TV star Angela Rippon has helped villagers celebrate a long-awaited new-build community pavilion.

The celebrity former BBC newsreader and famed Strictly Come Dancing contestant did the honours cutting the ribbon for the fabulous new Horrabridge Pavilion. She was then given a tour of the building which replaced an ageing and collapsing predecessor.

The pavilion will be used by the Horrabridge Rangers Sports Association (HRSA) , of which Angela is a patron, which runs football and other sports groups across the wider Tavistock area.

HRSA secretary Ian Mulholland said the pavilion was a stepping stone for the future: “This is a very proud moment for us. We are a community football club built on inclusion, opportunity and development, providing football for all.

“Each week we engage well over a thousand people across our programmes and that is something we are incredibly proud of. This has not happened overnight. This pavilion represents years of hard work, persistence and belief.”

He described the pavilion as a ‘shared vision’ to improve facilities for the club and the whole community.

The project was led by Horrabridge Recreation Field Trust, supported by Horrabridge Parish Council and delivered through partnerships.

Ian thanked Jonathan Case Builders and Contractors for delivering the ‘fantastic facility’: “We are incredibly grateful to the organisations who believed in this project and invested in this community.

“Importantly, Horrabridge Parish Council significantly contributed funding and time. But just as important, if not more important, is the contribution from our own community.

“From fundraising events, to donations, to people simply giving what they could, this pavilion has been built not just with funding, but with real community spirit. And that is something everyone in this village should be incredibly proud of.”

The pavilion is not just a football centre, it is designed as a home for players, volunteers and coaches and a welcoming space for the wider community, for group meetings, social events and celebrations, children’s parties and local gatherings. During the winter it will become a warm hub for villagers to keep warm and socialise.

Horrabridge Rangers is proud to be an inclusive club, recognised by an FA three-star Accredited Club award and as part of the FA Thriving Clubs programme. These recognise a commitment to wellbeing and supporting young people beyond football and supporting all players, not just the most talented.

Steve Roche, a dedicated HRSA volunteer and parish councillor, was the driving force behind this project, whose ‘persistence and determination helped bring this vision to life’.

Coaches, managers, committee members and parents and others working behind the scenes giving their time for the benefit of others, were also thanked.

Ian added: “We will continue to grow sport participation, support our players and families, develop coaches and volunteers and ensure the pavilion is used to its full potential for the whole community.”

The following organisations also supported the pavilion: The Football Foundation, government Levelling Up funding, West Devon Borough Council, Devon County Council, Garfield Weston Foundation, Bernard Sunley Foundation, Rural England Prosperity Fund, The 29th May 1961 Charitable Trust, The Norman Family Trust and The Maristow Trust.