Dewsbury Rangers Football Club to benefit from £93 million Government funding for over 1,100 grassroots sports projects

The club, based on Wakefield Road, which caters for a host of junior sides, as well as an under 23s and a first team, has received £18,445 for a grass pitch and artificial grass pitch maintenance equipment.

More than 1,100 multisport grassroots sport projects across the UK, 111 of which are across Yorkshire, are set to benefit from the £93 million funding as part of the Government’s continued drive to get more people active.

As well as pitch upgrades, some settings will benefit from improvements to changing rooms, goalposts and floodlights.

Announcing the funding project, Sports Minister Stuart Andrew said: “The benefits of staying fit and healthy are clear to see and thousands of people commit to exercising more as their New Year’s Resolution.

“As a Yorkshire MP, I have seen first hand how vital it is that people in this region have access to high quality sports facilities.

“That’s why we’re investing almost £3 million through the Football Foundation in this region, delivering more local facilities and helping us to reach our ambitious target of getting 3.5 million more people active by 2030.”

As part of an £81 million investment, 900 projects in England are already benefiting from funding from the Government and its Football Foundation partners the Premier League and The FA, with many more to follow.

This will deliver over 60 artificial grass pitch projects, over 130 grass pitch projects and 35 changing facility projects, as well as floodlights and goalposts.

Local communities across Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will also benefit with £12 million being invested by the UK Government in 2023-24, delivered in partnership with the Scottish FA, the Irish FA, Cymru Football Foundation and Football Association of Wales. A further £9 million is also being committed across the home nations for projects to be delivered through 2024-25.

In Scotland, the funding will deliver over 20 artificial grass pitch projects and four grass pitch projects. In Wales eight projects will get new changing rooms, while 12 projects in Northern Ireland are set to benefit from new floodlighting.

The Government’s Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme is investing in areas that are most in need of new or renovated facilities, with at least 50 per cent of the investment to be spent in the most deprived local authorities with high levels of inactivity. Through the programme more high quality facilities are being made available for people to play football, rugby and other grassroots sports.

Since 2021, the Government, along with its partners, have helped deliver new facilities or improvements at almost 2,400 sites across the UK aiming to get at least 120,000 more people active, through the £325 million programme. This investment is supporting grassroots clubs up and down the country, including women’s and girls teams.

It also follows the Government and The FA announcing an additional £30 million to build 30 new state of the art 3G pitches and facilities to prioritise women’s and girls’ teams across England, following the Lionesses success at UEFA EURO 2022, and the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023.

Robert Sullivan, CEO, Football Foundation said: “This year, the Football Foundation will provide more great places to play than ever before.

“Thanks to investment from the Premier League, The FA and Government we will deliver better pitches ensuring healthier lives and stronger communities.”

The Government recently published its new sport strategy to get 2.5 million more adults and one million more young people meeting the Chief Medical Officer’s guidance of 150 minutes of exercise per week for adults, and 60 minutes per day for young people by 2030.

To help reach this target, the funding that has been recently announced is part of the Government’s investment of over £400 million in grassroots facilities, including park tennis courts and swimming pools.