BLUE SKIES AHEAD FOR NORTH LO
SPORT HAYLEY UNVEILS STUNNIN
Sky Sports News anchor, Hayley McQueen, was at
Woodhouse College in Finchley, North London, today
(26 April) to mark the official opening of the sixth
form’s new £470,554 floodlit third generation (3G) artificial grass pitch (AGP). The opening ceremony was
Hayley’s first official engagement as an Ambassador
for the Football Foundation.
The college’s new facility was made possible thanks to a
£220,554 grant from the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund, which is delivered by the Football Foundation. The new surface replaces an old sand-dressed pitch,
which had become so worn it was no longer fit for use.
Hayley, who is one of the UK’s best-known female sports
journalists, marked the opening by unveiling a ceremonial plaque before spending time talking to the pupils
about her career as a sports broadcaster and her love for
the grassroots game.
The Football Foundation worked with Woodhouse College and Middlesex FA to produce a five-year Football
Development Plan (FDP). The FDP outlines a vision for
how the facility will benefit the community in years to
come and how football will be delivered at the site, with
an emphasis on increasing participation.
The pitch will be used by students at the college, as well
as the main partner clubs AC Finchley FC (24 teams),
Oakhill Tigers FC (ten teams), Alexandra Park Youth FC
(30 teams), Olympiacos Youth FC (nine teams), Whetstone Wanderers FC (36 teams) and Old Woodhouseians
FC (eight teams).
The Plan also foresees the creation of an additional 13
male, female and disabled teams. Specifically, AC Finchley FC and Whetstone Wanderers FC will work alongside the college and Middlesex FA to provide opportunities for Under-12 and Under-16 disabled teams to train
on the new pitch.
The state-of-the-art facility will also play host to a girls’
drop-in session, and competitive league. Other initiatives created by the FDP include Mars Just Play and
Football Futures sessions, while other sports are expected to feature as part of the college’s PE curriculum plan.
There are also plans in the pipeline for the Tottenham
Hotspur Foundation to use the pitch as a community
hub, from which they will deliver a range of outreach
programmes, which will benefit local people and groups
even further.
The project has also received £100,000 funding from The
FA, as part of their capital allocation within the Whole
Sport Plan agreed with Sport England. This is awarded
to support the sustainability of community clubs and
create more opportunities to participate in sport within
a high quality environment.
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
Hayley speaks to students from the college and offers advice for their future careers
GRASSROOTS FOOTBALL
www.grf-football.co.uk
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