A NEW sports hub in Rosyth is set to become a reality after councillors backed it with a £400,000 investment.
The South West Fife Sports Partnership (SWFSP) – formerly known as the Rosyth Community Sports Partnership (RCSP) – want to transform the Fleet Grounds into a base for indoor and outdoor sports as part of a three-phase development.
They want to lease the land from Fife Council, who bought it from the Ministry of Defence last year for £133,000, which includes a pavilion, playing fields and artificial hockey pitch, and create a sports village for the communities of Rosyth and the West Fife villages.
A business plan was put to the South West Fife area committee last Wednesday and, subject to approval by the Investment Strategy Group today (Friday), £400,000 will fund the first stage; a new 3G artificial pitch, three full-size grass pitches, a seven-a-side grass pitch, floodlighting, refurbishment of the pavilion, access improvements and additional car parking.
The council cash had initially been earmarked for Pitreavie playing fields but will now be spent in Rosyth: a town recognised as poorly served by sporting facilities. 
Phase two includes building indoor facilities suitable for sports including tennis and badminton, with a new hall suitable for the needs of of Acrobay Gymnastics Club in phase three.
The cash injection comes from a one-off investment of £530,000 that was allocated by the council – the £400,000 was left over after the purchase –towards the development of sports facilities in Dunfermline and West Fife through its revenue budget 2014-2017. 
Jon Harrison, chair of the SWFSP, hopes the first phase will be ready for the town’s centenary celebrations next year. 
He said: “This is fabulous news and we are through the first hurdle, but the hard work starts now. 
"In principle, it looks like we are getting the £400,000 which will allow us to start phase one, which will have a new 3G pitch in the same style as those at Dunfermline and Queen Anne high schools. 
“Introducing phase one of the sports village for next year is achievable and is a good target with it being the centenary of Rosyth. 
"It would be the icing on the cake to open the new pitches next summer.”
He continued: “It has been a long three years to get the planning, funding and support and now the town is getting much needed facilities, not only for the community now but for the future. 
"For me it is the start of something big but there's so much hard work ahead of us
“It was always going to be a phased approach but we have now got a real opportunity to develop this and to see those private sector partners come onboard and help us going forward.”
As part of the business plan – produced by Edinburgh based consultancy firm PMR Leisure, who worked with East of Scotland football club Spartans to develop an SFA award-winning football academy – SWFSP will seek to bring local businesses on board to secure further funding.
Hilton Developments, Cameron Harris and Scarborough Muir – who are behind an ambitious £500 million plan to develop Rosyth’s waterfront – have pledged their support for the sports village, while Mr Harrison said they will also approach bodies such as Sportscotland.
Rosyth councillor Mike Shirkie said: “This is phenomenal news but the hard work begins now. 
"Jon and his team are already working with various sports bodies to get involved with our South West Fife Sports Village and come up with match funding, and I will continue to provide help and assistance to them to take this excellent project forward. 
“It has been nearly three years since I first approached the MoD with regard to purchasing the Fleet Grounds with a view to establishing a community sports hub, a facility I felt was sorely needed in terms of physical activity, sport, a much needed boost to community well-being and providing a feel good factor for our people.
“A lot of people have spent a lot of time on this so we’re all now desperate to get phase one started.”
Andy MacLellan, Fife Council’s sports partnership manager, said: “On Wednesday, the South West Fife area committee gave their support to the business plan for the long term improvement of facilities at the Fleet Grounds in Rosyth.
“A report will now be submitted to the Investment Strategy Group on November 27 with a recommendation to support the business plan and allocate £400,000 to the first phase of development of the Fleet Grounds.
“This is a fantastic boost for the residents of South West Fife and we hope to soon have great sporting facilities to serve the whole area.”