United Utilities have donated a whopping £5,000 to White Coppice Cricket Club’s campaign to raise £150k in our 150th anniversary year.
The water company stepped in after the intervention of Chorley MP and Speaker of the House of Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle.
The contribution is the biggest one to date and, when added to the money donated to the campaign’s GoFundMe page, takes the total amount raised to £8,419.
White Coppice Cricket Club was founded in 1875 but has been hit for six with a bill for £29,000 to repair a leaking septic tank that services their clubhouse.
The club also want to install proper training facilities to help attract new players and introduce a junior division.
Iain Pilling, United Utilities’ Area Engagement Lead for Lancashire said: “We’re delighted this support will help secure the future of White Coppice Cricket Club enabling them to carry out repairs to the septic tank.
“The cricket club is a great resource for local people and this donation is also a way of us saying thank you to the local community for their patience while a section of the footpath at nearby Anglezarke Reservoir is closed as we carry out maintenance work at Heapey Dam.”
The club’s 1st XI captain Jake Smalley said: “The £5,000 donation will make a massive difference to the club.
“We’re very grateful to United Utilities and the intervention of our local MP Sir Lindsay Hoyle especially.
“We know he’s a big sports fan and we’re delighted that he and United Utilities have gone into bat for Coppice.”
White Coppice’s campaign has been widely covered by the media, including the BBC and BBC Sounds.
You can donate via the club’s GoFundMe page, which has an initial target of £16,000.