Five-figure funding from sportscotland to improve community access to sports facilities in Kingussie
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Kingussie Shinty Club have been awarded £15,000 by sportscotland's sports facilities fund to make improvements at Market Stance Football Park.
Their home at The Dell is already well used, and while the Market Stance facility has historically been used for both football and shinty by the community it has fallen into disrepair of late, with the neglected surface unsuitable for any sport.
This funding, then, will allow Kingussie to upgrade the pitch to regenerate a range of sports in the town, as well as providing an additional shinty pitch to bear the load of training sessions.
“It is wonderful news indeed that this project is receiving funding from the sportscotland Sports Facilities Fund," Kingussie project manager John Robertson.
"The money will be spent upgrading the Market Stance Playing Field, which is Kingussie’s community sports field.
"The pitch had become unplayable due to rabbit burrows and a lack of cutting, but we will now be able to regenerate it into a modern sports facility.
“The next stage is to bring the pitch up to 21st Century standards with; sports fencing, floodlights and on-going maintenance. It will be a community facility managed by Kingussie Camanachd Club.
"The arrangements will include Kingussie Camanachd Club taking on a 25-year lease of the playing field.
"The facility will be available to all Kingussie groups and individuals free of charge, other than the cost of running the floodlights.”
Although Kingussie Shinty Club will manage Market Stance, the intention is very much that it becomes a community facility once again.
Elsewhere in the Highlands £50,000 will go to developing a new floodlit multi-use games area in Dornoch.
The scope of access to sport will be greatly increased, with the new area offering football, basketball, pickle ball, netball and tennis.
Sportscotland's latest batch of funding totals £819,885 across Scotland, bringing the organisation's total to over £200 million since April 2007.
Active chief executive of sportscotland Forbes Dunlop said: “The ambition behind the projects receiving investment in this latest round of sport facilities funding is inspiring, particularly as we are facing exceptionally challenging times with significant financial pressures at all levels.
“We know, however, that sport and physical activity have an important role to play in bringing communities together and building resilience.
"Thanks to the continued commitment of our local partners more people will have an opportunity to become physically active and feel part of their local community."
