Junior football club says pitches too unsafe to use

Adam Boddington coaches the under-10s side in which his son plays

A junior football club with 250 players has had to cancel local training sessions due to the "dangerous" state of the pitches it uses.

Coaches at Stockbrook Colts, in Derby, said they have had to take action over "ongoing safety and safeguarding concerns" on two pitches.

The club, which will now train in other locations in the city, said pitches at Stockbrook Park collect large pools of water and have started breaking up.

Derby City Council owns the site but said it had not been made aware of any "particular safeguarding concerns" by the club.

The decision to train at other sites means Stockbrook Colts, which runs 10 junior teams, is paying out an extra £400 a week.

Adam Boddington, who coaches the under-10s, said the situation was "unsustainable".

Training has been suspended due to concerns about two pitches, one with an artificial surface

"The pitch is not fit for purpose," he said.

"It is dangerous - it's just a health and safety risk for the children.

"We've tried to put on training sessions in those conditions but it's just impossible.

He added the club had been "banging the drum for years" to get a suitable surface, and "at the minute we've got 250 children unable to train".

Chairwoman of the club, Kelly Millward, was joined by many of the team's players and parents to raise awareness of the issue at a protest on Sunday.

She shared emails to council officials about the state of the pitches, including issues of overhanging trees, damaged fencing and children slipping.

One read: "Our kids are falling and slipping over because of the flooring being old and the trees that weep onto the ground".

"We need to be heard," she told the BBC.

"We've been begging for 21 years for somebody to help us."

Kelly Millward said "I can't be having kids put at risk any more"

"Due to having to move training, we're now having to charge £3 a session instead of £1, which goes against against everything we do.

"A lot of parents won't be able to afford that and unfortunately we will probably lose a lot of players."

Labour councillor Ndukwe Onuoha, cabinet member for Streetpride, parks and leisure, said: "Our Parks and Greenspaces Team has a schedule to maintain parks across Derby.

"We have just finished our consultation for a play area, which was met with enthusiasm from residents.

"We have not been made aware of any particular safeguarding concerns by Stockbrook Colts FC. However, we invite them to have a meeting to discuss their concerns.

"We regularly engage with and support all user groups at Stockbrook Park to ensure their needs are understood."