The lead client for the delivery of the KGV Football Complex was Portsmouth City Council (PCC) working in partnership with the Football Foundation. The local authority were seeking to replace a vandalised changing pavilion on a sports field with a state of the art football facility, providing 3G pitches, changing space and café provision to improve the experience of grassroots sport in the city, and increase youth provision in the north of the city. The scheme had a budget of £8.1m, funded by PCC, the Football Foundation and HM Government (including through the Youth Investment Fund and Changing Places fund).
PCC acted as the lead client for the scheme, incorporating requirements of all partners to achieve strategic objectives into the scheme specification and delivery. The strategic client was the Parks and Open Spaces team, working with the highly experienced Capital Projects in-house multidisciplinary team of architects, landscape architects, quantity surveyors, mechanical engineers and Clerks of Works. As the lead client, PCC identified and synthesised multiple stakeholder interests and navigated complex land holding matters to bring forward a high-quality, aspirational and sustainable scheme, which was officially opened in October 2024 to acclaim from funders and customers alike. The site is already leading to a transformation of service delivery around sport in the city and providing a base for a re-energised youth offer in an area of the city, supporting young people into positive activities.
Three Winning Facts:
- Delivery of an £8.1m capital scheme to reimagine sport and youth provision in Portsmouth, opened in October 2024.
- Complex landscape of funders and stakeholders, including a highly engaged local community, a complex site to manage.
- Early months of operation have seen over 70,000 visits and peak usage at 81% of capacity already.
