Our existing 20 year lease was due to expire in 2024. So this now secures another 10 years of cricket at our picturesque home were cricket has been played since 1933. This extension will therefore see the club celebrate its centenary year at Grove Park, with the intention of all parties being that cricket continues at the clubs historic parkland home and close to the heart of the village for future generations to enjoy. The new lease also starts during a period where the club is thriving - with a growing membership and offering an increasingly diverse range of playing opportunities to our local community.

Our thanks to our President, Rupert St Ledger-Moore for his efforts to conclude the lease renewal as the representative of his wider family group. Also to club members Martin Trimby, Paul Stacey & James Thurston for their signatory role as club trustees.

Ground Expansion
We are also excited to share the additional news that we have reached an ‘agreement in principle’ with Wilderness Reserve to secure a modest expansion of our ground in the coming months. This will be achieved with a separate lease that will see us add a strip of previously arable land adjacent to our existing eastern boundary (field end) of the ground.
Wilderness Reserve acquired the land in 2022 and are in the process of implementing their plans to return it to grass and tree parkland. Having kindly been allowed to consult on the plans - we are delighted we have agreed a solution that both mitigates the impact of new planting and fencing on our shortest boundary, but also allows us to expand our playing area and make Grove Park more welcoming for spectators.
Our thanks go to Wilderness Reserve for their ongoing engagement with the club and we hope to finalise an offical agreement before the start of the summer. We then look forward to once again playing cricket at Grove Park with a traditional parkland backdrop - which was the case in 1933 when the club signed it’s first lease!

The Club Management Club Committee