Blackburn Rovers FC opens redeveloped indoor centre

A redeveloped indoor football centre has opened its doors at Ewood Park, home of the Blackburn Rovers Football Club (BRFC).

BRFC and Blackburn Rovers Community Trust have invested £400,000 in upgrading the venue, which runs a wide range of projects and programmes targeted for people of all ages. The centre is owned by BRFC and is managed by the trust.

Known locally as BRIC, the facility was used by Sir Kenny Dalglish’s Premier League-winning team as its training ground during the 1994-95 campaign. It is also used by BRFC’s Academy and Women’s teams.

Due to the high volume of usage and the longevity of the building, since it opened its doors 30 years ago, BRFC and the Community Trust identified an urgent need to modernise the Indoor Centre so it can continue to be an important community hub.

The improvement works, which included the installation of new 3G playing surfaces, were funded in part by a £165k grant from the Football Foundation, with Blackburn with Darwen Council providing a further £50,000 towards the works.

As well as the new 3G pitches, the upgrade has seen the installation of new and improved energy-saving lighting, classrooms, ventilation and access, decoration throughout, and a new entrance/reception area.

Blackburn Rovers Community Trust CEO, Gary Robinson, said: “The Indoor Centre is now reopen to play sports and to help to improve the physical and mental wellbeing of people in our community.

“It is a significant capital expended project that the Community Trust has funded in partnership with Blackburn with Darwen Council and the Football Foundation.

“The Blackburn Rovers Indoor Centre means a lot to our community. Generations of families have used the facility and we are looking forward to welcoming the next generation of families that will benefit from this important community asset.

“The facility is very much focused on Blackburn Rovers Football Club, as it is their facility. The Indoor Centre could have been used for other purposes but with Blackburn Rovers being such a family focused football club, we wanted to make sure the Indoor Centre continued to be a community hub.