Before 1929 The Mote Cricket Club grounds formed part of the 558 acres of Mote Park.

The 1897 Ordnance Survey map shows additionally the shepherd's cottage, a cricket pavilion south-east of the cottage and a roughly circular cricket ground. By the 1908 Ordnance Survey map a further pavilion (The Tabernacle, Lord Bearstead's private cricket pavilion) is shown south of the other pavilion. The larger cricket pavilion was rebuilt by Lord Bearstead and opened in 1910.

By the 1937 Ordnance Survey map, although the three buildings are shown, the pinfold is no longer there, the northern part of the circular cricket enclosure has been raised, probably for seating, and the area west of the cricket ground, formerly part of the park, has been developed with suburban housing.

During the Second World War an anti-tank ditch near the pavilion ran north-south for about 140 metres. In the 1940s a small concrete open stand was erected to the north-east of the cricket pavilion. Later in the C20 the cricket pavilion was extended to the west and south and following the provision of some rugby pitches a rugby pavilion was erected immediately to the north of the cricket pavilion. A detached house for staff accommodation was erected north of Shepherd's Cottage.

The grounds were used by the county side for an annual cricket week until 2005. Notable cricketing achievements here have included Sir Colin Cowdray's hundreth hundred and Andrew Symonds scoring the world's fastest Twenty Twenty league hundred.

Details
LOCATION, AREA, BOUNDARIES, LANDFORM, SETTING
The Mote Park Cricket Club grounds lie adjacent to the east edge of the county town of Maidstone, approximately 1km from the town centre. Its shape is an irregular pentangle. The site is bounded to the west by Willow Way and C20 housing, to the south by a leisure centre and its car park, and to the north and east by Mote Park, which is Grade II on the Parks and Gardens Register. The boundary is marked along the west side by a wire netting fence with regular concrete posts and trees including poplars, maples and willows. The other boundaries are also concealed by lines of tree planting. There are views northwards to the North Downs.

ENTRANCES AND APPROACHES
The only entrance is from Willow Way which is opposite the cricket pavilion.

GROUNDS
These are grassed with a circular area in front of the Cricket Pavilion containing the cricket pitch and wicket with a raised bank to the south side of the circle, probably the remains of outdoor seating. South of this bank are some mature trees and a rugby ground. To the east of the cricket pitch is a rugby ground and the ground slopes down several feet to it. On the northern side of the cricket pitch the ground also slopes down several feet to a further rugby ground. (1)

<1> English Heritage, 2013, English Heritage (Listing) Advice Report for The Mote Cricket Club Maidstone (Unpublished document). SKE25973.