Planning approval for the Forestville Hockey Club to build an all-weather multi-use playing surface – to be built at Unley High School – has been welcomed as a ‘win’ for future students and players.
The project will see the development of a 6000sqm synthetic grass pitch suitable for hockey, netball, five-a-side soccer and touch football with floodlights, changerooms and clubrooms.Â
Construction is expected to begin before Christmas, with the Minister for Education, Training and Skills Blair Boyer and the Minister for Sport, Recreation and Racing Katrine Hildyard visiting the site today for a ceremonial ‘sod turning’.
“This collaboration between the school, the hockey club and the community is a shining example of what is possible when organisations work positively together to create environments that have the health and wellbeing of people at their heart,” Ms Hildyard said.
A long-term agreement will be established with the Forestville Hockey Club for the use of the pitch and amenities once completed, but Unley High School will retain exclusive use during school hours. This will mean students can use the pitch before school, during physical education classes and during recess or lunch breaks.
The pitch will be a multi-sport surface, made from plastic resin derived from bio-ethylene, a waste product of sugar cane production. It will be sand-dressed to reduce heat, eliminate the need for watering and create a 90 per cent biobased surface.
Unley High School Principal Greg Rolton said, “Our students will benefit from this multi-sport facility before school hours, during physical education classes and during the lunch breaks – using it predominately for netball, touch football, and five-a-side soccer.”
“Space for our student community to be active and engaged is always a priority, with this project further expanding on the space provided by our gymnasium and two outdoor basketball courts,” Mr Rolton said.
“This project has the support not only of our student community but parents and the governing council.”
