Continental Star FC Celebrate Football Pitch Funding Success £33,000 awarded to Continental Star FC to improve the quality of grass football pitches in Perry Barr, Birmingham.

Continental Star FC has been awarded a grant of £33,000 from the Premier League, The FA and Government’s Football Foundation, to maintain the pitches and playing surfaces.  The £33,000 six-year tapered grant, part of the Foundation’s Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund, will help Continental Star FC to improve the quality of the grass pitches at Holford Drive Community Sports Hub.

The investment was provided following the completion of a pitch inspection using the Football Foundation’s specially developed app, PitchPower, which is a mobile tool used for assessing the quality of grass football pitches. Continental Star FC will now be able to use the grant to complete the maintenance work identified in their PitchPower Assessment Report, which includes applying fertiliser, aeration, seeding and other maintenance practices.

These grants are key to the Foundation’s aim to help create 5,000 more quality pitches before the end of 2024, in line with the FA’s Grassroots Strategy. Alongside its PitchPower assessment tool, the Football Foundation has also created an online grounds keeping community called The Hive to provide expert support and advice to clubs. Anyone in Birmingham can find out more and sign up at https://footballfoundation.org.uk/grass-pitch-improvement

Lincoln Moses MBE, Chairman said: “…we are grateful for the support that the Football Foundation has provided us, especially after the damage done to some of the pitches as a result of an infestation of leather jackets… this fund will go a long way to help the volunteers to maintain the pitches.  In addition, this will mean that the various clubs, players and supporters will continue to enjoy using the pitches for many years to come.”

Robert Sullivan, Chief Executive of the Football Foundation, said: “This grant award to Continental Star FC towards maintaining the pitches is vital for the local community in Perry Barr, Birmingham as they get back to playing football. Our Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund is supporting clubs across the country, helping them enhance and sustain their pitches to improve access to good quality facilities for grassroots players.”  

“This is part of our wider ambition to get more people involved in football, regardless of their background, age or ability. By unlocking the power of pitches, we can help transform the lives of players and strengthen communities through the nation’s favourite game.”  

The Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund provides eligible clubs and leagues with a tapered six-year grant to help them sustain pitches already at a ‘good’ level or higher and enhance pitches that are either considered ‘poor’ or ‘basic’.

The grant comes as part of an investment of more than £16m that has been made available to help clubs prepare for the restart of grassroots football following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Football Foundation is the UK’s largest sports charity and exists to improve the experience of playing football for everyone, by championing fair access to quality facilities.