Pencoed Ath AFC - From Grassroots to Welsh League

Aim

To overcome the barriers and financial limitations currently restricting Pencoed from competing in the Welsh Football League Pyramid.

A small community football team that is hungry for success, Pencoed Athletic AFC is a team pushing for promotion to Welsh League football. Even if Pencoed win the league, they aren't able to get promotion, due to the financial limitations and lack of facilities. The annual cost for running the club is between £5000-£7000 per season. This goes on hiring training facilities, match balls (which get lost a lot!), training gear, transport to matches, referee fees and the use of changing rooms. All these expenses are currently funded by small local sponsors and players own fundraising and weekly contributions. This is where crowd funding comes into play to help.

We are looking to the generosity of anyone with any interest concerning the club's success, for any donation that can be spared. Growing the community's involvement with the club, increasing participation from young players and also to help push the club forward.

Pencoed has not been able to maximise its potential due to the fact the there has been a chronic underspend on facilities by the Local Authority and it was not located in an area which attracted EY Objective 1 funding. Consequently all improvements has had to have been paid for by fundraising  between ourselves. We now find ourselves needing to improve our changing facilities and also raise capital to build a stand. We drew up a list of aims and objectives

• To ensure that playing and training facilities are of a sufficient standard to ensure potential is harnessed.
• To provide a safe environment in which players can achieve their potential and continuously improve the coaching and mentoring performance of players.
• To maximise the potential from local business and voluntary organisations to assist us in achieving our strategic vision of progression through the current pyramid structure.
• To improve the facilities at Felindre Road, our home venue.
• To work in partnership with the town Council and Bridgend County Borough Council to ensure that facilities are improved.
• To maximise opportunity for building progressive relationships with interested and like minded parties.
• To provide a varied and extensive social programme which enables players and committee to enjoy the social side as well as providing much needed funding for the club thereby ensuring that the cost of representing Pencoed AAFC is kept to an absolute minimum.
• To bring the football playing activities within Pencoed under one organisation with clearly defined and mutually achievable goals.

We have set ourselves an initial target of raising £30,000 to undertake the building of a covered stand, covering at least 100 people, in accordance with the FAW's ground criteria. We need to keep working within the local authority structure to ensure that all building regulations are adhered and health and safety requirements are contained within the project. There is also the need for a club minibus, to replace players funding long away journeys themselves with multiple cars. 

We also have plans of building/obtaining a clubhouse which the club will use near the football pitch, to allow for spectators, coaches, players and referees to have access to public toilets and the opportunity to obtain food and drink before, during and after the game. The plan is to run the club premises as a nursery monday-friday, to assist with childcare for the local area. The nursery and sales of food and drink will fund the premises itself and allow the club to continue its efforts to improve facilities and equipment further.

This project successfully funded on 11th January 2018