Exeter Chiefs' Ollie Devoto opens new pitch at Colyton Grammar School

News - Apr 24

On Thursday 20th April 2023, Colyton Grammar School officially opened its brand new astro pitch with LED lights. The completion of the facility was marked with celebration by the school, where Exeter Chiefs player Ollie Devoto opened the pitch in front of students and key stakeholders. The new pitch and lighting are the result of over two years of fundraising, planning and construction.  Ollie commented: “It was great to receive the invitation to open the new pitch at Colyton. The fantastic new facility will be hugely beneficial to the students and local community.  I enjoyed talking to the students and answering their questions on high performance.” 

This facility was made possible due to generous donations from parents, alumni, trusts and foundations such as the Garfield and Weston Foundation, as well as East Devon District Council. The new pitch not only offers students the opportunity to train and host sporting competitions at the school, but also serves as a rich community asset for local sports teams to use. The pitch surface can be used for hockey, tag rugby, tennis and football, while the addition of LED flood lights makes it a more cost- and energy-efficient facility for the school to run. Out of hours the facility is managed by LED Community Leisure for local sports teams to hire. Upon declaration of the pitch open, Headteacher Mr Tim Harris remarked on the quality facility the school now has, and guests were then given a tour of the school whilst Ollie Devoto provided a Q&A session for students.