THE future of Edenbridge sports clubs hung in the balance this week as the town council debated whether to extend the lease on a major recreation ground.

The debt-ridden sports association has requested another 12 months to settle the £5,000 it owes the authority for use of the pavilion and pitches at Lingfield Road Recreation Ground, and to prove it can run the venue in the long term.

Councillors debated if this was acceptable or not at a meeting on Monday following a promise last year from the association that the money would be paid by the end of April.

As a 20-year agreement between the association and the authority draws to a close, the ESA has been told it must prove its "competency" before a longer lease is granted.

Cllr Clive Pearman said: "If at the end of this calendar year the decision by the council is not to extend the lease or renew the lease we will need to demonstrate the grounds on which that decision was based.

"I think the most important thing is [the association] needs to demonstrate competency, which falls under three categories, financial, organisational and administrative. Those are the conditions they will have to adhere to."

The association is responsible for paying the rent on the ground and pavilion which is used by several of the town's major sports clubs including Edenbridge Rugby Club and Edenbridge United Football Club.

It has attributed the debt to the recession, resulting in less spending behind the bar and money from membership fees dropping.

In addition to this pipes in the pavilion burst twice over Christmas, causing damp, rust and damage to the brickwork among other complications.

The association has increased pitch fees and is planning to up bar prices in a bid to salvage the situation.

Rugby club chairman Graham Nash said: "If they didn't renew the lease then I think to preserve sport in Edenbridge they would have to find a new leaseholder who could offer financial contributions to keep groups like ours going.

"The only way they are going to generate the income is by hard work, there has to be a lot of work in order to get people to use the facility more and use the bar."

Members agreed to grant the association a 12-month extension.

Do you think the council is doing the right thing? Let us know at www.thisiskent.co.uk/edenbridge.