Changing Places For Blackburn Rovers Football Club

Blackburn Rovers Football Club, established in 1875 is one of Lancashire’s most dominant football clubs, holding its position in the Champions League of English football for several seasons. With footballing legends like Alan Shearer being well known for playing at the club, Blackburn Rovers certainly has a lasting legacy! 

With that being said, however, Ewood Park, home to Blackburn Rovers Club, is much more than a football stadium.  

The stadium, sited on the other side of Bolton Road (A666), which itself is accessed from other parts of Lancashire via the M65 Motorway, prides itself on putting equality, diversity and inclusion, in football, first. The stadium has a total capacity of 31,367 and an average attendance of 14,772. Blackburn Rovers Football Club was looking for more ways to become all-inclusive to the club’s fans, and others who attend the stadium. When an opportunity arose for Ewood Park to have a facility that improved the accessibility of the football stadium, it was an easy decision for them.  

Kick Off

RISE were engaged to install a modular Changing Places For Blackburn Rovers Football Club. 

Before this project, the nearest Changing Places facility could be found at Blackburn Market which was at least a 10 minute drive or 30 minute walk away from the stadium. Having an accessible facility at the stadium would not only hugely benefit those who visit the stadium, but have a great positive impact on the town of Blackburn. 

Changing Places facilities go far beyond the provision of standard accessible toilets. These facilities are solely intended to support the needs of profoundly disabled users which include washing and changing facilities. These matters were deeply considered in the planning application from Blackburn Rovers Football Club. 

The site in which the Changing Places facility was installed was located just outside of the stadium, in the Fanzone, close to the Jack Walker Stand and Rovers Memorial Gardens. The Changing Places pod was installed with more than the club in mind. Blackburn Rovers Football Club were interested in benefiting other local points such as the Rover Darwen Parkway local nature reserve and Blackburn Empire Theatre. 

The club was able to use the second round of Government funding available through their local Council, Blackburn with Darwen to fund a Changing Places pod which would significantly improve the inclusivity of the football club. 

The external materials used on the stands consist of a mixture of red brick, light grey horizontal cladding, ribbon windows with dark grey frames, curtain walling and blue doors and shutters. The groundwork for the project was a standard package delivered by RISE, and the unit was a standard CP+0 pod with the use of modern materials, a box-like shape and with use of blue and white, mirroring that of the football team and in keeping with the colour finishes used on the Roverstore facades. The contrast between the white cladding and the blue door has the additional benefit of helping to highlight the entrance for the visually impaired. 

The pod was constructed off-site by RISE and delivered to the site. All surface water and foul drainage were connected to the existing mains system on site. The module includes the standard equipment and dimensions for a Changing Place, providing WC, shower and changing facilities. 

The total cost of the Changing Places for Blackburn Rovers Football Club to provide it turnkey was inclusive of groundworks, planning, fabrication, delivery, installation/commissioning and post-handover training. 

The Final Whistle

A Changing Places facility has helped to protect and support the usage of Ewood Park for future generations, as well as making it more accessible to the football community and the general public. It is intended to assist families who attend Ewood Park to enjoy the match, in a more relaxed and dignified manner. The availability of the facility will ensure less stress is placed on the individual and their carers and hopefully provide an inclusive environment whether attending a football match or other event. It was a real pleasure for us to work with Lynsey Talbot, Head of Operations and the team at Blackburn Rovers Football Club to deliver the pod in a programme that will transform the club and the town.  

Lynsey says,  “The process from concept to completion was flawless, the RISE team’s vast knowledge and expertise in this area was gratefully received and they even assisted us with the planning process to ensure we finished the project in line with funding timescales. We want to share our appreciation to the RISE team for the support given to us over the past year in finally installing the facility at Ewood Park. It will be a much welcome addition to our stadium for use by our fans, visitors and local community and helps us to continue to lead the way in regard to equality, diversity and inclusion.   The support, communication and install have been second to none and I would not hesitate in recommending RISE to other football clubs and arenas/stadiums going forward” 

This project has put us one step closer to installing a Changing Places Facility in every sports ground by 2030 as part of our #RiseForSport initiative.