Where our padel journey began: five double courts and a single, a lounge that keeps members on site, and a Hyrox-affiliated gym, for under £1 million.
Clubhouse was one of our earliest padel projects and set the template for everything that followed: five double courts and a single, a living-and-lounge area that keeps members on site long after the final point, and a Hyrox-affiliated gym alongside.
Positioned in a highly accessible part of Blackburn, it has become the town's clear leading operator, holding its ground against big-name competition including Slazenger — and it did so on a budget of under £1 million.
A vacant retail warehouse: Unit 1 at Hyndburn Retail Park on Whitebirk Drive, on the edge of Blackburn beside the Peel Centre, with more than a hundred parking spaces already in front of it. Padel does not need a new building so much as a tall, clear-span one with parking and an easy way in, and an empty retail-park unit is exactly that.
The consent was a modification of the retail park's Section 106 agreement to let a padel operator trade from the unit, made by the landlord, Peel, and approved by Hyndburn Borough Council on 1 August 2025 without conditions. The venue opened on 20 September 2025, about eighteen months from first conversation to first serve.
Fitting six courts, a functional-fitness gym and a lounge into 23,000 square feet without any of them feeling like the leftover. Each padel court needs its run-off and its clear height, so the courts set the plan and the roof; the gym and the lounge then take the space the courts leave, placed so members pass the coffee bar on the way in and out rather than the fire exit.
That order matters commercially. A padel venue earns on court bookings and keeps its members on membership, coaching and the time they spend on site between games. The lounge is not an amenity added at the end; it is the part of the plan that makes the operating model work.
Blackburn went from no padel to three venues in little over a year. Slazenger Padel Clubs opened a twelve-court club on Haslingden Road, and an eight-court venue at Iron Business Park was approved in October 2025 as the town's third. Clubhouse holds its own against both on accessibility, on the gym and lounge that the others do not lead with, and on a build cost that lets it price for members rather than for investors.
Six indoor courts, the Hyrox-affiliated gym and the lounge, as the operator films them. The sound is off until you turn it on.
What members say
“We went to the opening night at Padel and was really impressed. The whole venue has been finished to an incredibly high standard, and the atmosphere was great. It’s such an exciting addition to Blackburn and a real asset to the area.”
“I can’t recommend this padel centre enough. The facilities are first class, from spotless changing rooms to a lovely coffee seating area. The staff are polite and welcoming.”
“Fantastic facilities and great for the community. I was shocked at how fair and competitive the memberships are given the quality of the facilities. The team have done an amazing job bringing something like this to little old Blackburn!”
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