Trinity Christian Centre is the charity which manages Rowheath Pavilion, located in Bournville, Birmingham. The pavilion is a vital community hub for Bournville and surrounds, and is a welcoming space for everyone; irrespective of belief or conviction. The grounds and pavilion consist sports grounds, parkland, playground, cafe, bar, weddings & events venue, and community space. We are also home to numerous local businesses; including a Christian missional training college and a thriving church (who set up the charity and remain at the heart of our service to the community).
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Rowheath Pavilion was originally built as a sports pavilion which is set on the former plying fields of Cadbury’s Chocolate Factory in Bournville. The Italianate style Pavilion was commissioned by George Cadbury, designed by John Ramsey Armstrong, and opened in July 1924.
The recreation grounds originally covered 75 acres (Almost twice the current area) and hosted over 224 sports teams (Football, rugby, cricket, tennis, bowls and hockey), whilst the main Pavilion building hosted parties, ballroom dancing, and tea dances (See Figure 1). During the second world war, many men joined the war effort and some of the sports pitches were ploughed up for growing vegetables. Sports didn’t fully recover after the war and – due to the expense of running Rowheath Pavilion – much of the land was sold off for housing developments in the 1970s and the Pavilion became derelict for a time in the 1980s. Rowheath Pavilion Limited was established in 1985 to try and revive the community centre, but the site was in a terrible state of neglect and disrepair.
The resident church (Rowheath Pavilion Church) started worshipping at Rowheath Pavilion in the early 1990s and took on management of the community centre in 1997. In 2003, the church’s existing charity, Trinity Christian Centre, signed the lease for the pavilion and grounds; along with 100% ownership of Rowheath Pavilion Limited. Since then, sports and leisure have steadily increased and it has once again become a popular hub of the community.
The community centre now boasts a popular coffee shop & bakery, sports bar with regular street food, weddings & events venue, and is also home to many community groups and sports clubs.