14/02/25: Council scores £525k investment to bring new football pitch to Thetford

Footballers in Thetford will soon be able to enjoy a brand-new 3G pitch at the town's leisure centre, after Breckland Council secured grant funding of more than half-a-million pounds. 

The district council was successful in bidding for around £525k in funding from the Football Foundation, which is the Premier League, FA, and Government's charity that supports improvements to local grassroots sports facilities through grants. 

To enable the delivery of the project, the council, Parkwood Project Management and Lex Leisure - the operators of the leisure centre - will also contribute to the project's total cost of around £740k. 

The project will see a new high-spec 3G pitch installed, along with fencing, hardstanding areas, storage and replacement floodlights. The pitch will meet FIFA standards and the improved lighting will be more energy efficient than the existing lights on the field. 

The new pitch will include provision for 11-a-side, 9-a-side, 7-a-side, and 5-a-side games. It is hoped that this will help to meet the rising need for quality football facilities in the area while encouraging people to participate in men's, women's, disability, and youth football. 

The pitch will replace an existing sand-dressed astroturf pitch, which is nearing the end of its usable life. Having already secured planning permission and now obtained all the necessary funding, work is expected to start on site in March 2025 and be complete in the summer.

Cllr Tristan Ashby, Breckland Council's Executive Member for Health and Communities, commented: "I'm delighted that we have been able to bring in hundreds of thousands of pounds' worth of investment to enhance the sports facilities in Thetford. This will be a major boost for local players and I look forward to seeing the new pitch take shape." 

Robert Sullivan, Chief Executive of the Football Foundation, said: "The Football Foundation is working closely with our partners - the Premier League, The FA and Government - 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 Breckland Council towards developing the new 3G pitch in Thetford is fantastic news for the local community and will help give more people access to a great place to play." 

Cllrs Terry Jermy and Mike Brindle, Breckland Members for Thetford Priory Ward, commented: "This is fantastic news for Thetford that will significantly improve the facilities available for local football in the town. We appreciate this will have implications for other sports, most notably hockey, and we will continue to work with Breckland Council and other partners to support hockey provision in the local area."

As the new pitch is not compatible with hockey, Breckland's officers have been engaging with the hockey club for some time and facilitated conversations with local sites which may be interested in hosting them in the future. Breckland Council continues to provide support and has recently agreed to join a working group which will meet regularly to discuss options in the hope of a future facility being delivered within the town which will be accessible for community use. As a further show of support for the club, the Council has also committed to support the hockey club with costs for pitch hire elsewhere and travel for any remaining games this season which may be displaced as a result of the works commencing in March.