Club One Step Closer To Having A Ground To Call Its Own Grays Athletic Community Football Club are delighted with the outcome of this evening's Thurrock Council planning meeting where its members democratically ratified their decision to once again support our joint application alongside Group 1 for the former Thurrock Football Club stadium in Ship Lane. Grays Athletic is looking forward to the next steps in this process where we will reaffirm the club's commitment to ensuring Ship Lane will be a community use venue for the people of Thurrock for decades to come. Grays Athletic Community Football Club would like to place on record our sincerest thanks to Thurrock Council for supporting our joint application for Ship Lane alongside Group 1 and for believing in our combined vision for the site. We are committed to working with Thurrock Council to ensure this planning application fulfils the promise to provide employment, revenue, and sporting opportunities for the people of Thurrock. Grays Athletic has been a focal point of our community for 133 years and the ratification of the Ship Lane planning application ensures that our club will remain an integral part of Thurrock for generations to come and continues to provide purposeful experiences for all that encounters us. Whilst we appreciate the planning application still needs to be signed off by the Secretary of State, yesterday’s ratification allows the club to now plan in detail and bring to fruition of our ‘Community Benefits’ promise that looks to give back to our people who are at the heart of everything we do. Our community values are steadfast and unwavering. EVERYWHERE, ANYWHERE, EVERYONE, ANYONE, and despite the obvious difficulties of being a homeless football club, we have always maintained focus on providing positive experiences for all to enjoy. We are proud of the 34 football teams throughout our club as well as our community programmes which focuses on heath, wellbeing and opportunity. We are proud of our roots as a community club which continues to defy the odds and fights adversity and we are proud of our people who we are committed to, always. In times where opportunities are few and facilities are scarce, Ship Lane will allow our existing programmes to grow as well as introduce new opportunities, especially for those with special education needs and disability requirements and for those from marginalised communities. We are committed to the children of Thurrock of all ages, male and female, to keep them active, engaged, safe and off of the streets and will increase opportunities for them to participate in football activities regardless of ability and affluence. We fully comprehend the effects of the obesity crisis in Thurrock and will work with healthcare professionals to put further programmes into place which looks to get more adults engaging in physical activity, improving mental wellbeing, and making informed choices about their health. We understand money is tight for families and that social deprivation is very real for many people and we will ensure our football is always affordable and that many hundreds of free tickets are distributed throughout the community every season. We recognise that football on the pitch is just one element of the importance our club has in our community. We will guarantee that education space in the clubhouse is utilised effectively to become a central hub for development, support services and help groups as well as a place for the community to come together and use recreationally. Grays Athletic Community Football Club is fan owned, it belongs you and me and Ship Lane, will one day soon, be our home for us all to belong, enjoy and flourish in.