The players' lounge at St Helens Rugby League Football Club (SHRLFC) has been transformed into a new facility designed to provide a learning environment for young people.

The Playing for Success Centre will be used to highlight the role of sport and promote active learning through the national curriculum, and will focus on developing skills in literacy, numeracy and IT. Pupils from two local schools have been using the centre during October to take part in a programme of activities focused on SHRFLC and the 2008 Rugby League World Cup.

Playing for Success is a partnership between the Department for Children, Schools and Familes, local authorities and sports clubs. The centre at the GPW Recruitment Stadium is being run as a partnership between SHRFLC and the Department for Education and Skills, as well as the Saints Community Development Foundation. Centre manager, Tracey Ashley-Jones, said: "Playing for Success is a well-established government initiative that has been in existence for over ten years now, and embraces a variety of sports nationwide with more than 153 clubs now operational."

The centre was opened by a number of SHRFLC players, including Maurie Fa'asavalu, Paul Clough and Gary Wheeler.