Building work on the next stage of Charlton Athletic's training ground redevelopment has started, with two special guests in attendance to watch work begin.
MP for Eltham, Clive Efford, and Leader of the Royal Borough of Greenwich, Cllr Denise Hyland, were among the attendees at the club's Sparrows Lane training ground when Phase II of the multi-million pound project began.The work is part of a four-phased redevelopment of the training ground, which got under way in 2015. The project has been split into four phases so that the training ground can still be used during the development.
Once completed, the training ground will provide facilities that benefit Charlton Athletic, Charlton Athletic Community Trust, Charlton Athletic Women’s Team, Footscray Rugby Club and the local community.
Member of Parliament for Eltham, Efford said: “This is going to be a real hub of sport for the local community. I think Charlton really do deserve a great deal of credit.
“Having a facility like this where more of the community can come in, it really embeds Charlton Athletic Community Trust and the football club more in our local community. I’ve always enjoyed working with them and this is just more evidence of how committed they are to our local area and local community.”
The redevelopment is being fully funded by the club and Phase II consists of the construction of a new synthetic community pitch and enhancement of the CACT area, including:
- Two new changing rooms
- Classrooms
- Consultation area
- Construction of a new 3G rugby pitch
- Increased parking
- An access road
Services will remain accessible for the community for activities such as after school clubs, walking clubs, running, cricket and walking football.
Charlton CEO Katrien Meire said of the joined-up nature of the project: “It is a good example of our approach.
“We’re an inclusive club, we have a massive academy, a women’s team that are doing brilliantly and our Community Trust, which has a great reputation, and this [the facilities] will only help them to expand their community scheme. The improvements to the training ground will benefit the club and the local community for many decades to come.”
The club initially secured planning permission for Phase II in October, when work began, but legal delays meant construction was only able to begin last week. The work is set to be complete by September.
Phase III of the development is set to begin following the end of the season and involves the renovation of the first team’s natural turf training pitches.