Five sports projects in Derbyshire are to receive a share of almost £250,000 to create playing fields and pitches as part of a lasting legacy from this year’s Olympic Games.
Melbourne, Ashbourne, Long Eaton, Morley and Buxton will all benefit from the Sport England cash.
In Melbourne, £50,000 will be spent on improving rugby, football and cricket pitches at Cockshut Lane recreation ground.
It will become known as the Queen Elizabeth II Field, as it will be dedicated in perpetuity in honour of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee year.
Councillor John Harrison, deputy leader of South Derbyshire District Council and chairman of the Melbourne Sporting Partnership, said: “Our exciting plans to provide enhanced leisure facilities in Melbourne will help to create a significant sporting legacy.
“There is a network of talented and dedicated clubs in the area that will benefit from this funding for generations to come.
“We are working closely with them to encourage and inspire our residents to get fit, healthy and active.”
Ashbourne Football Club will be able to expand its resources and membership after receiving £50,000 to create a full-sized grass pitch.
It will be laid out on reclaimed derelict land where the town’s Nestlé factory previously stood.
The club, which has two men’s and two women’s teams, is using its site to capacity and has exhausted all other options for expansion.
Students at Derby College will benefit from a new £49,982 full-sized playing field at the Broomfield Hall campus, in Morley, where there are currently no pitches.
The college asked for the money because students have to travel off site for matches at present. The new pitch will also be used by Morley Primary School.
College principal David Croll said: “We are extremely grateful for this investment which will allow us to continue providing a base for the development of sporting talent within the college.”
A further £50,000 will be given to Long Eaton United Football Club to create a new full-sized pitch and improve its existing junior one at Grange Park.
Buxton Cricket Club will receive £39,198 to develop its playing area.
The money has come from a £475,000 Protecting Playing Fields pot given to the East Midlands by Sport England, using National Lottery cash.
Sport England’s chairman, Richard Lewis, said: “These investments will transform local pitches and they will be safe from development for at least 25 years.”
