We are fundraising for a new Clubhouse!
- Molesey Juniors FC is a community junior football club based in the heart of Molesey which has been providing regular exercise to generations of children in the local area for more than 50 years
- The Wilderness is arguably the most picturesque home ground of any junior football club in Elmbridge. Sitting on 18 acres of green belt land, surrounded by the rivers Mole and Ember, it has been the home of MJFC since being bequeathed in trust to the club. It has been reserved for grassroots sports for future generations and will continue to offer boys and girls in the area a chance to build friendships and learn key life skills such as teamwork and determination, whilst helping to improve their physical and mental wellbeing
- Run by a dedicated team of volunteers, its success on the pitch is being recognised by the ever increasing enquiries from parents for their children to join one of our existing teams and new teams being accredited annually. Currently providing over 300 children with regular organised sport in 20 teams across all junior age groups, we have successfully attracted funding to improve our playing areas, which will allow us to increase the number of pitches we can offer, thereby allowing us to increase the number of teams and growing the number of children able to partake
- However, the facilities and infrastructure at The Wilderness are in a poor state of repair and our ambition is to create a new community hub where we can not only improve the overall experience for our current and future players and their families, but we can also look to create a new community venue which may be used for occasions such as birthday parties and a community space which could be let out to day classes such as keep fit, yoga or pilates. With the potential to include a café, catering facilities and small bar, the new venue would give the area a new focal point with beautiful surroundings, which would attract people from the local area, allowing the club to embed itself further into the community and to grow as a sports club and look to provide the residents of Molesey and beyond, a new community space in which to relax and unwind or just enjoy being part of this club.
Existing Facilities
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The current facilities were built in the late 70’s and have been added to over time, to include a block for changing rooms, a toilet block and a small porta cabin to be used as the main clubhouse. These buildings are no longer fit for purpose and are rarely used, mainly due to the poor state of repair and lack of facilities. They no longer comply with regulations set down by the FA for grassroots clubs and have become a blot on the landscape. These photos give a general representation of what is available at The Wilderness |
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The site location
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The club’s facilities are situated at the north western edge of The Wilderness (edged in red) and it would be proposed to replace those facilities with a single new construction, on the site of the current clubhouse on the field, in which we would be able to house all of the facilities in one structure, rather than being split over different buildings. |
Ambition
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Our ambition is to build a new clubhouse facility which would house all of our needs in one building to improve the experience for all current and future players and their families, whilst also creating a new community hub for the residents of Molesey and beyond |
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Current progress
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Alumni and other MJFC Friends
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Whilst providing children with essential exercise, MJFC have also produced current Manchester Utd and England international Luke Shaw. His transfer to Manchester Utd from Southampton in 2014 for £30m was then a world record for a teenager and he began his playing days at The Wilderness. With improved facilities and increase in uptake, it’s not beyond the realms of possibility to see us producing further future England internationals. |
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Meanwhile, local boy Declan Rice - West Ham and England international has also been linked with the club, sending all of last season's U7 teams a message wishing them all the best for their presentation day.
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Expertise
If you have any experience of any of the following and would be willing to lend your time for our project, please get in touch with us via our website https://www.moleseyjuniors.co.uk/contactus.html or directly with our fundraising coordinator Daniel Crews at danielcrews01@aol.com;
- Builders
- Electricians/plumbers/decorators
- Fundraising experts
- Landscaping/Gardeners
- Project managers
- Anything you think may be helpful
NEXT STEPS!
- The Wilderness is situated on green belt land and surrounded by a natural environment, so the project does come with its own complexities. As with any build of this nature, there are going be some significant costs involved. We will need to raise a total of approximately £500,000. This will be done by a combination of fundraising avenues including fundraising events, engaging with the local community and seeking funding through bodies such as the Football Foundation, Sport England, the National Lottery Foundation and the Marathon Charitable trust. However, this can only be achieved once we are in the position of having a fully costed project with planning permission granted. So to realise that first step, we are looking to raise an initial £36,000, which will allow us to engage a planning consultant and building design to propose the project, but will also allow us to pay the costs of the several reports which are required by the planning department including tree surveys and arboricultural reports
- We’ve set up a gofundme page, where you can donate to our cause. We’d like to suggest a donation of £50/member, which would take us well on our way to achieving the next step of our ambitious goal of making this club into something really special, but please donate what you can, every pound will help.
THANKS FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT FROM ALL THE VOLUNTEERS, MEMBERS AND CHILDREN OF MJFC https://gofund.me/f8739868
