RORY CELEBRATES £60,000 FLOODLIGHT UPGRADE AT PENRITH RUFC

Rory Stewart MP on Friday visited Penrith Rugby Club to help celebrate their £60,000 National Lottery funding win from the Inspired Facilities fund to upgrade the floodlights on the second and third team pitches, which is also the area used for training. This upgrade will help protect the improved ground and allow the area to be used all year round, benefiting all those who use the facilities at Winters Park.

Rory was welcomed by Club Chairman Geoff Mathews who showed him around the clubhouse and existing facilities, before viewing the floodlights from the upstairs bar area and they were joined by Glenn Savage (Grant Funding Coordinator).

Club Chairman, Geoff Mathews, said: “We are delighted to have secured this investment, which means we can upgrade the quality of our floodlights which covers the ground we have recently spent a lot of money on. This will allow this heavily used area to be more sustainable and usable throughout the season, which has not been the case for a number of years, This will greatly benefit of all the young people who are now involved in rugby. We’re delighted to have had Rory’s support.”

Rory Stewart said: “I was delighted to learn that the Penrith Rugby Union Football Club had benefited from a Sport England grant of £60,000, and to see the floodlights in person is very impressive. This is an amazing result and is hugely deserved, enabling the Club to upgrade its floodlights and to make the experience for players and fans much improved. As a community group the Club is a great example of one that works very closely with local residents, and is an integral part of Penrith’s heritage. I would like to congratulate them heartily on this achievement.”

Sport England Property Director, Charles Johnston, said: “The Inspired Facilities Fund has had a huge impact on grassroots sport across the country. Since 2011, we’ve invested £88 million into more than 1,600 projects to improve and refurbish sports clubs and transform non-sporting venues into vibrant community sports clubs. It’s great to see Penrith Rugby Club join the long list of successful clubs to benefit from this fund.”