PAS Spotlight: How Bingham Town FC Built a Sustainable Pitch Maintenance Model

A long-term approach to pitch management, supported by the GMA Pitch Advisory Service and Football Foundation funding, is helping Bingham Town FC provide better playing surfaces today while securing a sustainable future for tomorrow.

When Bingham Town FC took on responsibility for maintaining and developing the pitches at Butt Field in 2019, the club inherited both an opportunity and a challenge.

The site, which is shared with Bingham Cricket Club, serves hundreds of players throughout the year and plays an important role in supporting grassroots sport within the local community. Like many volunteer-led clubs, however, Bingham Town FC faced the challenge of improving pitch quality with limited resources, equipment and expertise.

The club successfully accessed the Football Foundation's Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund, a six-year tapered grant programme designed to help organisations improve and sustain natural grass pitches, while building long-term resilience. Alongside this, a 2019 Football Foundation Grass Pitch Maintenance Machinery & Equipment grant enabled the club to purchase a compact tractor, mower and single-pass turf maintenance system. These initial investments provided an important foundation for improvement. Pitch Power Assessments were undertaken and the advice from the GMA these contained was acted upon as best as it could be.

Over the following years, much of the specialist renovation work, including top dressing, overseeding and verti-draining, continued to be undertaken by external contractors. Pitch quality improved significantly, but as the maintenance grant tapered down and contractor costs increased, club volunteers began to question how improvements could be sustained once funding came to an end. At the same time, periods of wet weather regularly resulted in fixture cancellations, reducing playing opportunities for children and adult teams alike.

Looking Beyond Grant Funding

Recognising that the Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund would conclude in 2026, the club took a proactive approach.

At the end of the 2024 season, Bingham Town FC established a dedicated Pitch Maintenance and Development Group with a clear objective: improve pitch quality further while creating a financially sustainable model that would continue long after grant support ended.

Rather than focusing solely on short-term improvements, the group concentrated on developing a comprehensive long-term strategy in partnership with the GMA Pitch Advisory Service (through their RPA Julien Morris) and Nottinghamshire FA.

Stuart Edmonds, who leads the club's Pitch Maintenance and Development Group, explained:

"One of the biggest changes in our thinking was recognising that funding shouldn't be viewed as the solution in itself. The funding gave us an opportunity, but we needed a plan for what happened afterwards. Working with our GMA Regional Pitch Advisor helped us look beyond the next season and focus on where we wanted the club to be in five and ten years' time."

The group adopted a multifaceted approach that included:

• Close engagement with the club's GMA Regional Pitch Advisor.

• Making full use of PitchPower assessment reports to guide decision-making.

• Obtaining multiple quotations for purchases and services.

• Seeking professional advice on machinery and maintenance techniques.

• Engagement with Nottinghamshire FA.

• Improving communication between the Pitch Maintenance and Development Group and the club's Commercial Working Party.

• Raising awareness among coaches, volunteers and members about actions they could take to support pitch quality. While also developing their understanding of how the wider strategy would enhance pitch quality while also not increasing outgoings.

• Developing plans for machinery storage and operational sustainability.

• Constructing certain implements in-house where purchasing was not financially viable.

Making Investment Work Harder

One of the key findings from the club's planning process was that a significant proportion of annual expenditure was being spent on contractor-delivered renovation work.

While these services achieved good results, they represented a substantial recurring cost. Additionally, they didn't allow flexibility to respond to ever changing weather conditions and pitch conditions.

With guidance from the GMA and informed by PitchPower recommendations, the club explored whether investing in additional machinery through the Football Foundation's Grass Pitch Maintenance Machinery & Equipment Fund could provide a more sustainable solution.

The business case was compelling.

Owning specialist equipment would allow the club to undertake top dressing, seeding and aeration work more frequently, at exactly the right time for site conditions, while significantly reducing long-term maintenance costs.

Stuart explains, "When we looked at our annual expenditure, we realised we were spending significant amounts on renovation work carried out by contractors. The quality was good, but we knew that if we could invest in the right equipment and develop the knowledge to use it properly, we could achieve more frequent interventions, better timing and greater value for money."

The club developed detailed plans showing how it would generate the required match funding and sustain the investment over the longer term.

"The two-year strategy gave everyone clarity. We weren't just buying machinery because funding was available. Every purchase formed part of a bigger plan that showed how we would improve pitches, save money over the long term and become less reliant on external support."

The strategic approach, backed by robust planning and a clear sustainability model, helped the club secure further Football Foundation funding.

The Value of Expert Support

A central element of the club's progress has been its relationship with the GMA Pitch Advisory Service.

Working closely with Julien, the club developed a detailed annual maintenance programme, mapping monthly activities, costs and priorities throughout the year. This allowed volunteers to move away from entirely reactive maintenance and adopt a more proactive, evidence-led approach.

Stuart believes that expert support Julien provided was instrumental in helping the club maximise its investment.

"Having access to expert advice through the GMA was invaluable. Our Regional Pitch Advisor challenged our thinking in a really positive way and helped us understand where investment would have the greatest impact. The advice wasn't about spending more money, it was about spending money wisely."

The maintenance plan has also provided a clear roadmap for volunteers, enabling works to be scheduled at the most effective times while giving the club greater confidence in budgeting and future planning.

Bringing the Club with You

One of the club's key lessons has been the importance of communication.

As more information was shared with members about the work taking place behind the scenes, volunteer engagement increased significantly. Coaches and managers gained a greater understanding of how simple actions could help protect playing surfaces, from avoiding warm-ups in goalmouths to reducing unnecessary wear in high-traffic areas.

Club Treasurer Barry Penaluna reflects, "As members started to understand the work happening behind the scenes, people became much more willing to volunteer. One even offered specific financial support. The communication piece was crucial. When people can see the plan and understand why something matters, they're much more likely to get involved."

These seemingly small behavioural changes have contributed to the wider improvement programme while helping create a stronger sense of ownership throughout the club.

Seeing Results

The impact of this long-term approach became particularly evident during the winter of 2025 and early spring of 2026.

Periods of exceptionally heavy rainfall affected clubs across the country, leading to widespread fixture disruption. At Bingham Town FC, however, the picture was very different.

Club Secretary Donna Johnson explains:

"The real proof came during the exceptionally wet winter. A few years ago, we'd have expected multiple weekends of cancellations. Instead, we were often hosting games when pitches elsewhere were waterlogged. For our players, particularly the younger age groups, that meant more football and fewer disappointments."

It represented a significant turnaround from just a few seasons earlier, when Bingham's pitches were often among those most affected by wet weather.

The hot, dry conditions experienced during the latter part of spring and summer 2026 have created different challenges, particularly on the heavy clay soils that underpin the Butt Field site. However, thanks to its investment in machinery, improved planning and growing in-house expertise, the club is now far better positioned to respond when conditions change. The close relationship with Julien at the GMA still stands and the club regularly seeks his wisdom and advice on how to respond to matters or choose the most appropriate product or solution.

A Model for Sustainability

Bingham Town FC's journey demonstrates what can be achieved when funding, expert advice from the GMA and long-term planning are brought together.

Football Foundation investment provided the catalyst for improvement. The GMA Pitch Advisory Service helped the club develop the knowledge, confidence and strategic thinking needed to make that investment deliver lasting benefits.

Through targeted machinery investment, effective use of PitchPower recommendations, stronger volunteer engagement and a clear sustainability plan, the club has developed a maintenance model designed to continue delivering benefits long after grant funding ends.

Reflecting on the club's journey, Stuart said:

"If there's one lesson we've learned, it's that sustainability starts on day one. Grants can help transform a site, but clubs need to think about what happens when that funding eventually ends. By working closely with the GMA, the Football Foundation and Nottinghamshire FA, we've built a model that we believe will continue to benefit the club and the local community for many years to come. Funding gave us the opportunity, but working with the GMA planning for life after funding is what will secure the long-term future of our pitches."

Meet the GMA Pitch Advisory Service at SALTEX 2026

As the organisation behind SALTEX, the Grounds Management Association (GMA) supports grounds professionals and volunteers across the industry, with its Pitch Advisory Service providing specialist advice and guidance to help improve playing surfaces.

Bingham Town FC's experience demonstrates the value of that support and the difference it can make to grassroots clubs.

Visitors to SALTEX 2026 will have the opportunity to meet the GMA team, learn more about the Pitch Advisory Service and discover how expert advice, training and long-term planning can help improve their own facilities.

Taking place on 11–12 November at the NEC Birmingham, SALTEX brings together the people, products and knowledge shaping the future of grounds management.