A MAJOR new sports village in Workington has made a ‘significant amount’ of progress, as new concept images have been released of what the development may look like.

A newly-formed company, Cumberland Sports Village Ltd, has provided an update on progress regarding the new facilities being developed on the Borough Park site, home of the Workington Reds.

The group said: “Over the course of the past four months, a significant amount of progress has been made working with Cumberland Council, Workington Reds and Workington Town RLFC to bring the project to the point it is at today.

“As a result of this, the Cumberland Sports Village Company has now been established.

"This is a not-for-profit, limited-by-guarantee company, which will be responsible for the development of the facilities and once complete, their ongoing operation.

"In order to assist the company during the development phase, the Allerdale Investment Partnership have agreed to provide access to working capital of up to £30,000 to fund its on-going operational requirements.

"The supplementary work requested by Cumberland Council in support of the Towns Fund grant and the grant provided by themselves has now been completed and submitted."

Times and Star: The project is said to have made 'significant progress' in the last few months.The project is said to have made 'significant progress' in the last few months. (Image: Manning Elliot Partnership)

When approved, the company behind the £23million project said an initial tranche of funding will be drawn down to enable the completion of the stadium designs and the preparation and submission of the planning application for the development.

A local firm of architects, the Manning Elliott Partnership, has been asked to undertake the design work for the stadium to enable a planning application to be submitted during the first half of next year.

The new stadium will provide a wide range of facilities for the community. A series of drop-in sessions will be announced in the new year to allow the local community to view the draft designs and provide feedback.

As part of the initial bid submission, a series of draft designs for the stadium have been further developed images. These designs are conceptual, the group stressed, but have been produced to illustrate what the final development might look like.

The company have said that 'positive discussions' with representatives of the Football Foundation are ongoing with regards to the potential all-weather community pitch, with significant additional funding available to enable completion of this part of the project.