Phase one of The Nest officially opens

Jake Humphrey and Louis Thompson on hand to cut the ribbon on new community hub

CSF Trustee and TV Presenter Jake Humphrey, and Norwich City first team player Louis Thompson were among the guests that visited The Nest on Thursday morning, to mark the official opening of phase one.

The rejuvenated site has seen extensive work completed on seven grass football pitches, as well as the renovation of the existing clubhouse, and the installation of residential bunk boxes.

Recent weeks have seen the first participants use The Nest; over 2,000 people have already enjoyed the pitches and clubhouse, including young footballers on a special Grant Holt Soccer School.

CSF were awarded a £495,000 grant from the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund towards phase one of the project. The Foundation worked alongside the Football Foundation and the Norfolk County FA to compile a five-year Football Development Plan, which is a vision of how sport will be played on site with an emphasis on increasing participation.

After a tour of The Nest’s facilities, the 150 people in attendance at the launch were given a presentation by Jake, and Jackie Thornton of the Community Sports Foundation, which told of the Foundation’s plans for a second phase of development costing £9.4million and the need for financial support from potential funders and fundraisers.

The new Build The Nest campaign video, kindly provided by Built Environment Communications Group (BECG), received its first screening, and just before the ribbon was cut, the room heard from David Elvin, a parent of CSF participant Ollie, who has completed 100 miles on his exercise bike to raise money for the Build The Nest campaign, all while battling Leukaemia.

Jackie Thornton said:

“We’ve taken a disused sports facility and breathed new life into it, creating a hub that will be of great value to the community.

“We’re hugely grateful for the support of the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund, which has played a significant part in bringing this phase of the project to life.

“Now, the emphasis is really on our work to secure the funds for the second phase of The Nest, which will help the Foundation reach an extra 12,000 people a year, when completed.”

Find out more about the plans for phase two at The Nest and how you could help the campaign.