Boys club demolition to begin ahead of £2m rebuild

The demolition of a youth and boxing club base - described as a "community beacon" - will get under way on Tuesday ahead of a £2m renovation.

The Lifstan Boys Club building in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, has stood since the 1960s but has fallen into disrepair.

A £1.5m government grant for a replacement was withdrawn but later reinstated, and has now increased to £2m.

The replacement building - which will provide boxing facilities, dance classes and CV workshops - is expected to be open by September 2027.

The club has been running since the 1950s and moved into its Lifstan Way premises in the 1960s, with Southend Amateur Boxing Club joining a few years later.

A pre-fabricated building, it was meant to last for only 30 years, and its roof and floor were too costly to maintain or repair.

The £1.5m grant for a replacement was secured from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) as part of its Youth Investment Fund, which was managed by Social Investment Business.

However the grant was pulled in summer 2025, but after weeks of campaigning – including writing to the culture secretary – the decision was overturned.

Demolition work lasting three weeks will begin on 1 September before construction starts on the new site, which the BBC understands will be 340 sq m with a foyer, main hall and mezzanine level, plus other rooms.

The minister for sport, Stephanie Peacock, said the club was a "community beacon" and the government was "determined to give young people the spaces and places they need to find their feet".

The Lifstan Boys Club building had "become outdated and unusable," she said.

The minister added she had heard "first hand" how important the club was to the local area, and was "pleased" to give government backing "to reopen the Lifstan next year".

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