Bury RUFC gets £50,000 helping hand (From Bury Times)

Bury RUFC gets £50,000 helping hand

12:10am Thursday 24th January 2013 in Sport By Nick Jackson

BURY Rugby Union Club are celebrating the award of a £50,000 grant from the Olympic Legacy Fund.

The Radcliffe Road club has received the cash from Sport England’s Inspired Facilities Fund - money put aside for clubs to continue the London 2012 Olympic feelgood factor.

The money will enabled the Lancashire League One North outfit to install more floodlighting around the club’s training area, construct pitch-side barriers, increase the number of showers in the changing rooms and refurbish the clubhouse.

Club chairman Gary Chesterthe award of the grant was highly important for the club.

“The truth is that our facilities have not kept pace with the development of Bury RUFC,” he said.

“We now have 250 juniors and that number is increasing every year. The facilities we’ve got are falling apart because of the extra usage.”

The cash will also enable the club to launch development for youngsters aged two to five and to launch girls’ and ladies’ teams.

Chester said that there had been a definite knock-on effect as a result of the Olympics.

“There has been a 10 per cent increase in seniors and juniors are up 15 per cent, and there was not the usual tail-off at the end of last season,” he said.

It is first time they been awarded a grant that they have not had to match the funding with the same amount they have raised themselves.

“We are very grateful for the support we’ve received from the RFU (Rugby Football Union) in applying for the grant,” added Chester.