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KIRKBY STEPHEN SCORE £178,000 FOUNDATION GRANT

All Change for Cumbrian Juniors

Junior footballers in Cumbria are celebrating the regions’ largest ever football cash boost after the Football Foundation announced a £178,984 award to Kirkby Stephen Junior Football Club.

The award will allow the club to construct a purpose built clubhouse, incorporating two changing rooms. Female and disabled toilets will also be included along with separate changing rooms for both male and female match officials. The complex will also include a kitchen and storeroom for ground maintenance equipment.

Originally established in 1905 Kirkby Stephen has had an active junior section since 1970. The area currently has no adequate changing facilities, players have to change in a Sports and Social club about half a mile away. When completed these new facilities will come as a huge relief for the club’s eleven mini soccer and junior teams and for both the senior male and female teams.

The Foundation is dedicated to revitalising the grass roots of the game, constructing modern football facilities, developing football as a force for social cohesion and as a vehicle for education in communities throughout the country. Funded by the FA Premier League, The Football Association, Sport England and the Government, the Football Foundation is the nation’s largest sports charity with a £53m budget directed into the very heart of football.

Lord Pendry, Chairman of the Football Foundation, welcomed this major development for Cumbrian Football.

“This a great leap forward in the provision of grass roots football in Cumbria. We at the Foundation are determined to bring facilities throughout the region into the 21st Century, this grant is certainly a step in the right direction to overcoming years of neglect and a chronic lack of investment. My sincere congratulations go out to all concerned with the club for securing this massive funding package.”



Ronnie Holmes, Secretary of Kirkby Stephen JFC said:

“This award is great news for the club and for the area. The club have been inundated with requests from local youngsters to get actively involved in the game and this award will go a long way to allowing us to keep up with this interest. I would like to thank the Football Foundation for their generous contribution and the Westmorland County FA for their help and support throughout, the Kent Valley Junior Football League and all the local firms and businesses who have supported the project - the money will make a real difference.”

Peter Ducksbury of Westmorland FA added:

"The Westmorland County FA are delighted that Kirkby Stephen JFC have received a significant grant from The Football Foundation. The Association, Local Football Partnership and Eden District Council have supported the club throughout the application process.

The grant, the first awarded in the county, will provide the people of Kirkby Stephen with an outstanding facility to further develop their club and provide better playing opportunities for their participants".