Rooks race to beat funding deadline

By David Watters

Lewes

Lewes officials have launched a final appeal to raise the funds the Ryman Premier club needs to install a new 3G all-weather artificial turf pitch.

Fans have until midnight on Saturday night to invest in the club’s Regeneration Investment Offer (RIO) to help transform the Dripping Pan into a multi-use seven day a week sports facility for the whole community.

Almost £190,000 has already been raised towards the £850,000 cost and the Rooks have been appealing via social media, the mainstream media and elsewhere this week to help them get over the line. With £650,000 already secured in grants the club was just £10,000 short earlier this week.

Rooks communications and media director Charlie Dobres said: "In total, through grants and the investments of local people, we have now raised £840,000 of the £850,000 required to get the all-weather pitch built.

"We are tantalisingly close, but the clock is ticking. What I would stress to people is that this is a genuine investment and not a donation - our Regeneration Investment Scheme (RIO) has been given advance clearance by HMRC to say that it qualifies under EIS.

"In plain English, that means that, for example, £1,000 invested will bring an immediate return of 30 per cent in the form of a saving off people’s tax bills.

"And the £1,000 itself gets returned after around five years or so. In the meantime, that £1,000 investment is what will enable us to build a fantastic new facility that will be open to every child and adult in the Lewes area, all year round."

For more information visit the club's website at: www.lewesfc.com.

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