New £85,000 MUGA in Gainsborough to officially open later this month

The money has contributed towards a facility in the Uphills area of the town and provides a safe and practical way for people to freely play ball sports in the area

The MUGA was developed thanks to the work of six dedicated volunteers who formed the Uphills MUGA group Ltd

Leader of Gainsborough Town Council, Councillor Matthew Boles, and the Chairman of West Lindsey District Council, Councillor Roger Patterson, will be officially opening the new sports facility on Friday, October 28.

Coun Matthew Boles said: “Uphills MUGA group Ltd is made up of volunteers from the town, who have spent considerable amounts of their own time to secure the land, funding, and all the other necessary requirements to acquire and build a MUGA right in the heart of Uphills Gainsborough.

“The group’s aim is that this amazing free facility will be used by all ages, all family groups, and schools and sports associations.”

The MUGA also includes some outdoor gym equipment for the all the community to use.

While patrolling the Uphills area of Gainsborough, Lincolnshire Police Community Beat Manager for Uphills, PC Ian Shaw, realised that there was a real need for a safe, practical space for people to freely play ball sports

He said: “I have spoken to lots of young people playing football on any convenient area of land which provided something for the ball to bounce off and about six or seven years ago I realised I needed to do something for our young people, and that a MUGA would address this need perfectly.

“Initially, Dennis Browne from Neighbourhood Watch and I worked on the project, then I approached Jeff and together we formed the Uphills MUGA group.”

WREN is a not-for-profit business that awards grants to community projects from funds donated by FCC Environment through the Landfill Communities Fund and contributed £72,000.00 to the project.

Cheryl Raynor, WREN’s grant manager for Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire, said: “It’s wonderful to see something we have funded finally open and ready to make such a difference to children in the local area.

“WREN is always happy to consider grant applications for projects that benefit local communities and this is a great example of what can be achieved.”

For more information about WREN funding contact Cheryl Raynor on 01623 755319, at [email protected] or visit www.wren.org.uk.

Other funders include Igas, ACIS and Lincolnshire Police.