Crowds packed into Headley as the village’s new £1.5 million sports pavilion was officially unveiled on Bank Holiday Monday.

The Here’s Headley event drew residents from across the area, with MP Greg Stafford and East Hampshire District Council mayor Cllr Graham Hill among those in attendance.

Nearly 40 stallholders travelled from surrounding towns and villages including Churt, Alton and Bordon, creating a lively showcase of local groups, businesses and community spirit.

Sports clubs were at the heart of the celebrations, with the pavilion set to become home to several village teams.

Keiran Cook, of Headley Cricket Club, said: “It is a wonderful upgrade as the club has been playing here for over 100 years. The new facility is something everyone is looking forward to and it will be great for people to watch cricket from the balcony.”

The fast-growing pétanque club — a form of boules — also drew attention as visitors tried their hand at getting closest to the “cochonnet”.

Cllr Hill said: “This is a fabulous day for Headley. You have a fabulous facility here and even the sun is shining. This will be very beneficial to Headley parish and will build a lot of community spirit.”

Mr Stafford added: “I can’t believe the speed and the quality that this build has achieved. You joked but perhaps we should get you guys to do HS2 or bring broadband and mobile phone signal to this area as well.

“This will become a facility which a lot of the sports clubs will come and use, but it will also become a centre for non-sporting activities in the area.”

The upgrade has already struck a chord with locals. Jill Howard-Duff, of the Headley Horticultural Society, said: “I would like Here’s Headley to return here and I think it is refreshing.”

The project, led by Headley Parish Council, includes improved playing fields and upgraded sports facilities, with most of the funding coming from developer contributions distributed by East Hampshire District Council.