The Scottish Football Partnership

Hillwood Boys Club ‘Launch’ New Changing Facilities

stuartmccaffrey — Tue, 14 May 2013 15:14:22 +0000

Hillwood Boys Club have been given an Award of portable changing rooms from The Scottish Football Partnership. The Changing containers and the portable floodlight which have been placed at the clubs new playing area in Priesthill signifies phase 1 of the clubs ambitious plan to regenerate the once derelict site into a community footballing hub. Chairman of the Hillwood Social and Recreational Trust Willie Smith said, “After 13 years of trying it was fantastic to see the clubs young players running out on their new grass pitch for the first time and to see so many people here to support us. We have ambitious plans to redevelop this area following the signing of our 25 year lease agreement with Glasgow City Council. Phase 2 of our plan will involve the construction of a Community Clubhouse with changing rooms,lounge facilities and a kitchen. Phase 3 will centre around the creation of a 3G surface and in real terms we hope to invest close to £900,000 on the full regeneration of this area. Hillwood Boys Club are extremely grateful to the SFP and their secretary Stuart McCaffrey without whose help we could not have realised our objectives in providing our players with a safe changing environment. I would encourage other clubs to pursue similar projects and to contact The Scottish Football Partnership for their guidance and support”.

Photographs Courtesy of the Southside Press

Rangers-Rex Blind supporters Award

stuartmccaffrey — Tue, 14 May 2013 14:22:21 +0000

The Scottish Football Partnership has given an Award to the Rangers section of the Rex Blind supporters party to assist with the cost of replacing their Audio System. Secretary Donald Whitelock said, “The sound quality of the new system has greatly enhanced the match-day experience for our visually impaired supporters.Also, the increased broadcast range has enabled us to offer commentaries to spectators who choose to sit with their friends and families in other areas of the stadium. I would like to offer my thanks to the SFP for the funding they have made available to our group”

Selkirk F.C Facilities Award

stuartmccaffrey — Wed, 08 May 2013 12:01:46 +0000

Selkirk Football Club have been given an Award from The Scottish Football Partnership to assist with the cost of creating a new spectator stand. Selkirk Vice-Chairman Ross Anderson said; “ our new stand at Yarrow Park could never have been achieved without the financial support given to us by the Football Partnership. The funding will transform the clubs chances of obtaining a National Club License and will greatly improve the match day experience for our regular spectators. On behalf of myself and everyone involved at the club I would like to thank the SFP for their support”.

St Mirren F.C ‘Airdome’ Award

stuartmccaffrey — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 14:08:29 +0000

St Mirren F.C have been given a funding award from The Scottish Football Partnership to assist with the cost of creating an’ Elite’ indoor training facility. Saints Chief Executive Brian Caldwell said, ” we would like to thank The Scottish Football Partnership for the assistance and financial support they have provided St Mirren Football Club. Our ambitious project to create a state of the art indoor training facility at St Mirren Park would not have been possible without the grant funding which has been made available to us. The new air dome structure is the first of its kind in Scotland and we are confident that our model will provide other clubs with a working example of how indoor facilities can be achieved, within reasonable budget levels, for professional players as well as Elite Youth and Community organisations”.

Whitletts Victoria Awarded Funding for New Dugouts

stuartmccaffrey — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 18:35:19 +0000

Whitletts Victoria are a junior club that currently play in the West Region Superleague First Division.Back in 2011 the club had to leave their Voluntary Park ground following vandalism that forced the demolition of their former home.The Ayr based club moved to play their home matches at the towns Dam Park Stadium which is primarily an athletics facility owned and operated by South Ayrshire Council. Since then the club have worked well in partnership with the local authority to enhance the facility to meet the requirements for junior football but the one common complaint from opposition clubs was the lack of dugouts at the ground which could shelter the coaching staff and players from the elements.“With the athletics track surrounding the pitch the technical areas were very exposed and the officials and players were left open to the elements” explained club Chairman Colin McTrusty.“It was a common complaint that we encountered from our opponents but now that is no longer the case with these new dugouts that will be amongst the most modern in the junior game, providing shelter for 10 people.”“The new dugouts enhance the facility greatly and we are grateful for the support we have received from The Scottish Football Partnership and South Ayrshire Council. Without their backing, we simply would not have been able to carry out these improvements to this otherwise superb facility.”Dam Park Stadium is also home to Ayr Seaforth Athletics Club and is used throughout the season for other events, such as hosting the finals of the Land of Burns’ and the Ayr International Youth Football tournaments and Colin confirmed that the dugouts will be made available to all users of the community facility.“Simply by providing team shelters, the whole ambience of Dam Park Stadium has been altered” said Colin. “ As well as the shelter it provides to players and coaches, Dam Park now looks and feels more like a football ground and the installation of the new dugouts will be a major benefit to every organisation that uses the facility.“

Glasgow Girls F.C ‘Grand Opening of Budhill Park’

stuartmccaffrey — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 13:59:14 +0000

On Sunday the 14th of April Glasgow Girls F.C officially opened their new changing facility at Budhill Park. The day itself marked the end of an 21 month journey for the club which in Augusts of 2011 decided that it wanted to establish its very own home ground. Club Chairperson Jim Strathdee identified Budhill Park in Glasgow’s East End as the perfect fit as it had been left unused for almost 5 years. As the Park had no provision for changing the club approached The Scottish Football Partnership to ask for their assistance. The SFP were immediately impressed with the club, given that in its short existence (2008) it was already running girls teams at U9′s (x2), U11′s (x2), U13′s, U15′s, U’17′s , 2x Adult teams and it had already attained the Scottish FA’s prestigious Community Level Quality Mark. Glasgow Girls F.C were awarded two custom made changing containers and one storage container by The Football Partnership thus providing an instant solution to their changing issues at Budhill. Jim Strathdee said “we have transformed a football park which was lying idle in the East End of the City into a real footballing hub. Non of this would have been possible without the patience and support of The Scottish Football Partnership. The Girls now have a place to call ‘home’ and were are able to use the park for matches and training 5 days per week. The new facility has already brought about growth to our club and as of next season a new boys section (The Budhill Academy of football) consisting of 4 teams from U8′s to U11′s will be joining us. We have ambitions to achieve Legacy Level Quality Mark one day and having our own base will help us to get there”

Councillor David Turner and Maureen McGonnigle SWFA

pictured at the opening ceremony.

MONTROSE F.C Awarded £10,000 from The Scottish Football Partnership to help support the club’s vital community engagement programmes

stuartmccaffrey — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 10:55:26 +0000

MONTROSE Football Club has received a funding grant of £10,000 from the Scottish Football Partnership which will assist to help and develop the Gable Endies’ numerous community-engagement initiatives.The Links Park Community Trust, in partnership with the football club, offers a range of innovative sporting, health and educational programmes available to the people of Montrose and Kincardine including a range of recreational, developmental and competitive football programmes for all ages, from the Links’ Little Dribblers initiative for pre-school children to the Just Play bounce games for adults aged between 30 and 65. Funding from The Scottish Football Partnership will also support the trust’s educational initiatives, including the innovative health, numeracy, literacy and science Links Trails. These role-play trails, run during school tours of Links Park stadium, are designed to help primary pupils explore and understand the roles played by English, mathematics, health and science play in the everyday running of a football club. The Links Park Community Trust also works in partnership with NHS Tayside and other Montrose-based groups on various programmes including free Friday night football sessions for local youths to promote a healthy lifestyle approach. The Trust is also in the process of developing free health checks for men aged between 49 and 70 and the funding will also be used to help develop a learning centre at Links Park, which will include IT facilities, as well as recruit and train an extensive network of volunteers to support the work of the trust. Derek Sim, Montrose FC Chairman said: “The allocation of this money will allow the trust to further develop its community-based programmes across all three strands – football, education and health.“It is encouraging to receive this significant funding at a time when financial constraints cast a large shadow over Scottish football. “This grant award will be put to good use by supporting our biggest fans – the people of Montrose and Kincardine.”

Wishaw Juniors F.C ‘Pitch Perimeter Barrier’ Award

stuartmccaffrey — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 09:59:21 +0000

Wishaw Juniors have been given an Award from The Scottish Football Partnership to assist with the cost of constructing a pitch barrier at their home ground, ‘The Beltane’. Club secretary Robert Watson said, “can we once again express our very sincere appreciation of the support from The Scottish Football Partnership. In the space of two years we have been able to create a modest but functional Junior stadium out of nothing and we have received favourable comments from visiting clubs and supporters at what we have managed to achieve. Without the support of SFP none of this would have been possible. Our pitch was used last year for several age group finals by Lanarkshire Schools F.A. and they have indicated that they will be doing so again this year. We have also found that the people of the town are taking more of an interest in the club and our attendances are rising as people realise that we can now offer reasonable facilities for spectators”.

Parklea Community Sports Hub Award

stuartmccaffrey — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 12:20:32 +0000

FOOTBALL clubs in Port Glasgow have been given an unusual gift to help develop budding young players.Parklea Community Sports Hub, which is used frequently by local teams, was recently presented with a storage container from the Scottish Football Partnership, in a bid to support the development of Port sports clubs.The container will allow teams to store their equipment where they train and play, adding another asset to the new £6 million community sports facility.Former Morton captain and Tele columnist Stuart McCaffrey, secretary of the Scottish Football Partnership, was at Parklea to make the presentation. He said: “The Scottish Football Partnership is committed to assisting the development of grassroots football in Scotland.“The award of a storage container will add to the fantastic facilities on offer at Parklea. We would like to wish everyone associated with the sports hub continued success in the future.”
Community sport hubs, sportscotland’s contribution to the Scottish Government’s 2014 Commonwealth legacy plan, aim to increase the number of people of all ages participating in sport.It is also hoped they will bring together various clubs and physical activity providers to offer more sport opportunities for the community, share good practice and promote activities that they provide.Councillor Terry Loughran, convener of the education and communities committee, said: “Community sports hubs is a fantastic initiative which we are delighted to support in Inverclyde. Parklea Community Sport Hub is our first hub that we have progressed through a partnership with the local football clubs, Scottish FA and sportscotland.“The new container gifted by the Scottish Football Partnership is the first visible step of progress that the community sports hub has made.”
Stewart Harris, chief executive of sportscotland, added: “Community sport hubs are a key legacy component of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow 2014, and, using lottery funding, sportscotland is committed to developing 150 hubs across all 32 of Scotland’s local authorities by 2016, with at least 50 per cent of these based in schools.“It is terrific to see the progress which is being made at Parklea Community Sports Hub and the addition of a storage container for all of the clubs’ equipment will help to advance the hub’s development even further.”

Feature image and article courtesy of the Greenock Telegraph

Raith Rovers F.C Facilities Strategy Award

stuartmccaffrey — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 14:58:41 +0000

“Raith Rovers FC is again grateful to the Scottish Football Partnership for
financial support in ensuring that we continue to meet the ever-changing
requirements around Health and Safety. The Main Stand here at Kirkcaldy was
built in the 1920′s. It may be an icon, but it does present challenges. The
provision of funding from the SFP helped us to upgrade fire doors and complete
phase 1 of a new fire alarm system. In addition, funding was also provided for
2 way radios for our stewards – thus enabling savings to be made on police cover
at matches.
The SFP has supported us in other projects over the years and
provides huge help and support to football clubs at all levels of the game. We
in Kirkcaldy are appreciative of the help provided and remain big fans of the
SFP generally.”
Turnbull Hutton

Chairman Raith Rovers F.C

Starks Park in the 1920′s