Sport England join residents and politicians in angry battle against Sheffield sports pitch housing plans
Community leaders and sports organisations condemn plans for housing on sports field
Sports leaders, councillors, residents and an MP are now lining up to take on developers over controversial plans to build on Sheffield football pitches.
Sheffield Council has now seen a flow of objections to the plan for a field at the end of Medlock Close, Handsworth, to be used for housing.
Harron Homes wants to build 56 properties on land which has traditionally been used as cricket and football pitches.
The developer claims the pitches are surplus to requirements and suggests they are not green belt, but ‘grey belt’.
The plan has caused anger among local councillors who are already fighting major plans to build on other parts of the green belt in that part of Sheffield as part of the Local Plan - a major development blueprint aiming to deliver 38,000 new homes by 2039.
While 89 per cent of these are targeted for brownfield sites, 14 green belt sites havae been earmarked for around 3,500 homes.
But now, as well as scores of concerned residents, Harron Homes’ plamn for the Medlock Close field is facing the opposition of Sport England, ward councillors and MP Clive Betts.
Sport England, the Government funded sport campaign group, has now come out and rejected the claim that the land is ‘surplus’ for sports, after speaking to both the England and Wales Cricket Board and the Football Foundation.
In fact, both refer to a pitch shortage described as ‘acute ‘ for cricket by the England and Wales Cricket Board.
The Football Foundation, after speaking to the Sheffield and Hallamshire County FA, said they do not believe the playing field to be a surplus to requirements for sport, and has warned there is actually a shortage in the area.
Sport England said: “The Council’s 2022 Playing Pitch Strategy does not support the loss of this site.”
They said official plans seek to protect all playing field land, including disused sites, unless robust evidence demonstrates they are surplus or meet an exception within Sport England policy.
They added there was a specifical mention that the land owner should be contacted about bringing the site back into use for football.
“This confirms the site is a key resource in meeting current and future demand for outdoor sport, supporting its protection rather than its loss,” they added.
Meanwhile, ward Councillor Mick Rooney, who represents Handsworth on Sheffield Council, is angry that the plan is coming through at a time when Handworth is already facing the prospect of having thousands of houses built on its green belt.
A major campaign against those plans is running, with supporters of the campaign including the actor Sean Bean, who was raised in the area.
Coun Rooney has written to the council to tell of his concerns, and says he is unhappy that the scheme was being considered at a time when Handsworth was already facing a major loss of green space.
The said: “There are already plans in place to build enough houses for the foreseeable in the emerging local plan. This in itself will remove huge sections of S13 green belt and put severe pressures on local services including highways.
“The claim by the developer that the land is not in the green belt is incorrect as are their claims that there is already a surplus of football pitches and no local interest in cricket.
“Both claims are utter nonsense, I am hopeful that Council officers involved in developing a playing pitch strategy will disprove both points.”
The site in question here is not in the local plan, and therefore it will be really quite amazing if the council disregarded its local plan at the first instance.
MP Clive Betts has been contacted by residents to raise their concerns over the scheme, and is also objecting to the plans.
He said there were already access issues in the area for traffic.
In an official objection which now forms part of the planning application file which will go before councllors, he, states: “The site in question here is not in the Local Plan, and therefore it will be really quite amazing if the council disregarded its Local Plan at the first instance.
“The other main issue is that the site has always been playing fields for football and cricket. It's designated, I understand, for playing fields.”
He claimed in the objection that he believes previous landowners had every intention of building on the site in the future, which he thinks is why sports teams were stopped from playing there and the pitches not maintained.
A sign on the closed gates around the pitches now warns of ‘dangerous deep excavations’, with a notice stating that archaeological evaluations are taking place at the site.
An excavator can be seen inside, and aerial photographs show where a trench has been dug.
A spokesperson for Harron Homes told The Star: “The proposed new development at Handsworth in Sheffield would provide much-needed high-quality and energy-efficient new homes, including 25 per cent affordable housing, helping to meet demand in the area.
“The scheme would also bring several benefits for the local community, including investment in local services through a Section 106 agreement, better connections to nearby green spaces and public art positioned where it can be enjoyed by the wider community. The proposals also include attractive and accessible public open space, while a number of the homes would be designed to adapt to residents’ changing needs.
“We look forward to working closely with all stakeholders to ensure the plans and any future development meet the needs of local people.”