10/01/13……Chinnor ‘delighted’ as new sports pavilion approved

THE people of Chinnor had the best Christmas present for a long while, when they heard that planning permission had been granted for a brand new Social and Sports Pavilion in their village.

Everyone involved in the project, including Parish Councillors, representatives from the various sports clubs in Chinnor and Local project management and architectural design firm, PCMS, were delighted to hear just before Christmas that planning permission had been granted by South Oxfordshire District Council.

The modern, purpose-build facility will replace the old sports and social pavilion on the recreation ground off Station Road, which is in a very bad state of repair. The site currently includes has a number of adult and junior football pitches and tennis courts, and is also used for cricket during the summer.

The new building will include a suite of fully equipped changing rooms, and will also act as a social meeting place with kitchen, bar area and function rooms. The Parish Council is also considering an office move to the new building. The design is for a single storey L-shaped building with a low roof profile. On-site parking will be improved. New male and female changing facilities have been carefully designed so as to provide easy access to the pitches, and there will be a servery and externally accessed WCs.

The aim is that the whole community will benefit in some way from the new facilities. Parish Cllr Steve Bird said: ?We are delighted to have secured planning permission with PCMS?s help. This facility will be a great boost for the football club as well as others in Chinnor.? Chinnor Parish Council is presently fund raising and applying for grants, and is hopeful that the work on site can begin later this year.