Tottenham women's green-belt plan gets green light

Tottenham Hotspur have been given the go-ahead to build a new training ground by City Hall, despite calls by campaigners seeking to protect a park.

The football club plans to fence off a section of Whitewebbs Park in Enfield, north London, to build a new women's academy with 11 pitches and a clubhouse.

A City Hall spokesperson said "while the proposal represents inappropriate development on the green belt, very special circumstances have been demonstrated". Campaigners aiming to save the park said they were disappointed by the decision.

Whitewebbs Park was the focus of national attention in April when an ancient oak on its perimeter was chopped down by the pub chain that owns Toby Carvery.

Enfield Council approved the Premier League club's plans in February despite 296 objections, many of which were related to the loss of green space and impact on local wildlife.

The matter was referred to the mayor because the proposed site falls into green-belt land.

Sir Sadiq Khan did not have the power to act as the planning authority and the options were limited to either allowing Enfield Council's draft decision to grant permission to proceed unchanged, or directing the council to refuse the application.

The main reason given for not blocking the development was that special circumstances had been demonstrated, and a package of public benefits had been secured.

These factors were deemed to outweigh any harm caused by the development.

The academy's location, adjacent to the existing men's facility, would allow for about 11,000 sq m (2.7 acres) of facilities to be shared, reducing new building work and carbon emissions.

Public benefits include a community engagement plan for local football training for about 36,700 hours annually, and free transport to community training for schools.

The Guardians of Whitewebbs, a local ecology group, called the public benefits "paltry" and said the decision "flies in the face of common sense".

It argued the development represented a loss of public and biodiverse green space - specifically about 40 acres of rewilded grassland and more than 200 trees.

"Football pitches can in no way make up for the permanent loss and degradation of green space," the group said.

However, Patrick Connaghan, the owner of Capital Girls Elite Development, a girls-only football provision programme in north London, reacted positively to the news.

He told BBC Radio London: "On a weekly basis, we struggle for pitch space and with ever-growing financial costs, it's a hard task to find facilities of a standard to train the talents we have.

"If this gets off the ground, it will give us access to so many opportunities for young girls to seek visibility and their dreams.

"If we invest in the opportunities for grass-roots sports to be better, the ability will rise at the top of the women's football pyramid."

The leader of Enfield Council, Ergin Erbil, said he was pleased to see the "exciting vision" for Whitewebbs Park move forward.

The Guardians of Whitewebbs said they remained resolute and were "determined to explore all avenues for safeguarding the park for all".

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