A FOOTBALL club is hoping to move a step closer to building its dream stadium by pursuing a massive grant.

Bishop Auckland Football Club is preparing a business plan in the hope it can get a £850,000 grant from the Football Foundation, in London.

Plans are already being prepared for the club to build a 10,000 capacity ground in Tindale Crescent, West Auckland.

Outline planning permission for the site was renewed by Wear Valley District Council on Friday, after the time limit on the first proposal had lapsed.

Club chairman Tony Duffy, said: "We are definitely nearer than we have ever been in the past to getting that stadium built. We needed to have planning permission before we could apply for the grant."

It is estimated that the new stadium will cost £1.1m, and the club is looking to sell its present site for £150,000.

Mr Duffy said: "We will hopefully apply for the grant in September. It is vital that we get it. Without it we cannot go ahead with the stadium because we will not get enough from the sale of our present site.''

He said the club would be looking for other grants to help complete the work, and expressed hope that the team would step out on to new turf in time for next season.

He said: "We are hoping this season will see some movement. I would love to think we would be kicking off the season after this one in the new stadium.

"We have said this before, and it is difficult to pinpoint a time when work will start. There are a lot of vital points to get past.''

Mr Duffy said the club could not continue without moving to a new stadium because the present ground did not have the facilities needed to permit promotion from the Unibond League.

The ultimate dream is to see the club which is steeped in history and has a close affiliation with Manchester United, get back to its winning ways and move through the divisions.

Mr Duffy said it would be a step-by-step achievement