Fencing
Grants of up to £25,000 for fencing to keep your facility safe and your pitch perfect
Eligibility
You don’t have to be a football club to apply to the Football Foundation, however grassroots football must be an integral part of your offer.
Who is eligible?
- A not-for-profit football club or voluntary group
- A Local Authority
- A County FA
- A Professional Club Community Organisation
- An educational establishment providing facilities for the community
- A registered charity
- A not-for-profit company
- A community interest company (CIC) or other social enterprise
- A company limited by guarantee
Who is not eligible?
- An individual or sole trader
- A national governing body
- A commercial/for-profit entity
- A club within the Premier League, Football League, National League System (Step 1 to 6), Women’s Football Pyramid (Tier 1 – 4) or the Welsh Premier League
- Educational establishments providing facilities solely for their students
About the grant
What we'll fund
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Ball retention systems
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Boundary fencing and gates
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Pest control fencing
What we won't fund
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Temporary fencing
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Pitch perimeter barriers (if these are required for National League System ground grading, please visit our Premier League Stadium Fund page for more information)
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Any items that have already been purchased or capital projects that have already commenced work prior to an application being submitted
We can provide funding for fencing that improves the security or safety of a site. Your reasons for wanting to make these improvements need to be made clear in your application form. We’ll ask you for a marked-up drawing or aerial photograph of the site, indicating the location of your proposed fencing improvements.
We’ll also ask you to provide a specification and schedule of works that indicates the length (i.e., total metres), height and construction of the proposed fencing, including the size and number of gates.
Planning permission may be required for your improvement work, so please check with your Local Authority, and ensure it is in place before you apply for funding from us. You’ll need to provide evidence that planning permission has been obtained or written confirmation from the Local Authority that planning permission is not required.
Planning consent is generally required for fencing over 2metres in height. Further guidance regarding planning permission can be found here.
The statutory fees payable for securing planning permission may be included as a project cost within your grant application.
We’ll also require written confirmation of the landlord's consent to undertake the proposed works unless you own the facility, or the landlord is included as a joint applicant.
We’re not able to support any fencing project which would restrict a public right of way. Further guidance can be found here.
Grant limits
Are you a Football Club looking for funding?
Please note that only the Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary or Treasurer of that Club can submit an application form.
Applications submitted since 1 July 2023 by other members of the Club will be rejected. You’ll be contacted by the Football Foundation team and asked that an authorised person complete a new funding application.
When it comes to the acceptance and claiming stages of your grant, the secondary contact nominated to co-sign the required forms must also fulfil one of the roles of Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary or Treasurer of the Football Club.
Document & tenure requirements
Tenure required
We’ll ask you to demonstrate that you have the required ownership, by either freehold or uninterruptible leasehold from the date of the grant offer for a varying period, for a length of time dependent on the grant amount:
- Up to £25,000 – 5 years
- £25,001 up to £100,000 – 10 years.
Documents required
To ensure your application can be effectively assessed, please include the following documents:
- Photographs of the existing site, indicating where the fencing will be installed
- A marked-up drawing or aerial photograph, indicating the proposed fencing location
- A specification/schedule of works
- Two like-for-like quotations from experienced suppliers, based on the specification
- Evidence of partnership funding
- Evidence of security of tenure
- Planning approval notice
- Landlord’s consent to the works
Once you’ve submitted your application, we’ll send you a confirmation email. Your application will then be assessed by our Grant Management Team and you’ll receive an email normally within ten working days with a link to download your decision letter and T&Cs on your Football Foundation account.