LITTLE Oakley have received the green light to make the necessary ground improvements needed for promotion this season.

The ambitious Acorns are top of the Essex and Suffolk Border League and hope to be elevated to step six of the non-league pyramid - the Thurlow Nunn League.

They officially applied late last year but it was dependent on the club’s planning application for improvements to the ground, including floodlights, being successful.

This week they received approval from Tendring District Council - meaning they are now firmly on track for promotion.

“Everyone at the club is very excited at the prospect of playing at a higher level,” said delighted chairman Michael Good.

“We’re confident we have a system in place on the pitch that will continue to produce young, local footballers and allow us to be competitive in the future.

“There are two parts to the improvements we need to make in order to meet the ground grading requirements.

“The initial phase will start next week and will last around six weeks.

“The second phase relates to the floodlighting and will be completed in the summer, should the club achieve promotion and our Football Foundation funding application be approved.”

Good confirmed that the club have a development/fundraising committee, who have been preparing the project plan and costings for months.

And he says that although the completion schedule is tight, everything is now in place to allow the ground grading to be met before the end of March.

“We still have some way to go to meet our goal of bringing senior football to the club,” added the Oakley chairman.

“But we’re cautiously optimistic we can meet our aim.

“We need a maximum of seven points from nine games to achieve a top-five finish, which is a key criteria to be eligible for promotion.

“However, obviously we’re aiming to finish as high as we can.

“We have an ambitious plan for both the reserve and development teams to also be promoted for next season and the approval of the plans will be a massive boost for the final weeks of the season.

“We’ll ensure that the parish council and local residents are updated on the plans and progress during the improvements and would like to thank them and everyone at Little Oakley Memorial Club for their support.”

The initial phase of the ground improvements includes having hard standing around two sides, moveable fencing to secure the ground on matchdays at the car-park end of the ground, new dugouts, having a turnstile and spectator railings to replace the rope.

Oakley must also have a covered standing area and a stand with seats is set to be installed within the next 12 months.

The floodlights must be installed by end of September, should the club be promoted.

The club’s changing rooms and off-field facilities are already at a high standard, with no further work required to pass the ground grading inspection.