Skipton Community Sports Hub opens at Sandylands

The Skipton Community Sports Hub is a welcome new addition at Sandylands. The £1m new facility will be home to Skipton Cricket Club, Skipton Juniors FC and Skipton Ladies AFC, as well as being available for community use – as a bar and for venue hire.

Malcolm Birks, chair of the Skipton Community Sports Hub, said: “It’s with a huge amount of pride that we’ve opened the doors of The Hub and the reaction to date has been a hundred percent positive.”

He added: “The cricketers and umpires who used it for the last couple of weeks of the season loved it; it’s now busy on weekend mornings with the junior football season well underway; and is proving to be a popular watering hole for club members and the local community during its limited Friday night opening hours.”

The 3,500 sq. ft building, which replaced the dilapidated cricket pavilion that was demolished in February last year, has been funded through grants from the Premier League, FA and Government via the Football Foundation; the England and Wales Cricket Trust (EWCT) and S106 anchor funding from Yorkshire Housing via Craven District Council.

Before a grand unveiling, the venue has opened for test events with a fundraising walk in support of Dementia Forward starting and finishing at the Hub, as well as an activity team-building day for a local business.

Lots of cricket clubs have rebuilt their facilities over the years and while there’s disruption, it’s worth it in the end. I’ve changed in a few shipping containers (or under a tree!) but at least cricketers had use of Skipton Rugby Club’s changing rooms.

I’m told there was a makeshift bar called The Cave, as the garage under the scorebox was affectionately known for two summers after being kitted out for beverages.

It’s quite an upgrade now, that’s for sure.

In terms of cricket, Skipton is a thriving centre as a founder member of the Aire-Wharfe Cricket League with three senior teams and a women’s XI who play in the West Yorkshire Women & Girls Cricket League.

Their junior set-up is impressive and has a range of mixed squads, as well as girls’ teams, with one of the highlights being the massive annual junior festival played at Skipton Cricket Club and their neighbours, Skipton Church Institute.

Any new cricket facility is to be celebrated and the multi-sport hub in the North Yorkshire market town of Skipton is one I look forward to watching games at in 2025.