Asfordby FC to launch £1.5M clubhouse redevelopment

The club’s HQ, on Hoby Road, was built by an army of volunteers back in the mid-1980s but it is in desperate need of a complete overhaul to bring it up to modern standards.

Over the coming months, the club’s board of trustees will be working in consultation with club members and volunteers, coaches, managers players, local community groups and key stakeholders to design and develop a new building to take Asfordby FC into the future.

Saturday’s event, between 10am and 2pm, is an opportunity for local people to get involved in the project to modernise the clubhouse, as well as celebrating the building which has served generations of adult and senior teams over so many years.

Rachael Barker-Evans, from the club, told the Melton Times: “It’s been 40 years since a group of amazing volunteers built the clubhouse on a shoe string.

"Everything was begged and borrowed and the building still stands today.

“Forty years on and the building needs a complete overhaul to make it accessible and fit for purpose.

"The celebration is a free event with lots of fun games and activities as well as a presentation about the developments and is open to all of Melton’s communities, it would be great to see as many people as possible.”

It is hoped that funds can be raised over the next six months to enable the redevelopment to start next summer.

The works will be phased so the club will not need to close and the football training and games can continue throughout.

Asfordby has 20 teams, coached and managed by volunteers, many of whom once played for the club.

The new clubhouse will help increase the number of female players – the club currently has one team but hopes to have five by 2026 and 10 by the year after.

It will also enable the club to work with young people and adults with disabilities and those from different ethnic minorities, including migrants and refugees.

The new modern building will also be available for community use, such as parent and toddler groups, dance groups and craft sessions.

The current clubhouse has a kitchen, bar and storage areas, managers, referees and staff offices, toilets and changing rooms and a gym.

Modernisation work will be centred on the changing rooms and toilets, including providing a disabled toilet, and the heating and electrics – the original boiler is still being used at present.

The gym also needs overhauling – it has an uneven floor and lighting and a ceiling which is not fit for purpose for an indoor training facility.

The kitchen, bar and storage areas must also be transformed.

Club members and volunteers, and local, regional and national groups which use the site have regularly said that the clubhouse needs to be modernised.

While ongoing maintenance costs have been met in recent years, there is a backlog of major repairs and replacements which would be solved by the new clubhouse.