Groundstaff

Formal Training Courses

The recommended route of formal training for groundstaff within the recreational game is via The Grounds Management Association (GMA) who are partnered with both the ECB and Sport England to provide expertise in fine turf surfaces.

From 2022 the main offer is via online learning, this substantially lowers the cost per candidate as well as removing the need to travel. Once enrolled on a course, the candidate has up to 28 days to complete it. Within that time the candidate can dip in and out of the modules as their time allows.

The refreshed suite of courses available are as follows:

Level 1 – Cricket Surfaces
‣ Download Course Overview ‣ Course Cost & Registration
Level 2 – Cricket Surfaces: Applied Turf Culture
‣ Download Course Overview ‣ Course Cost & Registration
Level 3 – Cricket Surfaces: Advanced Turf Culture
‣ Download Course Overview ‣ Course Cost & Registration

Both the Kent Cricket League and Kent County Village League offer subsidies towards member clubs completing these courses.

For more information on formal training courses, please visit The GMA website.

Seminars

Maintaining a cricket facility can be a thankless task and we have seen great support for short, relatively informal seminars where like-minded ground-staff can get together over some refreshments to talk ‘turf’. Our seminars generally take place of an evening for between 2 and 3 hours, led by an industry expert or one of our ECB Pitch Advisors who prepare a brief talk or demonstration.

Our latest round of seminars were run in partnership with the Kent County Village League on the topic of end of season renovations. Two sessions were delivered, one at Eynsford CC and another at Sissinghurst CC, each co-delivered by Phil Jeggo the South of England Pitch Advisor for The GMA.

Pitch Reports

We can provide four different levels of report and guidance for cricket ground-staff who are working with clubs affiliated to Kent Cricket, ranging from informal guidance to the extensive ECB PQS (Performance Quality Standards) Pitch Report.

Tier 1 – Informal Guidance

Duration: 1 hour, approximately
Cost: £50 + Mileage

This visit will be carried out by one of our support team who are all experienced ground-staff. Ttypically most beneficial for new or inexperienced ground-staff who are looking for a few pointers. The notes from a Tier 1 visit cannot be used as support for projects or applications and may highlight the need for a more in-depth report.

Tier 2 – ECB Short Report

Duration: – 2 hours, approximately
Cost: £140 + Mileage

The ECB Short Report takes the key criteria from the PQS Report (Tier 3) and includes visual examination of cores samples. This report would be a sensible investment for a club who have little or no prior knowledge of the history of their square and are looking for some structured advice, as well as a point of reference.

Tier 3 – ECB PQS Report

Duration: 2+ hours
Cost: £350 + Mileage

The ECB PQS Report is an extensive and formal document that can only be carried out by a recognised ECB Pitch Advisor. As part of the report the advisor will submit soil samples for laboratory analysis (included in the price) which then formulate part of the findings.

This report is often requested by clubs as they climb the Kent Cricket League divisions, to ensure that they have a suitable standard of wicket to play in the Premier Division. It may also be used as evidence to justify significant works to be carried out on the cricket square.

Click here to download an example ECB PQS Report of the fictional “Seam Up CC”

Tier 4 – ECB PQS Report – Follow Up

Only relevant to those who have a historical PQS Report (Tier 3). In this case contact James Moss who can work with you to plan which elements need to be re-assessed and then estimate a price.

County Pitch Advisors

We currently have two active County Pitch Advisors who are able to carry out formal reports and provide guidance for clubs on fine turf surfaces. These reports should be used to benchmark the quality of the playing surface and identify areas for further improvement or investigation.

Fine turf is an incredibly specialist area of expertise, and many undertakings carry substantial risk, dealing in fine margins for error. As such, in many situations clubs will be advised to engage with an ECB recognised fine-turf consultant to design a programme of works to tackle an issue that is identified within a pitch report.

Michael Llong
County Pitch Advisor

James Moss
County pitch Advisor

Pitch Doctor Videos

The ECB Pitch Doctor videos are a series of short, hands-on clips that demonstrate some of the typical tasks that volunteer and recreational ground-staff will benefit from understanding. In this playlist you can find the following topics: