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White Horse Contractors - Sports Pitch Construction
Tue 13 February 2024
Founded in 1957 in the famous Vale of the White Horse to the northwest of Newbury, White Horse Contractors Ltd began as agricultural, land drainage and irrigation contractors. Their expertise soon expanded from earthmoving and landscaping into specialist sports field construction and renovation and in 2019 they were acquired by sports facility and estate infrastructure specialists S&C Slatter, forming The Slatter Group.
Two recent projects have seen White Horse Contractors use British Sugar TOPSOIL’s Sports10 sand/soil blend for the construction of new school sports pitches - at Avanti Grange Secondary School in Bishop’s Stortford, Essex, and at The Bishop’s Stortford High School.
TOPSOIL’s Sports10 is a unique blend of 80% sand and 20% British Sugar TOPSOIL. The sand content comprises typically 25% coarse and medium sand, which makes for a free-draining material, and the 20% BS3882:2015-compliant topsoil component promotes and sustains growth, greens up turf, and assists seed establishment through nutrient retention. It is the ideal product for pitch construction and is fully analysed by STRI (formerly the Sports Turf Research Institute).
8,500 tonnes of Sports10 was delivered on rigid tipper lorries over a five-week period in March/April 2023 to construct the expansive sports fields of Avanti Grange Secondary School’s new campus to the north of Bishop’s Stortford (see images below).
At the end of 2022, 5,000 tonnes had been delivered over a four-week period to The Bishop’s Stortford High School’s sports complex at Jobbers Wood for the construction of a new sports pitch. The Jobbers Wood facilities are amongst the finest of their kind in the country and comprise six football and rugby pitches, three cricket pitches, an extensive sports field with a pavilion and modern weight training facility, plus a gymnasium and large sports hall. ‘Jobbers’, as the complex is affectionately known, is owned by the Governors and Trustees of the school and supported by the fundraising activities of the Parents’ Sports Association.
At both sites the Sports10 was laid to a depth of 75mm and 100mm using laser-guided dozers and dumpers. The conventional use of tractors and spreaders was impossible because of the depth of material to be spread over the areas.
White Horse Contractors commented:
“White Horse Contractors have used British Sugar TOPSOIL’s Sports10 extensively at our sites in Bishop’s Stortford over the past year. The material meets all the specifications for newly constructed natural sport pitches for schools and Local Authorities, due to its quality, cleanness, and near zero risk of contamination with sharp ceramics and glass.”
White Horse Contractors | SOIL AND WATER ENGINEERING FOR SPORT LANDSCAPE AND ENVIRONMENT