UCVR is a social purpose organisation and community focused enterprise. The legal status is that it is a ‘Company Limited by Guarantee’. This is a type of company that operates on a not-for-profit basis. More accurately ‘not for personal profit’. It is quite common in the third sector. All businesses need to make a profit even co-ops do, so that they can reinvest in the enterprise and or community activities. UCVR directors do not draw a salary and accounts published online by Companies House show that to be the case.

Some people have found our history confusing so we will clarify a few things here. UCVR was set up as a not-for-profit company in 2004 under Yorkshire Forward the regional development agency. The previous directors of UCVR wound up the company in 2012. The UCVR continued as a constituted community group supported by Calderdale council for a few years. In 2015 UCVR (Phase 2) was established as a company to continue the legacy. The original company was also rekindled as it had been wound up with around £3000 pounds in its bank account, and we didn’t think the treasury should keep that. Once the funds were recovered by Calderdale the original UCVR company was again dissolved.

You can see the range of projects we have been involved in on this site, all of which had a social purpose for the community.

Today we have some assets, such as the Riverside Centre and land at Bellholme, Warland. This has no real commercial value to us as a not-for-profit organisation. This is simply because any income we derive from the site has to be used to support the running of the site. If we were to dispose of any such assets, they would have to go to a like organisation which would also have to have an ‘assets lock’ to keep assets used for the benefit of the community. The site is actually better protected legally from commercial developers now than at any time since it was acquired by the conservation group in the late 1970s.

More about Riverside Centre project at Bellholme, Warland

You can see our developing plans for the site on its website here

There are no plans to develop the site other than for recreational, leisure, educational and wider sporting activities. The aim is to run it as a social enterprise generating income for reinvestment in the site, apprenticeships, and jobs.

In 2019, on legal advice, we completed a landowners’ declaration and statement, (CA16 government form). This is advisable to any recreational, business, farm, or private landowner where there is a risk of the establishment of a ‘highway’ across the land which would interfere with daily activities on the property. It is a declaration to offer clarity and avoid doubt. A landowner’s ‘statement’ is designed to protect the site from ‘village green’ status. (a legal term) This statement prevents unauthorised pursuits taking place where formal recreation activities normally take place. Basically no one has the ‘right’ to use the facilities to the detriment of legitimate users. Whilst the government form talks of restricting ball games etc. it is in the context of protecting the site from unauthorised use. Previous incumbents of the site had complained that their pitches were being abused by all and sundry and they had to put chains across goals to protect the goal mouth from turf wear due to trespassing. Dog fouling was and continues to be an issue for sports users.

The CA16 does not constitute a change of use. Planning permission is required for that. So, the statement and declarations do not open the door for house building or any other undesirable development on the site. That is not its purpose.

It should be clear from our website and application to the Towns Fund and other funders that a major element of our plans include multi-sports use. Suggestions that this is otherwise are unfounded.

To ensure we are successful in drawing down allocated funds from the town deal, we have to develop a business case by August 2022. As plans for improved facilities and for wider sports use are developed for the site it will be appropriate to engage with Sports England. In fact, it will be advantageous for the business case to attract additional funding opportunities from that organisation.