HAMPSHIRE cricket ground The Rose Bowl has signed up catering giant Compass in a 12-year deal worth up to £4m a year.

The venture, which will trade as Rose Bowl Experience Ltd, will see Compass provide all food and hospitality for the venue’s match-day, conference and banqueting business, which currently attracts up to a quarter of a million visitors per year.

Keith Prowse, a subsidiary of Compass, which already operates at iconic venues including Wimbledon and Twickenham, has been appointed the official hospitality provider.

It is hoped the venture will provide south coast companies with a new base for entertaining clients and will help raise the region’s business profile.

Rose Bowl chairman Rod Bransgrove announced the deal at an event showcasing the facilities at the Rose Bowl attended by more than 200 people.

The cricket venue is undergoing a £48m transformation to make it the first model Test Match Ground in the UK, with two new stands alongside the landmark Pavilion at the southern end of the ground boosting capacity from 20,000 to 25,000.

They include the new Shane Warne and Shaun Udal suites and executive boxes which will be managed by Keith Prowse together with the Pavilion’s Robin Smith Suite. They will be working with The Rose Bowl’s Culinary World Cup medal-winning Chef Allan Townsend.

A 175-bedroom, 4-star resort hotel will contain a luxury spa and leisure facilities as well as major conferencing facilities and the existing nine-hole golf course will be developed into an 18-hole championship course.

Under its new status the venue is set to host England against Sri Lanka in the third npower Test match from June 16 to June 20 followed by a visit of India for a NatWest Series One Day International in September .

Andrew Hodgkins, managing director at Keith Prowse, said: “The south coast has been crying out for a toplevel entertaining option and The Rose Bowl’s significant redevelopment will allow us to create a hub for relaxed out-of-town entertaining.”

Mr Bransgrove said: “This deal means visitors to The Rose Bowl, whether they’re here to watch Hampshire or England play cricket, or whether they are here to enjoy the wide range of Christmas celebrations, conferences, private dining, weddings and other functions we provide, will be treated to the very highest quality both on and off the pitch.”