Sports Minister Visits Silsden
Tue 27th January 2015 | Silsden | By Ian Templeman
The Minister of Sport, Tourism and Equalities, Helen Grant MP, made a surprise visit to Silsden's Angel Telecom Stadium on Friday January 16th.
The Club had been contacted by local MP Kris Hopkins, who represents the Keighley and Ilkley constituency, and who had been one of the guests at the Football Club's successful 1914 Memorial Day in November which honoured the fallen of Silsden.
Kris had been impressed by the efforts which had gone into the day and also the work that was ongoing at the club, so he asked Commercial Manager Barry Thomas if he could bring the minister to the Club on her trip to the local area.
Kris said: “Helen wanted to see some grassroots sport in my constituency and I thought there would be few places better for her to visit than Silsden AFC. It's an amazing place”.
Helen Grant was brought up in Carlisle and has a good sporting pedigree herself. She was captain of her tennis and hockey teams and represented Cumbria in Hockey, tennis, athletics and cross-country. She was also the Judo champion at Under 16 level for the North of England and Southern Scotland.
Helen became an MP following the General Election in 2010 and was appointed Minister in September 2012.
She was given a tour of the Angel Telecom Stadium, spending an hour at the club, where she met club officials and Keighley District Conservatives, and admired the panoramic views of the Aire Valley, visible from the ground
The Sports Minister said: "Kris told me about the very good work this club is doing in reaching out to the local community, so I wanted to speak to them about that and have a look at their new facilities.
"The facilities here are superb, and the club has around 400 members and growing. It also has marvellous scenery. If people have a good experience of sport, they are more likely to stick to it. We want people to enjoy sport and to have a good time socially.
"We have a £1 billion youth and community strategy and we put a lot of money into our grassroots sports. That is very important to us, as it's at this level where most of us who play sports are involved. We're keen to improve and extend the facilities we have and to increase the number of coaches".
Silsden Sports Club Chairman, John Lohan said: "It's encouraging for us that Mrs Grant has taken time out to see what we are doing and to give us the backing that we need. She recognised the hard work which the club had put in, in providing the facilities but the club has to look forwards.
"One of our major aims now is to get all-weather pitches so we can offer players more opportunities to develop their skills. This is especially important for the youngsters coming through. Their skills can be developed more quickly if we have a decent surface.
"At present the Junior section alone spend in excess of £15,000 per year for the use of all weather pitches".
Photo shows Silsden AFC Commercial Manager Barry Thomas, Silsden Sports Club Chairman John Lohan, Kris Hopkins MP and Helen Grant MP.
Sports Minister Visits Silsden
Tue 27th January 2015 | Silsden
By Ian Templeman
The Minister of Sport, Tourism and Equalities, Helen Grant MP, made a surprise visit to Silsden's Angel Telecom Stadium on Friday January 16th.
The Club had been contacted by local MP Kris Hopkins, who represents the Keighley and Ilkley constituency, and who had been one of the guests at the Football Club's successful 1914 Memorial Day in November which honoured the fallen of Silsden.
Kris had been impressed by the efforts which had gone into the day and also the work that was ongoing at the club, so he asked Commercial Manager Barry Thomas if he could bring the minister to the Club on her trip to the local area.
Kris said: “Helen wanted to see some grassroots sport in my constituency and I thought there would be few places better for her to visit than Silsden AFC. It's an amazing place”.
Helen Grant was brought up in Carlisle and has a good sporting pedigree herself. She was captain of her tennis and hockey teams and represented Cumbria in Hockey, tennis, athletics and cross-country. She was also the Judo champion at Under 16 level for the North of England and Southern Scotland.
Helen became an MP following the General Election in 2010 and was appointed Minister in September 2012.
She was given a tour of the Angel Telecom Stadium, spending an hour at the club, where she met club officials and Keighley District Conservatives, and admired the panoramic views of the Aire Valley, visible from the ground
The Sports Minister said: "Kris told me about the very good work this club is doing in reaching out to the local community, so I wanted to speak to them about that and have a look at their new facilities.
"The facilities here are superb, and the club has around 400 members and growing. It also has marvellous scenery. If people have a good experience of sport, they are more likely to stick to it. We want people to enjoy sport and to have a good time socially.
"We have a £1 billion youth and community strategy and we put a lot of money into our grassroots sports. That is very important to us, as it's at this level where most of us who play sports are involved. We're keen to improve and extend the facilities we have and to increase the number of coaches".
Silsden Sports Club Chairman, John Lohan said: "It's encouraging for us that Mrs Grant has taken time out to see what we are doing and to give us the backing that we need. She recognised the hard work which the club had put in, in providing the facilities but the club has to look forwards.
"One of our major aims now is to get all-weather pitches so we can offer players more opportunities to develop their skills. This is especially important for the youngsters coming through. Their skills can be developed more quickly if we have a decent surface.
"At present the Junior section alone spend in excess of £15,000 per year for the use of all weather pitches".
Photo shows Silsden AFC Commercial Manager Barry Thomas, Silsden Sports Club Chairman John Lohan, Kris Hopkins MP and Helen Grant MP.
