Grassroots sport in Leicestershire is set to benefit from a major boost following the news that Bottesford FC has started work on their brand new clubhouse. This is being made possible thanks to a grant from the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund, which is delivered by the Football Foundation. 

The funding has enabled Bottesford FC, which currently has 27 teams, to begin work on their clubhouse. The state-of-the-art facility will include: four team changing rooms; two officials’ changing rooms; a clubroom and bar; a kitchen and accessible toilets. 

This replaces their existing changing provision, which consists of dilapidated storage cabins (pictured above). As a result, the club has only played junior games onsite, with its men’s senior teams travelling to a separate venue. The new clubhouse will enable Bottesford FC to move all of its teams to the club’s home ground, due to being able to offer users a more comfortable experience. 

As a result, it is expected that the number of teams using the site will continue to grow. It is also hoped that the clubhouse will become a hub for the community, with other local sports clubs expressing interest in using the facility. This supports a predicted increase of 182% of overall sport participation onsite. 

The club worked in partnership with the Football Foundation and Leicestershire & Rutland FA to secure a £507,348 grant from the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund. 

Since 2000, the Football Foundation Funding Partners’ investment has provided 242 grants worth £15.5m towards grassroots sports projects worth over £27.9m across the whole of Leicestershire. 

The Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund is funded by the Premier League, The FA, and the Government, via Sport England. It is delivered by the Football Foundation, the country’s largest sports charity. Since it was launched in 2000, the Foundation has awarded around 15,000 grants worth nearly £580m towards improving grassroots sport, which it has used to attract additional partnership funding of just under £800m – over £1.4bn of investment into the grassroots game. 

By providing more high-quality facilities, coupled with coaching at the appropriate age group, the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund aims to improve the experience for regular players as well as attracting new players to the game. Many of the new state-of-the-art facilities will serve to strengthen the connection between professional football clubs and their local communities, particularly in the most deprived areas of the country, through the professional clubs’ community trusts’ outreach work. 

Daniel Gribby, Bottesford FC Chairman, said: “This project has been four years in the making and we are delighted to be starting the building work. We are very grateful for the support of the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund, Melton Borough Council, the Bottesford Parish Council, Starglaze Lincoln, AST Systems Bottesford and the local community who have all contributed financially to the project.

“We are also very grateful for the support and guidance received from LK2 Consultants and Leicestershire and Rutland FA throughout the process. This new facility will help to continue the excellent growth that the club has seen in recent years.”

Paul Thorogood, Chief Executive of the Football Foundation, said: “It is great to see that works have officially started for Bottesford FC, thanks to a grant from the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund.  

“With investment from the Premier League, The FA and Government, via Sport England, the Football Foundation is continuing to support the development of the grassroots game. This project in Bottesford is another fantastic example of our impact at the lowest levels of the sport.”