Lib Dems welcome funding for 'world class' football hub

Lib Dem Councillors have welcomed a large-scale investment in the Woodbourn Road Football Hub in Attercliffe, which will provide 'world class' football facilities to the surrounding community.

The site, run by Leisure United, will receive an extensive redevelopment, creating six new five-a-side and one new seven-a-side caged pitches, following approval by Sheffield City Council’s Strategy and Resources Committee.

Each pitch will be fitted with third generation astroturf, will be fenced around the perimeter, and will be equipped with modern sports lighting. In addition, the opening times of the pitches will be extended to 8am-10pm Monday to Friday, and 8am-9pm on weekends, to allow more people to access these ultra-modern facilities.

The investment also makes provisions to improve the football pavilion on the grounds, including funding for vital repairs, plans to improve the energy efficiency of the building, and provide a quality base for maintenance of the pitches and for audiences to watch football games.

Funding for the project is being provided by a £2m grant from the national Football Foundation, which comes as good news at a time of deep concern around Sheffield City Council's finances. Concerns were raised around the shortfall after the tender came in at £294k more than anticipated, but capital has now been found through releasing funding originally reserved for site maintenance, which will now be the responsibility of Leisure United.

Richard Williams, Lib Dem councillor and chair of the Communities, Parks and Leisure policy committee, said at a meeting of the Strategy and Resources committee "We're going to end up with a world class facility with £2.4 million worth of external funding. This is an excellent thing for Sheffield, and I look forward to it being built."

The improvements to the site have been a long time coming for the local area. The site was identified in a report by the Football Foundation in 2018 as a prime location to improve the small sided game in an area of the city that has suffered from deprivation and a lack of open green space. The site at the time had significant health and safety issues both within the pavilion and on the pitches.

As a part of the renovations, the site is due to be renamed 'The Gordon Banks Stadium'. This is in honour of the Sheffield born footballer who played for England in the triumphant 1966 World Cup, after a campaign by Leader of Sheffield Lib Dems Councillor Shaffaq Mohammed following Gordon’s death in 2019.

Cllr Mohammed said of the proposals "I'm incredibly pleased that this project is going ahead. Grassroots football is massively important for the city's sports offer, it encourages diversity and it supports healthy lifestyles. It's excellent to have another grassroots site to add to the Graves, Thorncliffe and Westfield sites, and I'm confident that residents from across the city will enjoy this development for many years to come."