AFC Leyton Girls received a £3000 grant after they worked with the Football Foundation and the London FA to secure the funding.

The Waltham Forest based club, who have teams from Under-9s to Under-18s and play in the Essex County League and Capital Girls League, were congratulated from Sky Sports News presenter Hayley McQueen.

AFC Leyton Girls officials said the club are delighted with the new funding and the investment it will bring to the club from the Grow the Game scheme.

They said: “This funding will create opportunities for girls of all ages to be able to play Football in the area.

"The work the Football Foundation is involved in, both in facilities and resource provision, is essential and through their commitment we will hope to see the continued growth in the game locally.”

The scheme is designed to increase participation in football amongst under-represented groups and it has already paved the way for Leyton Girls to create several new girls teams as well as fund many coaching education opportunities.

The club already has a history of success as their Under-15 team were Essex Champions and the Under-14s were divisional champions this season.

The Under-11 squad reached the finals of the Essex Cup this year and the Under-10s won the Essex League Cup in May.

Some of their best players have moved onto the highest level of youth football with one playing as an Under-15 England international as well as going onto Arsenal ladies, Millwall Ladies and London Bees football club.

The club believes their success has derived from their ethos of teaching the girls to play and enjoy football as well as develop existing talent technically.

McQueen, who is a Football Foundation ambassador, is a part of the scheme who choses one team from each category which include women and girls, disabled players, and boys and men’s teams from the Under-15 age group and above.

She said she is proud to be a part of a grant that makes a real difference to grassroots football.

“This investment, which is provided by the Premier League and the FA, has created an opportunity for more people to play football, which will not only keep them fit and healthy but also develop their life skills,” she said.

“They help clubs meet the costs associated with starting a new team- like getting volunteer coaches qualified with FA coaching badges – and so help to drive participation levels in the sport, especially amongst under-represented groups.”

The foundation was launched in 2000 and during the 2014-15 season through the Grow the Game scheme it created 1,239 new teams, 6,504 new female footballers and 6,332 new coaching qualifications.

Leyton Girls have also been selected this year to partner with Barking Academy School Sports Academy programme, which will allow the club to become a feeder club to their Athletics team and higher levels of coaching and facilities will be available in the area.

They have also been selected as the lead girls football team in the borough by Waltham Forest’s Development Department and will represent the borough in the London Youth Games.

The event will take place on Sunday, July 3, at the National Sports centre in Crystal Palace and the club will be looking to retain their championship as they beat 31 other boroughs in the area to win the competition in 2015.

The girl’s teams also played against many international teams who regularly visit from the US and Canada on playing tours and are set to play two Olympic development teams from Michigan and New York.

If you are interested in joining AFC Leyton Girls or for more information contact Afcleytongirls@outlook.com.