our research & development for cricket systems and NottsGrass Ultra has been developed to maintain performance at all times. This ensures that coaches & players are confident that ball to surface interaction will be as consistent as possible resulting in better teaching, coaching and playing experiences.
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