Sussex Recreation Ground

As I hinted in last week’s article, drainage would play an essential role in the origin of the Sussex Recreation Ground. Puzzled? Well let’s explain. 

One hundred or more years ago, Sidney Sussex College became very frustrated. For more than fifteen years it had been happily leasing out land for building in New Cleethorpes (the area between Park Street and Manchester Street). This had been a great comfort to the college’s coffers. Then in 1902 a bombshell was dropped by the Cleethorpes Council. It asked the college to curtail its building in New Cleethorpes. This was because the drainage system could not cope with more housing in such a low-lying area.

The college’s other large area of undeveloped land was its 242 acres in Thrunscoe. This lay between the present Cromwell Road and Buck Beck and was also low-lying. Consequently, poor drainage also prohibited building there. This was particularly frustrating because the completion of the Kingsway in 1906 opened up Thrunscoe for building – except on college land.

The whole town really needed a new modern drainage system, which the Council had promised to provide. However, delay upon delay put back the scheme. But the college was desperate to continue developing land where the demand was greatest – in New Cleethorpes. Accordingly, it offered to give the town fourteen acres of land for public recreation when the Council had constructed the new drainage system.

So finally, to cut a long story short, a new town drainage system came into operation in October 1916. But there was no immediate resumption of house building because of wartime restrictions. However, building began after the war and the college donated the promised fourteen acres in 1919. The land was in Brereton Avenue and, after some discussion, was called the Sussex Recreation Ground.

Work on the ground was carried out in stages during the 1920s and 1930s, with government financial support on condition that unemployed  men were employed. In June 1923, forty previously unemployed men were at work. Of the two pavilions, the first was built in 1931 by H.C. Mashford, costing £965. The second was approved in 1934, to be built by Towle Bros. at a cost of £1866.

By 1931, the Council was able to declare that:

‘This land is laid out principally as public Tennis Courts and Bowling Greens. Six hard Tennis Courts and ten grass Tennis Courts, together with several excellent Bowling Greens, have been provided. Two Bowling Clubs have their headquarters here, and the visitor, whether lady or gentleman, can always be sure of a hearty welcome’.

Those heartily-welcomed ladies and gentlemen would each have to pay two pence per hour for the pleasure of bowling. And budding Wimbledon champions could hire a court for one shilling an hour.

However, complications were on the horizon. The land had been donated by the college on condition that it would be maintained as a

public open space for the playing of games – and as a playground for children. This cut no ice with some nearby householders who submitted a petition to the college’s agent in May 1932, complaining about the children’s ‘amusements’ being provided by the Council on the recreation ground. 

The college was reluctant to be drawn into the argument and did not disagree when the Council decided that the provision of children’s play equipment was in accordance with ‘the purpose for which the land was conveyed to the Council by the College.’ Even so, in September of that year, a Council committee recommended that the children’s play equipment should be dismantled during the winter.

The use of the recreation ground on Sundays also proved to be contentious and was an issue which rumbled on during the 1930s. For example, in May 1935, it was decided that the eastern part of the ground (that is, between Brereton Avenue and Grimsby Road) would be open on Sundays but the use of the children’s play equipment would be prohibited on that day.

Despite such temporary set-backs, the Sussex Recreation Ground has provided much pleasure over the years – anyone for tennis?

© Alan Dowling 2008

Published initially in the Cleethorpes Chronicle, December 2008.

Not to be reprinted without the permission of the author