Liverpool FC issues major update on Anfield sports centre facing 'difficult pressures'

Below is a summary of the full article. Click here for the full version from Echo or go back to LFC Live.

Liverpool Echo IconNewsLiverpool NewsLiverpool FCThe sports centre is a five minute drive away from Anfield stadiumLiverpool FC's official charity, the LFC Foundation, has issued a major update on a sports centre a short drive away from Anfield stadium.The LFC Foundation has a longstanding relationship with the Anfield Sports and Community Centre (ASCC) on Lower Breck Road and has been permanently based there since 2015. However, the ASCC had become concerned about its ability to continue running it.

Because of this, the ASCC invited the LFC Foundation to step in to prevent the much-loved centre from closing.Following discussions, the foundation has reached an agreement in principle to take over operations and become the custodian of the centre.The foundation says the move will secure the centre’s future for the local community for generations to come. It will become responsible for the management and operation of the sports centre, including its staff, with a view to improving the facility to create better provisions and opportunities for the local community.ASCC and the LFC Foundation have also committed to retaining the identity of the centre, reflecting its importance to the history of community and sports provision in the local area.The centre will continue to operate as it does now, all current bookings will be honoured and the delivery of existing programmes will continue, including activities and food provision for children during the school holidays.The LFC Foundation says it is committed to continuing to provide access to the facility on an affordable basis for the local community, further supporting the Foundation’s charitable goals.Matt Parish, chief executive of the LFC Foundation, said: “We understand how important the centre has been in providing a community and sports offering to the local area for more than 50 years and we are delighted to be able to help to secure its long-term future.“Our aspiration is to develop the facility further so it can continue to serve generations in the Anfield and Tuebrook area for many years to come.“We are committed to tackling social inequalities in our communities and this transition will allow us to further improve the opportunities and outcomes for all those who use this much-loved centre and who access the Foundation’s programmes now and in the future.”Jane Nolan, chair of the ASCC board, said: “We’re delighted to be passing the management and ownership of the centre over to LFC Foundation.“In recent years the pressures on our funding have made it very difficult for us to continue to run the centre as we have in the past, and LFC Foundation, a long-term friend and supporter of the centre, were always our preferred partner to take things forward.“We are confident that their vision and greater fund-raising reach will secure the long-term future of the centre and will allow for development of an even better facility for our local community”.Choose Liverpool Echo as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.AnfieldAnfield stadiumLiverpool FC