On Saturday ahead our pre-season friendly with Royal Wootton Bassett we had the honour of welcoming the Mayor of Reading, Councillor Glenn Dennis to the Rivermoor Stadium as part of the launch of our brand-new clubhouse kitchen.
Councillor Dennis represents Reading Borough Council’s Kentwood Ward which the club is situated in and we were therefore thrilled that he was able to join us for such a special occassion.
We were also joined by James Schofleld from Howdens Reading who formally presented us with our plaque to mark the completion of the new kitchen.
The Rivermoor Stadium is the home of Reading City Football Club, and we are proud to have made our home the hub of Reading’s Football Community with ground-sharing agreements in place with Woodley United (Division One CCFL) and Tilehurst Panthers (SRWFL Div One North).
As well as hosting games for Reading City Football Club, Tilehurst Panthers and Woodley United we also play host to various community and charity matches throughout the season, the stadium therefore hosts an average of 60 games a season.
In 2018, the Rivermoor Stadium was awarded ‘’Best Ground” at the Berkshire Football Awards and ever since we have continued to improve our facilities. Having this new kitchen will mean that the clubhouse, aptly named the Crossbar can continue to serve the whole community for many more years to come.
In 2021 our kitchen gained national and international acclaim for serving up a ‘Chinese Selection Box’ which is still available on the matchday menu due to its popularity.
Our new kitchen was delivered as part of the Howdens’ Game Changer programme which was launched in April 2023 in conjunction with England Football to improve clubhouse facilities at grassroots football clubs across the UK and is set to deliver more than 450 kitchens to clubs over a three-year period.
We would like to say a big thank you to the team at Howdens Reading who have been supportive from start to finish and to Jacob Ceperko of Jacob’s Kitchens who fitted our new kitchen along with Club Treasurer Victoria Pyke who painted the new kitchen following the works being completed and Chairman Martin Law for laying the new flooring.
Club Chairman, Martin Law had this to say:
“On behalf of everyone at Reading City Football Club, I would like to thank Councillor Glenn Dennis for joining us on Saturday, it was a real honour to have our kitchen officially opened by the Mayor of Reading on momentous day for everyone connected to Reading City Football Club, from our junior players to parents, supporters and to our volunteers who give up their time each week to support us.
We can’t say it enough, but this latest upgrade to our facilities really will be game-changing as it means that the clubhouse can continue to serve the whole community for many more years to come. It really is great to see the impact the Game Changer programme is having on grass roots football first-hand.”
