Sports ground closures and wet weather
Wet Weather Line
Updated information on sports ground closures is available by calling the Council's Wet Weather line on 9391 7916. This is a recorded message providing the most up-to-date status of sports grounds in the Council. The Wet Weather line is updated at 2pm Monday to Friday. In the event of excessive wet weather, ground signs will take precedence over the wet weather line and website.
Wet weather procedure
Failure to comply with Council's wet weather procedure may result in the applicant banned from use of the field for the entire season.
Woollahra Council Wet Weather Line 9391 7916 is updated by 2:00pm on weekdays and 2:00pm on Fridays for weekend use. However, the last time the Wet Weather Hotline is updated is 2:00pm on Friday. Therefore in the event of excessive rain over Friday night or Saturday, use common sense as to whether playing will damage the surface beyond general wear and tear.
As a guide, training or play is likely to cause damage to the playing surface if the field demonstrates any of the following characteristics:
- surface water present
- water rises to the surface when walking across the surface (this indicates soil is at its saturation point)
- surface is slippery to walk on, or grass surface is dislodged easily.
This procedure is intended to apply in situations where wet weather, and the playing of matches affect Council's sports fields or training on playing fields will result in damage to the playing surface.
Damage to the playing surface is defined as being beyond general wear and tear.
Reasons for ground closure
The Council may close any ground as a result of, specialist ground maintenance, wet weather, if the ground surface is damaged, and/or injury is likely to occur as a result of use.
Closure of grounds
In periods of wet weather experienced council staff will assess and determine if the ground is to be closed for any training, competition or pre-season trial games. Ground signs (located on the park name sign) will indicate if the sports ground is closed for use.
Closure applies to adjacent areas also
If any sports ground is closed it is not to be used for any training or competition purposes. This includes the area surrounding each sports ground. Use of the sports ground when the surface is wet dramatically increases the damage the ground surface.
Use when closed jeopardises your future use
Use of the sports grounds when closed will jeopardise the future use of Council's venues by the sporting group. On weekends, it is the responsibility of the Association/Club to determine if sports grounds can be used without damaging the playing surface.
Damage may be charged to the user
Any excessive damage caused to sports grounds from inappropriate use is the responsibility of the user. The Council may invoice the Club or Association for damage caused to sports grounds. This will occur where the damage is considered to be excessive and greater than would be expected from normal wear and tear. The decision on whether excessive damage has been caused shall be made by experienced professional staff.