New Herrington Recreational Park, Welfare Grounds

The football pitches here are genuinely well looked after — you can tell someone’s actually paying attention to the upkeep, which hasn’t always been the case with council grounds around Houghton le Spring. The open grass field gives kids plenty of room to just run about, and the walking path makes it decent for a casual stroll if you’re not there for the footie. Come summer, the whole place looks properly smart. It’s nothing flashy, but it’s clean, well-maintained, and does exactly what a local rec ground should.