Poole High School and grassroots football club, Longfleet FC, have been working together to provide the local community in Poole, Dorset, with access to top quality grass pitches – thanks to support from the Premier League, The FA and Government’s Football Foundation.
Having been used extensively by both the Club’s players and children from the school, the pitches at this site were in a sorry state.
Not only did this cause matches and training to be called off regularly, it also ruined the experience for those playing in the sessions that did go ahead.
Now, thanks to a transformation in the pitch quality, over 300 players across 16 teams use the pitches at weekends for league matches, cup matches, and tournaments. Meanwhile, over 2,000 pupils use them for their PE lessons during term time.
This improvement in quality was enabled thanks to PitchPower. By using this free web app, created by the Football Foundation, the Poole High School’s grounds team were able to submit pitch inspections and unlock bespoke advice from experts at the Grounds Management Association (GMA) who work in partnership with the Foundation to support pitches improvements across the country.
Mark Sheldon, Estate Manager at Poole High and 2023 Dorset County FA Groundsperson of the Year, said: “The support of the Football Foundation has given our students chance to play on better quality surfaces than we could have managed on our own.
“The assessments and advice we received through PitchPower allowed us to make substantial improvements to the drainage, aeration and grass cover of our pitches, which in turn produced much higher quality surfaces that are able to accommodate much more usage.”
As well as advice, Longfleet were able to unlock a £68k grant through the Foundation’s Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund to put these recommendations into practice and get their pitches match fit.
Awarded as a tapered grant over the course of six years, this funding has not only created more opportunities to play for the local community, but also supported the Club and school’s long-term sustainability.
Beverley Bowers, Director of Finance & Administration at Longfleet Football Club, said: “Funding through the Football Foundation’s Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund provides vital support for grassroots clubs like ours, enabling us to access the resources we need to improve our pitches.
“By investing in our pitches, we’ve managed to prolong their lifespan and avoid costly repairs in the future. These savings are passed on to the local community by enabling us to keep membership fees affordable for everyone and encourage new players to get involved.
“We can’t wait to see even more pitch improvements over the next few years thanks to the support of the Football Foundation and Dorset County FA alongside the hard work of our contractors and the maintenance team at Poole High School."
