Colchester United’s community coaching scheme has been given a boost with the opening of an upgraded sports facility in the town.

The club’s Football in the Community project has taken resident at the Shrub End Community and Sports Centre with a 13-year lease from Colchester Borough Council.

The artificial pitch at the site has been upgraded with a brand new surface to meet the FA Standard, so it can be used for competitive football matches as well as for coaching and informal football.

Schools, sports clubs and community groups will all work with the Football in the Community team – which is now only a stone’s throw from the club’s former ground at Layer Road.

Corin Haines, community manager at Colchester United Football in the Community, said: “The Shrub End Community and Sport Centre is positioned perfectly in the heart of our community and will enable us to deliver high quality sporting provision for a variety of participants to ensure we meet their needs.

“We are proud to be the organisation responsible for the operation and development of the venue, in which we aim to enrich the lives of those people through physical activity, health and wellbeing.”

Annie Feltham, borough councillor for communities and leisure, added: “Colchester Borough Council and Colchester United Football in the Community have a common goal – to provide sporting facilities and opportunities for all.

“I’m excited by the partnership and extremely pleased to see the new pitch already being used by schools and community groups. We’ve brought the facilities up to a high standard to ensure their continued use for years to come.”

The council will continue to maintain the other grass pitches and sports facilities at Shrub End Sports Ground, and Barnardo’s Children Centre will continue to be based in the pavilion.