A town's football club chairman has expressed delight in securing almost £550,000 in funding for a new pitch to 'take the club to the next level'.
Jon Fuller, of Bungay Town Football Club, had lodged a funding bid to East Suffolk Council last year which he has now learned has been successful.
The £547,803 is coming from a Community Infrastructure Levy in which the council charges developers and puts funds towards improvements to local infrastructure.
With the grant now awarded Mr Fuller hopes to build a 3G pitch at the Maltings Pavillion site.
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He said: "We are very pleased to have been successful in our application and are enormously grateful to have been chosen.
“Here at Bungay we are the centre of the town's ball-playing community, and we see ourselves as a pillar of the community too.
"With new developments in the town we hope some more young families will be moving in, and therefore it is important that we have facilities to accommodate the community."
When the development is completed, Mr Fuller wants to make the facility available for all to hire.
He said: "This is the next step for the club in getting the next generation of kids playing sport.
"Without the facilities, we cannot expect participation levels to thrive. It’s a great opportunity to build the club and its status.
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"While the development is for the club, it is within our ambitions to hire the facility out to ensure that it is available for all sections of the community to use, including walking football and disability sessions."
Mr Fuller, who became youth club chairman 28 years ago when his son Peter was playing under-11s, says the club still needs £20,000 from its own sources, in addition to securing funding from the Football Foundation.
Ditchingham Parish Council has agreed to donate £2,000 to the 3G pitch, while Bungay Town Council has yet to commit any funding towards the project.
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