Construction began on the three hubs at Community North Sports Complex, Ford Quarry and the Washington Northern Area Playing Fields in January. The work is being carried out by Esh Build, Sunderland City Council’s appointed contractors who are going above and beyond to ensure that the local community are involved in the build process for each of the Football Hub Sites.
The Durham based construction firm have this month begun their Social Value programme with a series of tailored educational sessions, providing local children with the opportunity to learn new skills and gain an insight into the world of construction.
St. Bede’s RC Primary, Usworth Colliery, St. Anne’s RC Primary, Bexhill Primary, St. John Bosco and North View Academy, which are all based within the vicinity of one of the three hub sites are getting involved with a number of sessions to engage the youngsters in site safety, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) and healthy lifestyles.
Paul Redman, Divisional Director at Esh Build said: “We are delighted to be working alongside Sunderland City Council on this fantastic scheme which will provide great opportunities for all ages to play sport on first class facilities.”
“At Esh we believe in delivering a wide range of social value initiatives to the community and local schools in the areas where we work. To date we have worked with over 400 primary school children in conjunction with this project.”
The Sunderland Football Hub sites will see the installation of 10 new Full Size 3G pitches significant improvements to pavilions and enhanced car parking facilities. Once complete the hubs will be three of the finest football community facilities in the country.
The project is being funded by the Premier League, The FA, the Government via Sport England and Sunderland City Council – with the charity the Football Foundation, overseeing project delivery. It is the first project of its kind in the region and only the fourth in the country.
We’re really looking forward to opening the doors to all three of the football hubs later this year. Between now and then, we know there is a lot of work to do and to see Esh Construction making solid progress from a construction perspective whilst engaging with the local community and future users of the sites is extremely encouraging."
