Subscribe to trusted local news
If you are accessing this story via Facebook but you are a subscriber then you will be unable to access the story. Facebook wants you to stay and read in the app and your login details are not shared with Facebook. If you experience problems with accessing the news but have subscribed, please contact subscriptions@thestrayferret.co.uk. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.
- Subscription costs less than £1 a week with an annual plan.
Already a subscriber? Log in here.
14
May
Harrogate Town withdraw £2.75 million training ground plans after multiple objections
Harrogate Town have withdrawn plans to build a £2.75 million training facility at Wetherby Racecourse.
The club and racecourse operator Wetherby Steeplechase Committee Ltd submitted plans in December 2025 for a clubhouse and pitches.
But the application is now listed as ‘withdrawn’ on Leeds City Council’s website in another blow to the club, which was relegated from the English Football League this month.
The application received multiple objections, which would have made it difficult to secure planning permission.
The Environment Agency recommended the scheme be refused because it contravened national planning rules. It explained:
We object to the proposed development as it falls within a flood risk vulnerability category that is inappropriate to the flood zone in which the application site is located.
Yards instead of metres
Other statutory consultees — organisations the council was obliged to consult with before making its decision — also raised concerns.
Sport England was particularly critical, saying it was unable to support the proposal because of “insufficient technical information”. It said there was “almost no technical information relating to the design of the 3G pitch” and criticised the application for using yards instead of metres in its pitch measurements. It added “the scheme doesn’t currently include parking or turning space for coach vehicles”.
Bairbre McKendrick, the council’s access officer, said:
I note that this facility unlike recent grassroots FA funded facilities in Leeds does not appear to include a changing places toilet. Without a changing places toilet, some disabled will not be able to come and watch any matches or training or attend any prizegiving / events. It will also mean that disabled peoples groups will be unable to hire the venue for their sporting events.
The council’s design team response said:
“It is disappointing that none of the new-build structures benefits from a green roof. This would help them to sit more harmoniously within the open landscape, and to profit from the many other benefits associated with green roofs.”
The council’s highways team said “The proposals are not currently supported in highways terms”.
'A major investment in the future of the club'
The application was for a training facility comprising a clubhouse, artificial and grass pitches, fencing, floodlighting, access arrangements including formation of new access, parking, landscaping and associated works and ancillary structures
A design and access statement prepared in support of the application last year by architects Bowman Riley, said the site had been “carefully selected” over a six-year period. It added:
The proposed development represents a major investment in the future of the club and the wider community, creating a high-quality training base that brings together the men’s and women’s first teams, academy players and grassroots football under one roof.
The vision for the scheme is to provide a central, accessible and sustainable hub for player development, health and wellbeing, and community participation.
The facility will not only support Harrogate Town AFC’s ambitions on the pitch but will also deliver significant social value by providing opportunities for local schools, grassroots clubs and community groups to benefit from enhanced sporting provision.
A Harrogate Town spokesperson said today (May 14) the club would be addressing the reasons for the withdrawal shortly.
0