We are pleased to announce on the 24^th February 2021, the formerly known Braintree and Bocking Recreational Trust has now successfully transitioned into a CIO (Charitable Incorporated Organisation). There were many reasons for taking this step to becoming a CIO, the main points being increased transparency & regulation of the CIO and a greater ability to raise funds for the future development of the facilities on the recreation ground. 

Moving forward from this positive step, we are happy to share with the public our first intention as a CIO. Simultaneous work has been ongoing whilst forming the trust into a CIO to protect the recreation ground for many future generations to come. This will be in the form of a covenant of the land, which will mean that the recreational ground will never be developed into housing, unlike we have sadly seen across many of the Courtauld gifts to the people of Braintree. This covenant is in the latter stages of completion and currently with our solicitors to make sure there are no loop holes around it. We look forward to announcing when this covenant is completed which will be broadcasted on our website and Facebook pages in due course. 

In regards to the recreation ground, the extension to the top field was to allow adequate room for a full sized 11-a-side football pitch. This is to allow us to improve some of the lower pitches without interruption to the football season and also increase the capacity for recreation use. This extension was delayed due to poor weather and the COVID pandemic, but hope to complete this work as soon as possible. 

We also understand the concern of the public surrounding the popular fountain at the end of the high street. In recent years, the fountain’s responsibility was passed from the Council to CIO and unfortunately the age of the fountain meant the CIO has invested a substantial amount of money to make sure it does not fall further into disrepair. Recently, we commissioned a detailed survey from a specialised restoration company with the intention of restoring and refurbishing the popular local landmark. This report is now complete and we are currently awaiting a response from the council to secure funding for returning this monument to its former glory. 

We hope this clears up any concerns from the public and very shortly will be issuing a survey for users (both present and future users) of the recreational ground to gauge their thoughts on what facilities they would like to see on our fields. This survey will be available on our Facebook page and website in the next couple of weeks. 

Braintree Recreation CIO.