A generous donation towards our project by Severn Trent was covered in the Ashbourne News Telegraph on the 28th July, and covers an insight into some of the sponsors and fundraising surrounding the project.

You can read the article by Ashbourne News Telegraph below:

"ASHBOURNE'S blossoming Pavilion in the Park has been given a financial boost from the water provider Severn Trent that represents the largest grant the firm has ever paid out in Derbyshire.

​The volunteers behind the £830,000 project to build a new cutting edge pavilion on the recreation ground were given a grant of £120,133 from the Severn Trent Community Fund, the county's biggest handout and the fourth biggest handout in the Severn Trent region. The funding will help the Ashbourne Sports and Community Partnership complete their maxim of creating a purpose-built facility which can be used by a wide spectrum of the community. David Wood, secretary of the partnership, said: “This is a magnificent grant from Severn Trent Community Fund, which has meant that the partnership can complete the new Pavilion in the Park for the benefit of Ashbourne and surrounding villages. “We are delighted to know that this is the fund's largest grant in Derbyshire which demonstrates confidence in community-led regeneration and is hopefully a model for other community groups in the area." Sue Heyes, Severn Trent Water's Community Fund Officer said: “It's great to see projects like this being developed right in the heart of the community. "It will bring so many opportunities for local people to engage in the range of activities planned and Severn Trent are thrilled to support the provision of a much-needed community space."

The partnership has been working for several years on attracting funding for the building and seven funders have been secured to top up the local fundraising, enabling the construction to go ahead. Among the supporters was the Tarmac Landfill Communities Fund, which paid out the final £30,000 and helped to take the campaign over the line.

The new pavilion will comprise four sports changing rooms meeting English Cricket Board and Football Foundation standards; a community café and bar; and a community hub. The building is due to be completed by the end of October, and it will also provide a new space for health and well-being programmes provided by Derbyshire Dales District Council as well as ICT learning opportunities for the young and elderly through the creation of a new Ashbourne Digital Learning Centre. The partnership is working with Ashbourne 50+ Forum on this initiative along with ACE Youth Trust.

Mr Wood said: “It’s extremely rewarding to see the new pavilion start to take shape. “The old pavilion was over 60 years old and starting to become unsuitable for purpose or use by the community.

“It was high time our community had a state-of-the-art facility that could be used by the whole community.”

Darren Middleton, Tarmac’s Powders Business manager from nearby Ballidon Quarry said: “Against the backdrop of a year in which community activities were few and far between, it is wonderful to see this facility start to take shape.

“We are pleased that Tarmac was able to make a contribution to top up the significant amount the Partnership had already raised.

“This kind of practical project which will deliver widereaching benefits to the local community is exactly what Tarmac’s Landfill Communities Fund aims to achieve.”

Other funders included The Football Foundation; the England and Wales Cricket Board; Derbyshire Dales District Council and the Garfield Weston Trust and Tarmac."

As our project progresses and the pavilion begins to come to life, we would love to keep you updated along every step of the way.

Here, you can find recent posts by members of the committee on the progress of the project, including snippets of local news articles, images that we have taken and the plans moving forward, to keep you in the loop week by week.

Our new site aims to include you, the community, as much as possible throughout the process, and so we would love to hear your comments and feedback on our posts, as well as any suggestions you might have for us moving forward.

Our aims for this project, and for our new identity include:
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• To enhance the quality of sporting provision within Ashbourne and surrounding areas by providing a community hub for outdoor sports and community use that can be a base to increase sport and in doing so improve health and educational benefits through sport for the community.
• To increase the number of players and teams of all clubs, particularly engaging and increasing participation by girls and women within the local community, and attract less represented groups into local sports teams and activities through provision of facilities.
  
• To ensure the area becomes a centre for sporting excellence by helping local sports clubs develop and excel as well as providing a much-needed centre for Ashbourne's youth to engage in sport and learning whilst providing a hub of leisure for the local people of Ashbourne.
  

We are excited as much as you to see this brand new development in our town, and on behalf of the rest of the committee I can say that we are looking forward to sharing the progression of the pavilion over the coming months, and we hope to see you in there on opening day!