Lilywhites scoop £20k from police fund

Greater Manchester Police have provided Mossley AFC with a substantial amount of funding, to help the club redevelop their stadium.

The funding, just under £20,000, was collected via the police’s ARIS funding scheme, in which money is collected through proceeds of crime. The money will be put towards the building of a new community room, at the ground, which will act as a safe place on matchdays, for those with disabilities and learning difficulties.

Local PC Ben Marsden went into more detail about how the money was raised, “It was raised through what’s called an ARIS funding pot, and local neighbourhood policing teams can bid for the money, to put towards local causes of their choice, it’s about pumping money that has been made from crime back into the community.”

When asked why he and his team chose to spend the money on Mossley AFC, he said, “The club is in the heart of the community, and they had the idea of improving the ground in terms of disabled access, and helping those with learning difficulties, so we thought it would be a great cause to spend the money on.”

“The idea is to create a ‘community room’, which will act as a safe space for fans with autism and learning disabilities on matchdays, it will also be used outside of matchdays for other community events, such as mental health talks, so it’s not just about the football.”

Mossley AFC’s chairman, Stephen Porter, says he is extremely thankful for the funding, “We see ourselves as the centre of the community and we love to do community projects, we’re run by volunteers, and have to rely on these types of donations, so we’re very grateful for the funding.”

Stephen says he was taken aback by the figure that was raised, “I’ll be honest when the police got in touch saying there was funding available I was expecting a few hundred pounds so I couldn’t believe it when they told me the final amount.”

Stephen was keen to highlight that the club will be looking to continue to develop even after the construction of the community room, “We’re always looking to improve the ground wherever we can, we’re looking to build a disabled viewing platform for wheelchair users and get some ramps put in as well, we want to keep developing as a club and make sure we are as inclusive as possible.

“We want to make everyone feel welcome at the club, and make sure everyone knows the club is there for them.”

The chairman was also keen to outline that the club is very much on an upward trajectory, “The club is probably in the best position it’s been in both on and off the pitch for the last 30 years, the future is looking very bright for us.”