Great Harwood Rovers Football Club (GHRFC) has been awarded a grant of £7,400 by the Premier League, The FA and Government’s Football foundation, towards the cost of annual renovation of the grass pitches at the Moorland Arena. Annually, the Club spend in excess of £15,000 in maintaining and renovating the 4 grass pitches. The £7,400 six-year tapered grant, part of the Foundation’s Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund, will help GHRFC to improve the quality of the grass pitches.
The investment was provided following the completion of a pitch inspection using the Football Foundation’s specially developed app, PitchPower, which is a mobile tool used for assessing the quality of grass football pitches. GHRFC will now be able to use the grant to complete the maintenance work identified in their PitchPower Assessment Report, which includes applying fertiliser, aeration, seeding and other renovation practices.
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. Anyone in Lancashire can find out more and sign up at https://footballfoundation.org.uk/grass-pitch-improvement
“Everyone associated with Great Harwood Rovers is very grateful for this grant from the Football Foundation and its partners, it is a significant contribution to the cost of maintaining the high quality of the pitches at the Moorland Arena”. Mark Pickup, Trustee, GHRFC.
“This grant, award to GHRFC towards the completion of the annual pitch renovations, 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. This is part of our wider ambition to get more people involved in football, regardless of their background, age or ability. By unlocking the power of pitches, we can help transform the lives of players and strengthen communities through the nation’s favourite game.” Robert Sullivan, Chief Executive of the Football Foundation.
The Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund provides eligible clubs and leagues with a tapered six-year grant to help them sustain pitches already at a ‘good’ level or higher and enhance pitches that are either considered ‘poor’ or ‘basic’. The grant comes as part of an investment of more than £16m that has been made available to help clubs prepare for the restart of grassroots football following the COVID-19 pandemic. The Football Foundation is the UK’s largest sports charity and exists to improve the experience of playing football for everyone, by championing fair access to quality facilities.
