Blackheath Rugby Club able to buy Well Hall home after £725,000 windfall

Blackheath Rugby Club will be able to own their ground and facilities for the first time in their 165-year history thanks to a £725,000 windfall.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities announced the latest allocations from the second round of the £150 million community ownership fund last Friday.

Blackheath were founded in 1858 and are the fourth oldest rugby club in continuous existence in the world.

They played at Rectory Field from 1883 before moving to their Well Hall training ground at the start of the 2016-17 season. Blackheath were relegated from National 1 in May 2022 but produced an instant response to win National League 2 East, finishing 15 points clear of second-placed Barnes.

Russell Ticehurst, Club’s managing director said: “We are absolutely delighted to be awarded a grant from the community ownership fund.

“It’s a perfect outcome for the extensive preparation and effort that went into our application for a grant.

“Blackheath Football Club – known across the world of rugby as Blackheath Rugby – has never owned its own ground and our project to buy our ground at Well Hall, which would otherwise be lost to the local community, will now become a reality as a result of being awarded the grant.

“We are more than a rugby club. We provide a sports facility for the local community that is proving increasingly valuable to local people. Our project to buy our ground at Well Hall will safeguard the site and facilities for generations to come.”