SWANAGE Town and Herston Football Club's annual winter battle against flooded out pitches is over.

The acquisition of land with space for two football pitches at the former Swanage Grammar School site means the club will be able to complete its fixtures on time.

After six years of negotiations and legal wrangling, Swanage Town Council has secured a 150-year lease with a peppercorn rent on the lower grammar school fields.

The move to secure the land for local sporting activities safeguards it from development. It brings the football club's total number of pitches to four.

The football club's vice-chairman Barry Audley said: "King George's field is on a flood plain and we've had a long-running battle with the FA because we get behind with winter matches because of flooding.

"This is fantastic news for us and it is good for football in Swanage. It will mean we can hopefully fulfil our fixtures on time."

The land can also continue to be used by the Allnatt Centre, so that groups of youngsters visiting the area can enjoy outdoor activities such as archery and climbing.

Swanage town council clerk Alan Leeson said: "We feel the Allnatt Centre is a very worthwhile organisation we are keen to support and we will be working with them to preserve their interest in it."

He also said: "Primarily we want to safeguard it from potential development."

He added: "We are absolutely delighted - a lot of hard work was put into negotiating a way forward and it is thanks to the town mayor Cllr Tony Miller and Cllr Donald Hiett who helped liaise with officers at Dorset County Council."

The land is owned by Dorset County Council and Swanage Town Council has not ruled out it possibly being used for a future sports centre.

First published: August 27