DEVELOPERS have been approached by school governors looking at the possibility of selling off a prime town centre playing field.
Spalding Grammar School headteacher Nigel Ryan has confirmed selling part or all of the West field for new homes is still an option being considered to fund plans for an all-weather pitch.
The Lincolnshire Free Press first reported on the school’s plans last July after Lindum Construction gave a presentation to the Priory Road school’s governors about possible options for the one-and-a-half acre site.
At that time it was believed the site could sell for around half a million pounds and could be used for a development of 45 new homes.
Mr Ryan said work was still ongoing to look at the available options, which could include selling off just some of the site, possibly a section fronting onto St Thomas’s Road, for new homes to provide enough money to finance the all-weather pitch project
As well as the pitch, which would be suitable for rugby and football and could be used by sporting groups and the wider community as well as school pupils, the facility would include changing rooms and a clubhouse.
Mr Ryan believes the overall cost could reach £800,000.
He said: “We have identified that we want to develop an all-weather pitch, primarily for football and rugby, for the school and local clubs and the community, and we are still exploring ways of funding that.
“The school governors do have some reserves but not enough to cover the whole cost.
“We have also been looking at sourcing grants from many of the sporting associations and that has presented some opportunites, but again we are not going to totally fund it from those sources.
“So we are looking at other ways of raising some capital and are still talking to some developers.
“There are a couple of obvious building plots on the frontage on St Thomas’s Road and we are exploring the options in terms of building that might realise enough capital to partly fund this project.”