WHY RUGBY MATTERS
More than just a game – rugby enriches lives, from improving the health and wellbeing of its players to creating stronger, more connected communities.
The Rugby Football Union (RFU) is the governing body for rugby union in England. All money we raise is reinvested in promoting and managing the sport across all levels, from grassroots to the men’s and women’s national teams. Each year this equates to around £30 million of investment into local grassroots rugby, sustaining a network of 378,000 players across 1,849 clubs.
For 116 years, our stadium has been the beating heart of England Rugby and the home of the RFU. It is also the largest dedicated rugby union stadium in the world. It is now responsible for 85% of our revenues and, in addition to helping sustain rugby’s growth, it also provides significant benefits to the local economy.
What the stadium brings to the local and UK economies
Generating an estimated £181 million in Gross Added Value to the UK economy each year, with £91 million of this going to the boroughs of Richmond and Hounslow
Supporting 2,870 FTE jobs, with nearly half of these being in the local area
£180,000 a year generated for local initiatives across Richmond and Hounslow
The RFU in the community
Better event day communication
The RFU are continually striving to be the best neighbours we can be, investing significantly in minimising our impact and actively supporting the community through:
Having in place a dedciated event day support number for residents which goes through directly to a member of our team present on site on the day.
Providing a regular series of resident communications, including the quarterly ‘Line Out’ newsletter, providing updates on activities at the stadium through our WhatsApp feed and X account.
Tackling antisocial behaviour on event days and beyond
We carry out a number of initiatives to address antisocial behaviour, such as:
Deploying extra stewards and enhanced cleaning, such as jet washing, on match days, with 160 stewards working at any one time for big events.
Installing alley gates around North Twickenham and Whitton, along with better CCTV around the stadium, helping reduce antisocial behaviour and burglaries in the area by 80%.
Partnering with Safer Neighbourhood Teams for patrols and targeted interventions, and using signage to promote better respect for our neighbours.
Providing more on-site and off-site toilet facilities (around 30 in total) including disabled units around Zone Ex, as well as urinals and toilets in the compound at Heatham House.
Enforced Challenge 21, adoption of the Ask Angela scheme, and rigorous licensing compliance checks.
Support for local charities, businesses and young people
The RFU is constantly looking at ways we can support our neighbours and the community, through:
Supporting a number of mental and physical health charities in the area, including Purple Elephant, Mind in Richmond, and Sport Impact.
Supporting the Vineyard Community Centre which supports those in the borough struggling with housing issues with donations and running events.
Introducing resident-only events like ‘picnic on the pitch’ and the Community Christmas Lunch to welcome our neighbours in and solidifiy the stadium as an asset for the community.
Supporting young people in the area, from funding the installation of a skate park at Heatham House Youth Centre, installing a Green Wall to improve air quality at St Stephen’s Primary School, providing opportunities to play on the pitch and building an outdoor classroom at Chase Bridge School.
Working with and promoting the Discover Twickenham BID to invest in our town centre. The past two years we have provided funding towards flower baskets, Christmas lights and the High Tide Festival, as well as St Margaret’s Fair and Whitton’s St George’s Day Parade. We also work alongside the BID and other groups to ensure that local businesses have all the information which they need ahead of the season, and can raise any issues which may arise around events.