Councillors back plan for £450k all-weather rugby pitch at Ystrad Mynach

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A new all-weather rugby pitch could be built at the Centre for Sporting Excellence (CSE) in Ystrad Mynach, to replace the current surface.

Members of Caerphilly County Borough Council’s regeneration committee agreed, on Tuesday November 5, to back plans for the £450,000 pitch.

However, the committee heard plans for a similar surface at Risca Comprehensive School could be delayed and end up costing the council an unexpected £400,000.

The spending at the CSE will be more than recouped from external income generated at the centre, a senior officer said.

A new deal with Welsh regional rugby club Dragons RFC is currently being negotiated and will help contribute to the cost of the pitch.

Mark Williams, the council’s corporate director for economy and environment, would not share details of the sums involved in the deal, but said the income generated “will more than pay for the replacement 3G surface”.

Committee member Cllr Colin Mann asked about the lifespan of that type of artificial surface.

“The pitch at the CSE will be in year 11 [of its use] next year,” Mr Williams replied. “That’s its typical life – it’s lasted as expected.”

Members of the committee endorsed a recommendation that £450,000 of capital contingency funding be set aside for the replacement pitch at the CSE, ahead of a formal decision by cabinet members in the future.

Mr Williams told the committee the council’s cabinet would also be asked to set aside a further £400,000 for a 3G pitch at Risca Comprehensive School.

He said that project is funded by the Welsh Government, but owing to a “slight delay due to unfortunate circumstances” it may carry over into the next financial year.

The government was currently “unable to confirm if the grant will be available in 2025/26”, Mr Williams said, adding that the cabinet would be asked to set aside enough money to complete the Risca project “just in case”.