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A grass-roots football club will soon have a match-fit pitch that will allow teams to play the beautiful game years into the future.
The improvements to Woodnesborough FC's ground are courtesy of a £3,000 grant from the Premier League, The FA and Government’s Football Foundation announced this month.
It is part of the Foundation’s Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund and will allow for fertilisation, aeration, seeding and other maintenance practices at the site in Foxborough Hill Woodnesborough.
The club's funding officer Calvin Wood said: “The continued improvement and maintenance of our playing surfaces is extremely important to ensure that the facilities are there for the future, so a huge thanks to the Premier League, the FA and the Football Foundation for providing us with this funding.”
The investment was granted following a pitch inspection using the Football Foundation’s specially developed app, PitchPower - a mobile tool used for assessing the quality of grass football pitches.
The tailored programme of works was identified in an assessment report generated by the app.
Work starts this week.
Woodnesborough FC has 20 teams including a girls team and two walking teams. Eight of these play at the ground.
Mr Woods added: "Although sport has been played again, our club has been severely affected by the pandemic.
"We are part of the Woodnesborough Community Project Charity and our ability to fundraise has been badly impacted, so any assistance through grants are massively welcomed."
These grants are key to the foundation’s aim to help create 5,000 more quality pitches before the end of 2024, in line with the FA’s Grassroots Strategy.
Alongside its PitchPower assessment tool, the Football Foundation has also created an online groundskeeping community called The Hive to provide expert support and advice to clubs.
The Football Foundation's chief executive Robert Sullivan said: “This grant award to Woodnesborough Football Club towards is vital for the local community in Woodnesborough as they get back to playing football.
Our Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund is supporting clubs across the country, helping them enhance and sustain their pitches to improve access to good quality facilities for grassroots players.”
