Roy, our parks have been in decline for a long time, particularly sports facilities.When I played Sunday league football 20 years ago there were dozens of teams and at least two flourishing leagues. Both those leagues have folded, which indicates that sports participation has declined substantially among younger male adults.One of the reasons teams withdrew from the leagues was the state of the facilities. Pitches that were barely playable, littered with rubbish (including needles and condoms in some places) and dog mess; if it rained we were told not to use the pitches; changing facilities that literally fell down (in the case of Gunnersbury Park).The irony is that we paid substantial fees every time we hired a pitch, though the money never went on the upkeep. Warren Farm was one such venue.You can blame the councils to an extent, since their grants have been cut, but the actual cost of upkeep of these facilities was relatively small. And the motto of ‘use it or lose it’ was borne out as playing numbers dwindled.Football is the most popular sport in the country, yet grass roots participation is steeply declining, even before Covid. Considering the health benefits we are constantly lectured about by politicians you’d think making all sports facilities easier and cheaper to access would be a no-brained.Obviously not in Gunnersbury’s case.
Simon Hayes ● 1830d