Hundreds of new homes on pitches 'will be major loss'

Plans to build hundreds of council-owned, affordable homes on a city playing field are set to take a big step forward.

Oxford City Council are due on Wednesday to discuss the £97.6m scheme to create 331 properties at Sandy Lane, next to the site for the Blackbird Leys stop on the proposed Cowley Branch Line.

Football pitches on the site will be relocated - mostly to the nearby Herschel Crescent playing field - although one youth team coach said it would be "a big loss" to have the space "taken".

Cabinet member for housing, Linda Smith said: "This is about tackling Oxford's housing crisis while investing in sustainable, connected neighbourhoods for the future".

Natalie Webb - a coach at Greater Leys Youth Football Club, which is based at the Sandy Lane Recreation Ground - said the proposal would be a "major loss" for the community.

She said the field was "perfect for what we need it for... it's a great community space used by a lot of people".

"It is a safe space, it is a social-gathering space... and to have that taken away is going to be difficult, especially for the older generation that come down for exercise," she said.

Several other local youth football teams use the pitches, including Oxford Blackbirds, Florence Park and teams from Headington and Summertown.

Oxford City Council said the replacement pitches would be available by the summer of 2027 - before building work starts. There will also be a new football pavilion at the Herschel Crescent site with boys' and girls' changing facilities and a function room.

Ms Webb said the proposal was an "amazing opportunity for local football [that will] allow growth, and a great opportunity for grassroots football to better their facilities".

The development will be a mix of one, two, three and four bedroom flats and houses - 261 for social rent, the remaining 70 homes for shared ownership.

The city council's development company, OX Place, will be the agent for the scheme.

A new station along the proposed Cowley Branch line will be created in one corner of the plot, along with a central boulevard, station square, and a new footbridge over the railway.

An outline planning application is expected in early 2027 and work could start in 2028.

The first homes are due to be occupied in 2029, and the projected completed by summer 2034.

The council also plans to build more than 230 affordable new homes on the former landfill site opposite the Redbridge Park and Ride.

Councillor Linda Smith said the Sandy Lane development would be "a big contribution toward the high levels of housing need in the city".

"This is going to be a really well connected site, so we are hoping to... get as many homes as we can there" she said.

"Over 1,200 people are expected to have their housing situation improved through this new development at Sandy Lane.

"We'll be delivering over 300 genuinely affordable homes for local people at a site identified in our Local Plan and closely linked to the forthcoming Cowley Branch Line".

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