The SFP Trust was delighted to be able to assist Dean Thistle F.C. with an award to help towards the costs of upgrading the pavilion at the club’s ground in Kilmarnock.
Dean Thistle F.C. are a community football club, formed in 1993 to give local boys a platform to play football, meet new friends and have fun. Over the years, the club has developed to involve more and more people from a wider area within East Ayrshire.
At present, the club has in the region of 160 children and 32 coaches and volunteers, with teams ranging from 3 year-olds playing with the mini-kickers through to the Under-16 team and includes a very successful girls section. Arrangements are in place to open up the club to five other local teams who play on the grass pitches and there is also a partnership with local schools and the local sports hub. In September, 2015 the club completed the community asset transfer of the Dean Park and Pavilion on a ten year lease from East Ayrshire Council to allow the club to develop further and to secure its long-term future. Earlier this year, the club also achieved the SFA Quality Mark at community level.
Dean Thistle F.C. then applied to the SFP Trust for an award to assist with the refurbishment of the pavilion and James Nimbley from the club reported that “As part of the development of the pavilion at Dean Park, we approached The Scottish Football Partnership Trust for possible funding and were delighted to be advised that, after consideration of our application, the Trustees had agreed to support our project. We would like to express our sincere thanks to the Trust for this financial assistance and for the guidance provided throughout the duration of the project. Without the funding from the SFP Trust we would have been unable to refurbish our pavilion and now our players and the wider community have a fantastic venue to play the sport they love.”
