New facility is a win for the school and the community
East Hampshire District Council has invested £800,000 of developer contributions into a full‑size, floodlit 3G artificial grass pitch at Bohunt School in Liphook.
The new pitch is a major boost for both community sport and local education facilities.
The pitch will be made available to residents, clubs and community groups - alongside school use - ensuring that the investment benefits both educational infrastructure and wider community wellbeing.
As part of the development, EHDC and Bohunt joined forces with Liphook United FC and Liss Athletic FC to make sure it met the needs of local grassroots football and supports long‑term growth in participation.
The project directly responds to EHDC’s Playing Pitch Strategy, which identified a clear need for an additional 3G pitch in the area to meet growing demand for high‑quality training and match space.
The new pitch is available for use during evenings and weekends (within permitted hours) and has been designed to support play for all age groups.
It is fully line‑marked to accommodate pitches of varying sizes, catering for all age groups of football.
The new facility will complement the existing sand‑dressed artificial pitch, which is designed for hockey, by removing football use and creating more capacity for community hockey sessions. This will further strengthen the range of sports opportunities available locally.
The pitch was opened last week by representatives from the school, EHDC and the local sports clubs.
Three councillors attended the opening, Cllr Angela Glass, Portfolio Holder for Planning, Councillor Adeel Shah, Portfolio Holder for Community Development and Engagement and Cllr Bill Mouland, ward councillor for Liphook.
In a joint statement they said: “East Hampshire District Council is proud to support this fantastic new 3G pitch at Bohunt School through our investment of developer contributions.
“These funds ensure that new development directly benefits the local community, and this project is a great example of that principle in action. The new facility will provide high‑quality sports provision for residents of all ages, strengthen our grassroots football clubs, and enhance the school’s sporting infrastructure for years to come.”
Randall Jull, Bohunt's Head of School, said: “We are indebted to the council for supporting such a significant investment into community facilities that will benefit not only Bohunt students, but our wider community.
"Alongside our great relationship with our partner clubs, to be able to have this resource, complementing an already fantastic offering from the school, means we continue to be the hub of our local area, promoting health and wellbeing, alongside our first class educational provision. The students and footballers are delighted, as are we.”
Developer contributions are funds paid by housing developers to help improve local infrastructure and community facilities.