Chesham Athletic made a long awaited return to their home of nearly 31 years at the Amersham & Wycombe College grounds on Saturday.

The club first started using the facility, which has now been renamed the Chiltern Grange, in 1984 and has spent the last few years renting out pitches elsewhere as work was in progress.

The new development was overseen by Kala Homes who have been renovating the area and features a number of pitches as well as brand new changing room facilities and a kitchen.

Athletic Chairman, Paul Byatt, is delighted that the club have finally been able to return to the Waller Way site where so much of the club’s history has taken place.

“It is recreational ground so the club will always be there no matter what name we play under and the redevelopment has helped secure our future,” he explained.

“It was absolutely vital that we moved into the new ground. We had been using the same pitch multiple times a week and that would lead to postponements.

“With the new ground we will have a number of pitches and be able to rest them when needed which will help us as a club.”

Chesham can boast owning the facility debt free, which is often a rarity for Sunday League Clubs, and will play an important role in helping the club increase it’s already growing membership.

They have gone from having 70 members when they moved out to 300 playing in age groups ranging from five-years-old to adults upon their return.

Byatt Said: “Owning your own ground is not something a lot of Sunday league teams can say and especially not to the standard that Kala Homes have built for us.

“We are going to be the envy of a lot of clubs who come here because we own the land debt free which is good for the club.”

“We have 300 members and we need this new ground to be able to not only maintain the club but to grow it.”

The club held a grand opening on Saturday with guests including the Town Crier and Mayor attending the open day.

A day later the pitches got their first taste of action, and feedback from visiting players has provided a positive insight into the impact the new ground will have.

Byatt added: “Our players love it and the away teams on Sunday were saying how jealous of the new facilities they were.”