A NEW £800,000 pavilion to be used by hundreds of young footballers across the city will be officially opened next weekend. 

The Cutteslowe Park changing room facility – which will be home to almost 400 Summertown Stars players and their opponents every week – will provide a clubroom, kitchen facilities and toilets for the many hundreds of spectators patrolling the sidelines week in, week out.

The previous incarnation of the pavilion was mainly used for storage which left many of the clubs teams with nowhere to congregate or change therefore needing to turn up in full kit ready to play.

Chairman of Summertown Stars, who have 47 teams based at the park, Gunnar Niels said it would benefit many young players.

He said: “We are probably one of the biggest clubs in Oxfordshire, with more than 650 young footballers.

“More than half of them play at Cutteslowe Park – with the rest at Five Mile Drive – so we are really looking forward to using this great facility.

“The old pavilion was mainly used for storage and the players would turn up in their kit. Now we will have changing rooms and a community club room for everyone.” 

The “state-of-the-art” pavilion will include four team changing rooms, two changing rooms for referees, a clubroom, kitchen facilities and spectator toilets.

The project was made possible after the Premier League and The FA Facilities Fund, through the Football Foundation, awarded a grant of £348,828.

Oxford City Council part-funded the build through a £2m investment project into pavilions in the city – which also included pavilions in Barton, Rose Hill, Headington and Blackbird Leys.

Mr Niels said the pavilion would also see spectators enjoying coffee and tea on the sidelines.

It will be officially opened on Saturday, September 24, at noon.