Hyndburn Borough Council officially unveiled their new £149,567 changing room pavilion at Hyndburn Leisure Centre recently (Wednesday 9 March 2016), thanks to a £139,567 grant from the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund, which provides grants towards developing new or refurbished grassroots football facilities.
The grant has enabled Hyndburn Leisure to convert an old squash court into a new changing pavilion, which includes two team changing rooms, two officials’ changing rooms and a clubroom to compliment the 3G AGP, which opened in 2015, with support from Sport England and Hyndburn Borough Council.
Accrington Stanley Community Trust (ASCT), who use the leisure centre as a home for matches and training sessions, will benefit from this development, as well as other clubs in the area to host competitive football fixtures. ASCT will deliver their community programme from the site and also run small-sided leagues, with a strong focus on girls’ football.
These new facilities will service the newly refurbished third generation (3G) artificial grass pitch (AGP), which had previously been taken out of use. Significant football participation will therefore be returned to the site.
The Football Foundation worked with Hyndburn Borough Council and Lancashire County FA to compile a five-year Football Development Plan, which focuses on increasing participation on site as a result of this funding. This plan predicts a growth in new teams formed by ASCT, focusing on female and adult football.
The Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund is funded by the Premier League, The FA, and the Government, via Sport England. It is delivered by the Football Foundation, the country’s largest sports charity. Since it was launched in 2000, the Foundation has awarded around 14,000 grants worth more than £546m towards improving grassroots sport, which it has used to attract additional partnership funding of over £773m – over £1.3bn of investment into the grassroots game.
Since 2000 the Football Foundation Funding Partners’ investment has provided 438 grants worth £19.6m towards grassroots sports projects worth over £46.4m across the whole of Lancashire.
By providing more high-quality facilities, coupled with coaching at the appropriate age group, the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund aims to improve the experience for regular players as well as attracting new players to the game.
Many of the new state-of-the-art facilities will serve to strengthen the connection between professional football clubs and their local communities, particularly in the most deprived areas of the country, through the professional clubs’ community trusts’ outreach work.
Martin Fearon, Community Manager, Accrington Stanley Community Trust, said: “It is great to see the new sports pavilion open at Hyndburn Leisure. The investment from the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund will strengthen the connection between the club and the local community, through Accrington Stanley Community Trust.
“By forming this link, the Football Foundation are encouraging more young people to participate in sport, improving playing experiences for all and offering lots of young people the chance to progress through the National League system.”
Derek Egan, County Development Manager, Lancashire County FA, said: “It was a great pleasure to attend the official opening of Hyndburn Leisure Centre’s new changing room pavilion. The facilities here in Lancashire are fantastic, and will have a huge impact on local grassroots clubs and community groups.
“I know how much hard work and effort that has been put into making this pavilion happen. Thanks must go to the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund for their generous grant that made this project a reality.”
Steve Tanti, Chief Executive of Hyndburn Leisure, said: “We’d like to thank Councillor Ken Moss for opening the facility, and Hyndburn Borough Council for providing match funding. The Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund has enabled us to bring this much needed facility to Hyndburn Leisure Centre, which our 3G pitch users are looking forward to using. This is the next phase in the exciting redevelopment of the centre which over the last few years has included new gym facilities, a 3G pitch, improved lighting across the centre including the pool hall, and now of course, this changing and training facility.”
Paul Thorogood, Chief Executive of the Football Foundation, said: “I am delighted that a grant from the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund has enabled Hyndburn Leisure to upgrade the leisure centres facilities. This development will provide a real boost to sport in the local area.
“Since 2000, the Football Foundation has supported grassroots projects worth more than £1.3bn, investing into areas where the need is greatest and where it will have the biggest impact in terms of getting more people playing football and a wide range of other sports.
“With this funding, provided by the Premier League, The FA and the Government, through Sport England, we are helping to improve community sports facilities across the country and thereby the playing experience of those who take part. This latest project in Hyndburn is the latest addition to the inventory of modern community sports sites we are developing that cater for the needs of local people who want to play sport purely for the love if it and to stay healthy.”
