Tranmere Rovers Football Club (the Club) has a long and successful history of working in partnership with the Council to deliver commissioned services on behalf of the Council and to deliver services that are not commissioned or paid for by the Council but support the delivery of beneficial outcomes to Wirral residents.

In September 2019 the Council entered into a Partnering Agreement with the club that highlights our good historic relationships and our ambition to work together more transparently for the benefit of the residents of the Borough.  The club is a key anchor institution within Wirral and provides many functions that support the Council’s 20 pledges.  Some of the functions are provided on a commissioned basis but the majority are provided by the club as an ethical community organisation.  If the club ceased to provide these functions, the Council would have to provide alternative provision which would be the Council’s financial position under strain.

The club have approached the Council for a 50% grant of expenditure for Prenton Recreation Centre associated with physical improvements to the Recreation Centre, allowing the Club to enhance education, community sport and international business programmes.  The value of grant requested along with details of what the expenditure is for and how it will be spent is provided within the exempt appendix as public disclosure of this may impact on the ability of the club to enter into negotiations with the supplier on contract price.

The Council is able to agree the grant under its General Power of Competence and the grant will be funded from the Council’s existing capital programme.  Therefore, as the revenue impact of the Capital Programme has already been included in the 2019/20 budget approved by Full Council in March 2019, there are no adverse financial implications or implications for the council taxpayer as a result of awarding the grant.