Boy walks into community sports facilities

Council begins refurbishment of community sport facilities

Sheffield City Council has announced the start of the refurbishment of Woodburn Road in Darnall. On completion, Woodburn Road will become the fourth football hub site in Sheffield alongside the sites at Westfield, Graves and Thorncliffe.

The scheme is financed via Sport England who provided £2.8 million for the refurbishment of the facilities. As part of the refurbishment, the current two-storey pavilion will include brand new reception, café, meeting space and multi faith room facilities as well as new changing facilities. Vital ancillary facilities will also be installed for the existing athletics community who use the local university’s 400m running track.

Quote from Richard North

Sheffield City Council hope that the new improvements will make the facility more accessible and welcoming for young people to use. This will allow for more places to play for everyone in the community.

In order to turn the area into the proposed football hub, seven new floodlit football pitches are also set to be installed. In addition, there will also be an influx of new services to the site which originally opened in 2013, from turn up and play sessions to activities run by the local youth organisation.

Coaching programmes will be important for the new facility with coaching for young people from local football clubs – including Aden Steelers, Darnall FA, Darnall Diamonds and Sheffield City. Coaching for disabled young people will also take place weekly, with a new Pan-disability league also set to be a regular occurrence at the new hub. This will be provided by Sheffield and Hallamshire FA with the goal of giving the opportunity of regular, competitive football to over 16s in the community.

It is hoped that with the refurbishment of Woodburn Road – to be renamed The Gordon Banks Stadium in tribute to the former England goalkeeper – there will be even more places to play football at a grassroots level, crucially, at a low-cost. Another goal is that the upgraded facilities and the extra opportunities to play football casually and competitively will be able to improve both the physical and mental health of young people in the area including at the nearby Sheffield Hallam University.

The investment has been welcomed by many leaders in the Sheffield area, with Councillor Richard Williams commenting that:

“This is a fantastic scheme that will benefit so many. We know how important football is to the community, it allows people to have fun, keep fit and importantly, it’s low-cost to play.”

“We’re so grateful for this investment, the funding will go a long way for the community, allowing people to play football in top quality facilities alongside an exciting programme of sessions run by experienced organisations.”

PSE August/September 2023

PSE August/September 2023

London mayor assisting with creative COVID recovery

Our  August/September 2023 edition of PSE brings you expert comment and analysis on a range of key public sector topics, from EV infrastructure to Digital transformation and reducing carbon emissions.

 

Learn how the role of local government in leading the data revolution or read all about the Manchesters landmark housing scheme, alongside so much more…

Videos...

View all videos
#PSE365: Public Sector Events

Be A Part Of It!

PSE365: Public Sector Virtual Events

PSE has created a full calendar of events to address the most important issues that influence the delivery of public sector services. 

 

Over 365 days you’ll have the opportunity to hear from a range of highly motivating, informative and inspirational speakers. These speakers will equip you with knowledge and unique insight to enable you to overcome the challenges that you face.

 

See our full events calendar and register now! 

Public Sector Executive Podcast

Ep. 44
LGBT in the workplace
with Carl Austin Behan

In episode 44 of the Public Sector Executive Podcast, host Dan Benn was joined by former Lord Mayor of Manchester, Carl Austin-Behan OBE. Carl spoke about everything ranging from his time in the RAF, being Manchester’s first openly gay Lord Mayor, and the important work he does now, with the LGBT Foundation.
 

More articles...

View all