AFC Sudbury secures major £1.1m grant from Football Foundation to help bring 3G pitch for community into reality
Plans for an ambitious community football pitch, years in the making, have received their biggest boost yet, after securing more than £1.1 million in new funding.
AFC Sudbury announced on Wednesday that it has been awarded a £1.127 million grant by the Football Foundation – a charity run by the Premier League, The Football Association (FA) and the Government.
Thought to be the foundation’s largest ever grant, the money will enable the football club to bring its goal of installing a new 3G (third generation) playing surface into reality.
The club obtained formal planning permission earlier this year for the all-weather pitch, which will replace an existing grass surface at King’s Marsh, its home ground in Brundon Lane.
It will be AFC Sudbury’s second 3G pitch, with demand for the first artificial surface on site now exceeding the capacity that it is able to deliver.
In addition to serving AFC Sudbury’s reserves and academy teams, the project is aimed at expanding the opportunities available for the wider community to use the facilities.
Andrew Long, chairman of AFC Sudbury, said: “After nearly six years of planning, everybody associated with AFC Sudbury is so pleased to see this project coming into its final stages.
“We look forward to seeing the build process and being able to offer the additional facilities, alongside our excellent stadium, for the community to benefit from.
“This has only been made possible by the professionalism and support of the Football Foundation and its grant.
“We are indebted to everybody who has helped make this project finally come to fruition.”
All-weather 3G pitches utilise synthetic material to create a surface that simulates natural grass, but which is not damaged by adverse conditions, such as rainfall or snow.
This means that the surface can remain in use throughout the winter months – the time period in which AFC Sudbury says that its existing pitch is prone to becoming unplayable.
The club’s home ground is situated on land that had previously been water meadows, prior to its purchase by the former Sudbury Wanderers in 1972.
The Wanderers subsequently merged with Sudbury Town FC in 1999, to form AFC (Amalgamated Football Club) Sudbury, as it is known today.
The club stated that the project will support its pledge to be a “fully inclusive community-based club committed to providing the best possible environment for sporting and educational excellence and enjoyment”.
Other sports organisations, local schools and community groups are all set to benefit from the 3G pitch once it is in place.
Club chairman Mr Long revealed last year that one of the project’s primary objectives is to help grow women’s and girls’ football, following England’s success at the European Championships.
In addition, AFC Sudbury has also outlined ambitions to work with relevant authorities to provide facilities for rehabilitation, health and wellbeing benefits.
This week’s £1.1 million grant from the Football Foundation will add to the £165,000 in funding already awarded to go towards the artificial pitch’s implementation.
This includes a £100,000 injection from Babergh District Council’s community infrastructure levy (CIL) fund – a pot of money comprised of contributions from housing developers.
Further funding was also obtained from the Belstead Ganzoni Settlement Charitable Trust.
Robert Sullivan, chief executive of the Football Foundation, said: “We are working closely with our partners to transform the quality of grassroots facilities in England, by delivering projects like this across the country.
“Good-quality playing facilities have a transformative impact on physical and mental health, and play an important role in bringing people together and strengthening local communities.
“This grant award to AFC Sudbury towards developing a new 3G pitch is fantastic news for the local community, and will help to give more people access to a great place to play.”