Risk Assessment can be viewed here.

Update January 2026

Elsing P C is the trustee of the charity that owns the former Highway Surveyor's land on Heath Road.  The trustee is expected to manage this land as an "amenity".  The area has been used by villagers for longer than anyone can remember, including as a picnic and celebration place for worshippers at the Chapel just up the hill.  Children have played there and erected swings from the trees and more recently made earth jumps for mountain bikes.

The Parish Council holds public liability insurance for land owned by the council and this cover included the former Highway Surveyor's land.  The Parish Council checked with the insurers that children using the jumps would be covered and were informed that the insurance company would not cover the jump because it had not been build by a professional.  Since learning this, the Parish Council has been considering how best to approach the issues of safety and liability while interfering as little as possible in the fun children and young people have, using the site as a place o ride their bicycles.

The Parish Council has sought advice from the UK Mountain Bike Trail Alliance, British Cycling and mountain biking publications.

We have been approaching companies that build and own mountain bike tracks and asking for estimates for the design of a track that could be insured.  None of the companies we have found are interested in simply designing a track that could be built by volunteer labour and the cost of hiring a company to design and build a track is prohibitive.  Also the Parish Council does not wish to develop the site so as to encourage increased use; already the site can be busy with visiting young people and the Parish Council would prefer to reduce this usage rather than increase it.

We have shown videos of the main jump in use to the companies we have approached and all have remarked that the jump seems well planned.  This may be correct, however the jump is undoubtedly for experienced riders and should not be attempted by a novice.  There is obvious risk involved.  The Parish Council has not been able  to find a way to secure insurance for the site and there seems little hope of doing this.  The Parish Council would like the jump to be safer and more accessible to younger and novice riders and will be investigating ways of achieving this.  We would like to liaise with users of the jump and work towards finding a solution that keeps the site interesting for all cyclists.  However, this will not mean that the existing main jump can remain unchanged.   

​

Update September 2025

The Parish Council monitors at every meeting the use of its land as cycle 'jumps'.  While we remain pleased to see children having such fun, we are concerned for their safety and our liability.  We regularly make enquiries on both those matters.  The site is not without controversy but continues to have our conditional support.  It has visitors from a wide area, well beyond Elsing, to the point where our own youngsters feel marginalised.  If you are a parent, you have the ultimate responsibility for what happens to your child, so do visit and walk around.  You can send comments to us via this website.  You should be aware that the Council's insurers have, after thorough negotiations, declined to cover any accidents that may happen.

Petty vandalism has been an issue.  Those who 'ringed' the bark of trees seem to have stopped but pilfering from adjacent gardens has not.  An incident earlier in the year was reported to the Police.

The site changes constantly.  There is now one (higher) launching pad, currently in sound condition.  The litter situation is manageable and a new larger barrier is in place.

Our next Parish Council meeting is on Monday November 3rd.  Please come and contribute.   

Update November 2025

At the Parish Council meeting on November 3rd the matter of the apparent impossibility of insurance - and therefore the Parish Council's liability for accidents - was discussed at length.  All Parish Councillors also met at the Jumps on Heath Road on Sunday 16th and, after discussion with a number of boys and much soul-searching, reached these initial decisions.

1. To make preparations to remove the most extreme peaks and throughs;

2. In advance of that, and long overdue, to fell a tall dead tree next to the launch pad.

These decisions were not unanimous but the Parish Council must follow its majority.  It is not the end of the matter and we continue to seek advice from all quarters about managing liability and making the site insurable.

​

​

Update March 2025

Elsing Parish Council realises parents know what follows, but we record it here for completeness.  We oversee this land and continue to monitor its use for good clean outdoor fun.  Parents may notice some new yellow-topped posts, marking the boundary of an adjacent property which was previously um-marked.  Like other such posts, they should be left intact.  For any parents who may not be aware of them, here are our requests.

-visit the site occasionally (changes are constantly made) to be sure that you are satisfied your children participate;

-encourage them to use the litter bin;

-minimise any rivalry between different groups, since everything is necessarily shared;

-discourage them from bringing domestic or garden items to the site, as these then become litter.

One last but serious point.  There has been some theft (reported to the police) from adjacent properties.  There is a risk assessment in place, which specifies a safety barrier to prevent riders hurtling into Heath Road, where speeding is an issue.  Interfering with the barrier (an earlier one was vandalised and removed) invalidates the risk assessment.

​

Update May 2025

The Parish Council monitors at every meeting, the use of its land as cycle 'jumps'.  While we remain pleased to see children having such fun, we are concerned for their safety and our liability and continue to make enquiries on both these matters.  If you are a parent, you have the ultimate responsibility for what happens to your child, so do visit and walk around.  You can send comments  to us via this website.

Petty vandalism has been an issue.  Those who 'ringed' the bark of trees seem to have stopped but pilfering from adjacent gardens has not.  A recent incident was reported to the Police.  The litter situation is manageable and a new larger barrier is in place.

The site changes constantly (there are now two launching pads) and the Parish Council's attitude to it may also change.  It has visitors from a wide area, well beyond Elsing, to the point where our own youngsters feel marginalised.  Our next Parish Council meeting is on Monday July 21st.  Please come and contribute.  

​

​

​

​