Exclusive:Council provide statement ahead of new Sheffield Wednesday North Stand safety verdict
Sheffield Wednesday are well on track to achieve a renewed safety certificate for Hillsborough Stadium’s North Stand, The Star has been told.
Amid concerns over the safety of its roof in particular, the stand was the subject of a prohibition notice from Sheffield City Council back in July, which would have prevented its staging of thousands of season ticket holders and posed a huge logistical threat to the club. The notice was lifted days before the Owls’ first home match of the season after further discussion and a remedial works programme was accelerated.
Work has been ongoing throughout the club’s period of administration and ahead of the current certificate’s expiry date at the end of the month, it is understood that a further, longer-term safety certificate is expected to be granted. In a statement released to The Star on request, Sheffield City Council have indicated their satisfaction with how the work is progressing.
Two local firms have been enlisted to work with one another on the remedial works immediately required on the stand, with work having been continued as administrators look to ensure progress towards a renewed safety certificate is undertaken successfully and the club is left in the best possible condition for its new ownership.
The Star is told that the costs undertaken during the administration period will be paid as a first priority as an ‘expense of the administrators’ and ahead of payments to preferred creditors and the administrators’ professional fees. A number of other suppliers and service providers will also be paid at this stage of the process and it is expected the total cost of these payments will come to between £1m and £2m.
Further work is required on the upkeep of the stand in the short-term, though it’s understood these are costs that will run into a low six-figure sum rather than anything more immediately substantial. A longer-term project on safeguarding the future of the North Stand roof may be required in the coming years, with ongoing remedial work likely as is inevitable for a structure of that age.
In a statement Councillor Joe Otten Chair of Environmental Services and Regulation Policy Committee at Sheffield City Council, said: “We are receiving regular progress updates on the remedial works to the North Stand structure. The project is progressing in line with an agreed schedule of works, and we will continue to monitor it closely.
“We work with Sheffield Wednesday Football Club in our role as the Certifying Authority responsible for issuing the Safety Certificate for Hillsborough Stadium. All councils must ensure that sports grounds are safe. Spectator safety is paramount, and it is the Council’s role to ensure the safety of all sports grounds for all spectators.”