About the Project

Cumberland Sports Village is an exciting new partnership between Cumberland Council, Workington AFC and Workington Town RLFC.

It will create a high quality, inclusive and accessible venue for the football and rugby clubs, and benefit the wider community with the addition of new sporting facilities for all to enjoy.

At the heart of the development is the redevelopment of Borough Park, the current home of Workington AFC. We will bring you a new shared stadium to accommodate both clubs – but that’s not all. This Sports Village will have even greater benefits. An integral part of the project will be the development of all-weather community pitch facilities on Lonsdale Park, the land adjacent to Borough Park.

You need to watch this space for what happens next.

Of course, there will be a planning application which will give you all the details of how these fabulous facilities will be developed. 

What we can tell you now is that Phase One of the build will include, as a minimum, a new main grandstand with changing rooms and hospitality areas, plus lots of additional space. The next phases will follow on at a later date and we’ll keep you informed about all of those.

This exciting project has been made possible through £23.1 million of the government’s Town Deal funding. It will develop a number of schemes across the town to support regeneration and grow the economy in and around the town centre. 

The Sports Village is just one part of this. Add in the creation of the Innovation Centre, a new office block and shared creative working space in the centre of the town, plus remediation of the land around the Port of Workington to allow further expansion of this important transport hub, the creation of a new digital skills programme to help employment in the high-tech industries, and the improvement of pedestrian areas at several key locations across the town, and you will see this is a great time for Workington.

The business plans were agreed in 2022 by Allerdale Borough Council’s Executive, after they were devised by the Workington Town Deal Board. Already, £5.4 million of the funding pot has been allocated to the Sports Village project, along with £1 million from Allerdale Borough Council. In addition, positive discussions are taking place with the Football Foundation, the UK’s biggest sports charity, particularly with reference to pitch provision.

How will the project be delivered
The project will be delivered by two organisations to manage whatever is required at each stage. 

A project management company, CSV Management Ltd, will bring together the skills to build the stadium and set up the operation of the facility. This will be the body responsible for the tendering of the work and payment.

At the same time, Cumberland Sports Village (“CSV”) is to be formed as a Community Interest Company. This will be responsible for the ongoing operation of the stadium and facilities, and work alongside the management company to ensure the best fit for the clubs and the community. The members of the CSV Community Interest Community would therefore include representatives of both clubs, along with others with the skills and drive to develop and progress future phases.

We want to complete the phases of the build and development of the facilities, and ensure a strong community focus, while ensuring the clubs can continue to develop the many opportunities offered by a new facility.

Community Pitches
A key part of the whole project is to have a second 3G pitch on the site. We have appointed an approved FA project manager to develop the case for the community pitch and allow for a Football Foundation submission for funding. This will develop the pitch as part of the Phase One CSV project.

Currently, the activities of the Workington AFC teams, and the linked ladies and junior teams academy and community activity, are delivered across a range of sites in Workington and beyond. A second pitch will help the club meet its desire to bring them all together on one site. That will help the pathway from grassroots to senior first teams, and meet their aspirations to grow the game. On top of this, there is a need from the wider football family in the town to have access to more 3G facilities.

In addition it will provide a wider opportunity for Workington Town RLFC and the wider Rugby League community to expand its offer, and include other community organisations.

How will the stadium be maintained in the future and how can any future expansion of the facilities be financed once we have spent the initial funding?

We know the Sports Village’s improved facilities will generate many opportunities for the clubs and the stadium to develop then, in order to further expand the facilities and maximise community use of the stadium, some major new initiatives will be required.

Representatives of both clubs, along with Allerdale Investment Partnership, are ensuring the Sports Village and its management plan will both finance the stadium in the short term, and continue to develop the infrastructure in the future.

A key part of our overall strategy will enable Cumberland Sports Village and both clubs to attract and secure levels of investment and partnerships that they would not ordinarily find easy. CSV will work in our local communities in conjunction with Government agencies and corporate businesses and they will pay CSV to deliver their environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives on the ground.

These activities will include working with local and national organisations and businesses to deliver programmes in West Cumbria. They are likely to include school children and many diverse groups with a strong focus on the environment, as well as the social and community side. This will become a strong income source for Cumberland Sports Village, as well as delivering vital education and awareness raising.

ESG is a collective set of standards measuring an organisation’s impact on society and the environment, and how transparent and accountable it is. According to the Confederation of British Industry, two-thirds of investors take ESG factors into account when investing in a company so this has the potential to grow our business while benefiting the environment and community.

This is an exciting concept surrounding the development and use of our facility and as such is already attracting early interest from various sources keen to be involved.