Ground staff can share information on the preparation and maintenance of grass pitches during Autumn thanks to the Football Foundation’s online community.

The free website portal is building a ‘Groundskeeping Community’ which is providing guidance both to volunteers and qualified groundskeepers. Developed in partnership with The FA and the Grounds Management Association, it’s the first of several support tools to help ground staff meet their grass pitch improvement targets.

Throughout the football season, videos and news articles will be posted related to pitch improvement and local content can be shared promoting the work which is currently being delivered. Many groundskeepers and FA Regional Pitch Advisors already interact and the collaborative space is:

* building knowledge of key operations for pitch maintenance throughout the year
* connecting with fellow groundskeepers and share experiences
* seeking expert advice on getting the most from the pitches groundskeepers manage

The Grounds Management Association will be providing a link to the facility on any site visit report and they’ll be adding any information clubs and volunteers will find useful as the website develops. Visitors are also invited to post anything they think may have been missed so a groundskeeping community can be built for collective benefit.

Follow this link to join the Groundskeeping Community. Once registered, the Hive Learning app for iOS or Android is the easiest way to access the community on the go. Grassroots football information is also available in the menus above, by following @EssexCountyFA on Twitter and by searching for ‘EssexFootball’ on Facebook.