New £700,000 football facilities on the way for Staffordshire school

The pitch will be built at Codsall Community High School - ending a 10-year wait to improve outdoor facilities.

A 3G playing surface will replace a pitch that is currently not used.

Sport England had donated almost £400,000 to the project, with the schools, councils and businesses making up the remaining £285,000.

Both JLR and Interserve are contributing to the project, which project bosses said would cater for growing demand in South Staffordshire.

As well as pupils from the school, sports clubs in the area will be able to use the facilities.

Marjorie Tunnicliffe, executive head teacher at Codsall Community High School, said: "The Governors and I are delighted that the funding has been awarded after trying for over 10 years to improve the outdoor space.

"It will provide an excellent facility for the students, especially the football academy and also the local community."

Earlier this year plans for a £5m engineering 'studio' were announced at the school, to train students up for new jobs with the likes of JLR.

Les Ratcliffe, head of community relations at JLR, said: "The new football pitch will make a positive impact on the health and wellbeing of young people in the region as well as encouraging the development of team working and communication skills which will help them in their working lives."

The project is one of 21 across the country to benefit from £7.1m of National Lottery Funding via its Sport England grant

Health and wellbeing chief at Staffordshire County Council, Councillor Robbie Marshall, said: "This grant is great news and means more young people in South Staffordshire will be able to play sport and enjoy healthier, more active lifestyles.

"This is a real community effort, with the school, councils and businesses coming together to invest in future generations."

MP Vince Cable recently said that bringing JLR to Wolverhampton had been one of the biggest achievements of his five-year term as Business Secretary.

Councillor Mary Bond, cabinet member for environmental services on South Staffordshire Council said: "This project is an excellent example of public and private organisations coming together for the good of people in South Staffordshire.

"In particular, we're grateful that Jaguar Land Rover and Interserve, our partners at the i54 South Staffordshire development, have joined with us to invest in the health and wellbeing of young people."

Sport England property director Charles Johnston added: "We know people have a better experience of sport when they have good facilities in which to play.

"This is why we're investing in Codsall to improve their facilities so they are more appealing to young people, and help us to get them developing a lifelong sporting habit."