Published Friday 20 March 2026 at 15:39
Mill Hill Football Club is celebrating a ‘home win’ after Blackburn with Darwen Council helped secure £125,000 of new funding for its community hub.
Topped up with a further £25,000 raised by the club itself, the money will be used to improve facilities at its Waterfall Street ground.
The upgrades are needed to allow the club’s senior teams to play there after securing promotion to the West Lancashire League.
The £150K will pay for new changing rooms, improved pitch barriers and upgraded dugouts – all meeting the requirements of the league.
Welcoming the news, chairman of the club, Bill Maynard, said:
It’s hard to put into words just what this funding means to the club and to our community.
For more than 30 years we have proudly been based right in the heart of Mill Hill, and this investment means we can continue to play from our home at the community hub, which really does mean a lot to us all.
It also gives our dedicated players, managers and coaches the chance to progress to the highest levels they can achieve, supporting their ambitions and helping to progress their careers.
This new funding will help change lives, it’s magnificent.
Mill Hill FC reached out to the Council, which owns the land, to appeal for support in upgrading the facilities, which it has leased for decades.
Since being promoted to the West Lancashire League, the highest-performing senior teams have been playing their home games at Darwen FC because their own ground does not currently meet league criteria.
But now, with two teams in the West Lancashire League, the chance of a third, and more players looking to join, the improvements are much needed.
Bill added:
Being promoted to the West Lancashire League has been years in the making and this is just the start.
We are incredibly grateful to the Council, our landlord, for helping make this happen – it’s going to make a massive difference to the club and to our players.
It’s also a really good example of what can be achieved when we work together for the good of the whole community, I’m grateful to everyone involved.
Our club, with such a rich history in the borough, will now be able to go from strength to strength.
Mill Hill Football Club has men’s, women’s, junior and diversity teams playing at all levels.
The £125,000 was secured by the Council through the Government’s Local Regeneration Fund.
Councillor Quesir Mahood, Deputy Leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council and Executive Member for Growth and Development, said:
We are incredibly proud to have secured this Government funding to help support the ambitions of Mill Hill Football Club and fund the upgrades needed at their community hub, land that the Council owns.
The club supports players, managers and coaches from right across the borough and has a long history here in Blackburn with Darwen.
This funding means they can support their teams to play at the highest levels possible, and we’re delighted to be part of that.
I’d like to wish them all the very best for the future, we can’t wait to visit the ground when the works are complete.
It’s hoped that the upgrades will be completed in time for the start of the 2026/27 season.
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