Grassroots football tackles flooding through nature-based solutions 

Background 

Birmingham County Football Association (BCFA) is one of the largest regional bodies in England’s football network, covering more than 900 affiliated clubs and serving over 80,000 players across the West Midlands.  

Climate change is already threatening this grassroots game – more than 7,500 matches were postponed in a single season in the UK due to waterlogged pitches. 

Hingleys Playing Fields in Cradley Heath, home to Halas Hawks Junior Football Club, has suffered significant disruption. Increasingly intense and frequent rainfall has expanded a nearby wetland, encroaching on playing areas and making parts of the site unplayable. 

BCFA partnered with the Birmingham & Black Country Wildlife Trust to demonstrate how nature-based solutions can help secure the future of grassroots football while enhancing local biodiversity. 

Challenge 

Hingleys Playing Fields is a historic five-acre site, but its bowl-shaped topography and nearby industrial runoff created persistent flooding issues. A 3,000m² wetland, fed by a natural spring and intense rainfall, was encroaching on pitches and making maintenance unmanageable for the club’s volunteers. 

In the 2022/23 season alone, 36 home games were cancelled due to unplayable conditions. Climate models suggest this problem will only worsen. BCFA needed a cost-effective, sustainable solution to protect football participation and restore the site’s ecological balance. 

Approach 

Funded by a £14,000 grant from the Heart of England Foundation, the project focused on turning the problem into an opportunity by restoring the wetland and enhancing biodiversity through a nature-based design. 

Following detailed surveys, including checks for protected species, a plan was created to manage water and increase habitat diversity: 

• Linear pond: A shallow pond was created along the wetland’s edge to collect water from the natural spring and mitigate encroachment. This design improved access for ongoing maintenance. 

• Bund and ditch system: Excavated material was used to build a bund, with a drainage ditch supporting water retention and slowing spread. Native scrub species were planted to create habitats for birds and butterflies. 

• Tree planting: Rare native Black Poplars were planted around the pond. These water-absorbing trees support biodiversity and act as a long-term defence against waterlogging. 

• Hedgerow restoration: A 150m stretch of native hedgerow was planted along the site’s perimeter, featuring species such as Hawthorn, Spindle, Holly and Dog Rose to offer year-round food and shelter for wildlife. 

Volunteers from the Wildlife Trust, BCFA staff and students from Ormiston Forge Academy participated in planting activities, strengthening the connection between nature, sport and local community. 

Result and impact 

While long-term success will depend on how the site evolves, early signs are promising. The bund and pond system has slowed the spread of the wetland, and native vegetation is already beginning to establish. 

The project aims to reduce match cancellations by 50% over the coming seasons, particularly on pitches closest to the wetland. It has also created new habitat for birds and invertebrates, turning the site into a living example of sport and nature co-existing. 

In addition, the project has educational value: the school plans to use the site as an outdoor classroom, linking the curriculum to climate, biodiversity and sustainability. 

Lessons learned 

Nature-based solutions offer more than environmental benefits – they preserve access to sport, reduce maintenance burdens and create educational opportunities. 

Critical to success was the collaboration between football and conservation experts. Each partner brought distinct knowledge and goals, but united around a shared purpose: protecting where we play. 

Ongoing maintenance, clear communication with volunteers and practical site access for future works were all factored into the design. The project shows how even low-cost interventions, if well designed and community-led, can have outsized impact.