£600,000 sports facilities on the way (From The Northern Echo)

£600,000 sports facilities on the way

2:01pm Monday 26th July 2010 in

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AN ambitious bid to improve sports facilities in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales has moved a huge step closer to becoming a reality.

The final pieces of the funding jigsaw for the £600,000 project in Swaledale and Arkengarthdale have now fallen into place.

And building work has now begun on Reeth and District Community Sports Club’s dream of updating facilities.

They are now building a new pavilion and floodlit pitch and multi-use games area and construction is expected to take around 34 weeks to complete.

The project is one of the largest undertaken in the remote rural area and it even includes bringing in a supply of electricity to the sports field.

More than £35,000 was raised by the local community and the rest of the cash has come in the form of grants from a variety of sources, including the county, district and parish councils.

Club chairman Steve Porter said: "Six years ago we had a pipedream – now it is to become a reality.

"We believe these facilities will lead to greater active participation and will extend the sports range far beyond the established football and cricket.

"And with the facilities open from 10am until 10pm it will mean people of all ages and abilities can access sport without having to make a 50 mile round trip to the nearest large town."

Local county councillor John Blackie has been closely involved with the project and said: "This is absolutely brilliant news for Swaledale and Arkengarthdale.

"In a survey nearly every household in the two dales very strongly backed the project and the local fund-raising has been fantastic.

"All credit to the key funding partners who have recognised that deeply rural communities deserve access locally to quality sport and recreational facilities.

"And we owe a big debt of gratitude to the project team who have worked so tirelessly and tenaciously to net this wonderful result."

The Football Foundation was the largest individual funder, awarding the project £344,444. Sport England invested £151,892 of National Lottery funding.