Brackley Town Football Club opens its newly renovated clubhouse at last

Brackley Town Football Club lost both its bar and clubhouse due to a fire that ripped through the building and since then the club has been busy fundraising to reconstruct what was left.

The football club was given a whopping £75,000 grant from HS2’s Community and Environment Fund (CEF) to help rebuild the club house and a number of fundraising events were organised to get the important social centre open again.

The fundraising efforts of the supporters included quiz nights, bonfire nights and initiatives such as the supporter’s wall. The high-speed rail line company funds added to this and the new facilities are now back open and being enjoyed by the club and the supporters.

The club continues to serve the local community through a series of youth and community programmes, including under-7s and under-18 junior teams, Saturday soccer Schools, Wildcats and soccer tots (ages 2-4) and regularly supporting more than 200 junior players who want to play football.

More than 17 different teams regularly use the new facilities, including Brackley Town Ladies which is a women’s team that was set up in 2019 due to increased local demand.

Janene Butters chief executive officer at Brackley Town FC said: “Brackley Town FC was founded in 1890 where it moved all the way through the leagues playing for promotion. To fundraise for the club, we hosted lots of quizzes and bonfire nights, with a big focus on our supporter's wall. Without HS2, we would not have been able to have the most fantastic place we’ve got now.”

Cathy Elliott independent chair of the HS2 Funds said: “Brackley Town FC has been a part of the community for so long and the loss of key facilities in 2019 had a real impact on the continued success of the club. It is inspirational to see how the £75,000 grant from HS2’s Community & Environment Fund, alongside the support of the local community, has allowed the club to continue to thrive and grow.”