Olympic Legacy Fund has provided £32,500 of match funding
Belfast Harlequins Sports Club Facilities Upgrade
Belfast, United Kingdom
Aim
The aim of our project is to replace the Clubhouse boiler and the roof cover on the pitch Grandstand at Deramore Park
Who are we?
We are Belfast Harlequins Sports Club which is based at its own grounds at Deramore Park in south Belfast. We were established in 1999 with the merger of two historic sports Clubs, Collegians and North of Ireland FC.
We offer sports grounds and social facilities to a wide range of sports and with 600 members:
Rugby - 3 teams for men and 1 for women plus Minis (P1 to P7)
Hockey - 3 teams for adult men and 6 teams for adult women, along with juniors and veterans and also home to Methodist College Hockey Club
Lawn Bowls (Belfast Bowling Club)
And with our partners in Belfast Trojans American Football and St Brigids GAC.
Our extensive grounds include 3 natural grass floodlit rugby pitches, 1 synthetic turf floodlit hockey pitch. A Lawn Bowls green with associated facilities along side a Clubhouse with social facilities and a Gym.
Why are we crowdfunding?
The Clubhouse and associated facilities are now more than 25 years old and are in need of refurbishment and modernisation. The most critical element is the replacement of the boiler, alongside the repair to other parts of the plant, as this provides heating to the Clubhouse and in particular for hot water to the changing rooms and showers.
We want to further develop the Club in particular through offering more youth coaching and teams playing as well as reaching out further into the community. We will only be able to do this by upgrading and modernising the facilities at Deramore Park.Without this investment then these opportunities will not materialise.
In addition the 1XV rugby pitch has had a covered Grandstand beside it for 20 years and it is an important facility at the Grounds for spectators in particular for the matches in the All Ireland League. There has been severe storm damage to the roof covering and this needs replaced for it to be spectator safe and to use it again.
With the total cost being estimated as in the region of £50000 and SportNI will provide a contribution of 65% and the remainder is to be raised through crowdfunding.
If you're applying for extra funding, this is a good place to demonstrate why your project is eligible so refer back to the criteria to help complete this section
How we’ll spend the money raised
If successful we will spend the funds on replacing the Clubhouse boiler and carrying out repairs to the plant, at a cost of £30,000.
In addition we will replace the roof cover on the Grandstand. This will cost £20,000
Community impact
The boiler replacement and repairs will have a positive community impact as without it the Clubhouse would not be useable and will close. There would be no heating of the showers or radiators for rooms including changing rooms, the bar and ancillary meeting rooms. These are important social facilities for Club members, visiting teams and their guests. There is also use by community groups and events which will benefit from the works.
How you can play your part
There are four simple ways to help us reach our target, and make this project a reality.
1. Make a pledge. Don’t delay if you’re going to support us because momentum is key to our success!
2. Spread the word. Share our project on your social media pages and tell the world to get behind us! The more people we reach, the more support we will get.
3. Offer rewards. Get involved if you are a local business by donating things we can offer to our supporters. We will give you a shout out!
4. Fundraise for us. If you want to run your own fundraiser – maybe a sponsored activity or similar – use the 'contact project' button at the top of our page to let us know. Setting up your own page only takes a few minutes and you won’t need any bank details. Just a fun idea!
This project successfully funded on 31st December 2025