Three Pocklington-based sports clubs complete key projects thanks to Commuted Sums funding

Stewart Bowling Club members Jean Allott, June Hatton and Nikki Meadows show their delight over the award.

Pocklington Rugby Union Football Club received £120,088.43 from Commuted Sums and raised £13,354.36 of their own funds towards the £133,542.79 project for Phase 2 of the changing rooms and floodlights works at their Kilnwick Park Ground site.

Stewart Bowling Club received £20,000 from the Commuted Sums pot and raised £3,417.99 towards its kitchen refurbishment and new bowling green machinery.

The total project cost was £23,417.99.

Pocklington RUFC’s resources manager Chris French and chairman Andrew Winn.

Pocklington Sports and AFC, which includes Pocklington Sports and Social Club and Pocklington Town AFC, received £131,151 from Commuted Sums for phase One of their club improvements project. In addition to this, it also received £132,400 from the Football Foundation towards the £258,400 works.

Chris French, resources manager at Pocklington RUFC, said: “Pocklington RUFC has completed the project at Kilnwick Park to provide a facility for use by the community.

“The facilities include a pavilion with changing rooms, first aid room, referees’ room and a kitchen and social area, together with state-of-the-art LED floodlights on the main pitch and a large car park.”

Sue Douthwaite, honorary secretary at Stewart Bowling Club, said: “As we own the property ourselves and have mainly older members, it would have been impossible to update these two projects without the help of the East Riding of Yorkshire Council Commuted Sums.”

Pocklington Sports and AFC’s Richard Bower, Rob Laycock (Commuted Sums Team) and Pock AFC’s Colin Gibson.

Richard Bower, secretary at Pocklington Town AFC, said: “After several years in the planning stage and then most of 2021 spent putting these into action, people living in and around the Pocklington area are now able to benefit from improved local recreational facilities, thanks to grant money awarded by the East Riding of Yorkshire Council Commuted Sums and the Football Foundation.”

Councillor Claire Holmes, portfolio holder for planning, infrastructure, and housing, said : “The fact that Commuted Sums provided by local housing developments as a condition of their planning approval have gone to three popular sports clubs in Pocklington is great news for the town, and will help the clubs and the community to flourish in the future.”