Mill Hill Football Club is in line for a major upgrade at its Waterfall Street ground after £150,000 was put together to bring its senior teams closer to playing home matches there again.
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The biggest share of the money, £125,000, was secured by Blackburn with Darwen Council through the Government’s Local Regeneration Fund. Mill Hill FC has added a further £25,000 itself.
The funding will be used to improve facilities at the club’s community hub, including new changing rooms, improved pitch barriers and upgraded dugouts.
The works are needed because the club’s senior teams earned promotion to the West Lancashire League, and the ground does not currently meet the league’s requirements.
That has meant the club’s highest-performing senior teams have been playing home games at Darwen FC instead of at Mill Hill.
Mill Hill FC approached the council, which owns the land and has leased it to the club for decades, for help with the improvements.
Chairman Bill Maynard said the funding would make a huge difference to both the club and the wider community.
He said the club had been based in the heart of Mill Hill for more than 30 years and that the investment meant it could continue playing from its home at the community hub.
He also said it would give players, managers and coaches the chance to progress as far as possible in the game.
Mill Hill now has two teams in the West Lancashire League, with the possibility of a third, and the club says more players are looking to join.
The club runs men’s, women’s, junior and diversity teams across different levels.
Councillor Quesir Mahood, Deputy Leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council and Executive Member for Growth and Development, said the authority was proud to have secured the Government funding to support the club’s plans.
It is hoped the upgrades will be finished in time for the start of the 2026/27 season.
More information and fixtures are available at www.millhillfc.co.uk.
