DPP has submitted a planning application for a new football training facility on behalf of Wetherby Racecourse and Harrogate Town AFC, whose men’s first team currently competes in English Football League (EFL) League Two.
The proposed scheme in Wetherby includes a clubhouse, artificial and grass pitches. It will serve Harrogate Town AFC’s Men’s first team, Women’s team and the Club’s Centre for Excellence and Emerging Talent Centre who currently train across multiple sites and will also support the club’s Community Foundation activities. The facility will also be used by the wider community including local schools and sports clubs.
Harrogate Town AFC has been searching for a suitable site to develop a new training facility for five years after the men’s senior team was promoted to the EFL in 2020. This promotion required them to replace the 3G pitch at their stadium on Wetherby Road, Harrogate with a grass pitch.
The Club has partnered with Wetherby Racecourse, a key local sporting venue that attracts up to 13,000 spectators at each race meeting and draws visitors from across Yorkshire and beyond. The revenue stream generated from the proposed training facility will facilitate further investment in the Racecourse.
DPP look forward to progressing this application through the planning process and hearing the views of the local community and consultees. Comments on the application can be made online via Leeds City Council’s website.
The project team includes: Struct-Sure Limited, Bowman Riley, Brooks Ecological and SLR Consulting.
Speaking about the proposals, David Smith, Director at DPP said:
We are delighted to have submitted this application which will provide a much-needed centralised training base for the club’s teams and Player Development Centres while also delivering significant community benefits. The proposal will help address the shortfall in artificial grass pitches in this part of Leeds. We have received positive consultation engagement with a variety of stakeholders and look forward to now progressing the application through to a positive determination.
Image: Bowman Riley
