To receive an update from Jon Adams on the move away from York Road.

Jon Adams, CEO of Maidenhead United Football Club, gave a presentation updating the Forum on the football club and its plans to move from York Road. The ground was held in a trust by the football club and the company was a not for profit organisation. They therefore made the final decision with regard to any relocation and the future of the ground after relocation had taken place. Capital assets were held separately from the club for the benefit of the town, this would be maintained should the move away from York Road take place. Maidenhead United FC Limited was a company formed when the club was in a poor financial situation around 15 years ago, they stepped in and ensured that the commercial arm of the club was able to still function. The Maidenhead United men’s first team was the only part of the club that fell under the Maidenhead United FC Limited organisation. The other part of the club was operated by Maidenhead United FC Community Trust.

Maidenhead United was founded in 1870 and currently played in the National League, which was the fifth tier of English football. The club was one of the highest ranked part-time clubs in the country, while the women’s team played in the FA Women’s Premier League South West League. Considering the club in the community, the club was one of the largest community sports clubs in the Thames Valley. The juniors section currently had 51 teams and over 600 members. A National League accredited programme was run in partnership with the Berkshire College of Agriculture, while over 2,500 children per week participated in community football activities across RBWM.

Magpies in the Community was a partnership run by the club that was focused on the health and wellbeing of the local community. Opportunities were provided for local people of all ages and abilities. Examples of activities included: football coaching, development centres, walking football, seated exercise, autism friendly soccer, lunch time and after school clubs. The Premier League trophy would be coming to the ground on 12^th September. Activities were being delivered in a number of locations across the borough. Magpies Community Care was a programme set up during the pandemic which consisted of a hotline that residents could call if they needed food supplies, a prescription picking up or any other help which could be provided by volunteers, the programme was still ongoing. Wellbeing circles had been formed and the club had its own dedicated wellbeing team which could provide support for individuals. The football club was an important community resource, the community was placed at the heart of what the football club did.

Maidenhead United faced a number of challenges, as the existing facilities were not fit for purpose and required significant capital investment:

·       Ageing facilities close the end of their economic life.

·       Locational challenges in terms of site access.

·       National League and EFL (English Football League) ground grading requirements (capacity, lights etc).

·       Improved spectator facilities and increasing the supporter base of the football club.

·       Limited opportunity for wider usage of the York Road pitch for community use.

·       Limited opportunity for facility development at York Road.

It was estimated that improvement to York Road to allow the ground to meet the requirements on EFL capacity and the number of seats would cost around £10 million. This impacted the long term sustainability of the football club, it was important to establish financial independence. The football club needed to address the long term challenges and it was felt that the correct time to move was now, which would tie in with the wider redevelopment of Maidenhead. The main requirements for the football club were that any new ground was still in close proximity to the town centre and transport links. An extensive number of options had been considered over a number of years, the site identified at Braywick was the most suitable option.

The site at Braywick was at the northern end of Braywick Park and was already an established location for outdoor and indoor sport. There was an opportunity at the site to upgrade the existing athletic facilities, while the site was still close to Maidenhead town centre and transport links. The new stadium would have a proposed capacity of 5,200 and new clubhouse facilities would be incorporated into the site. The proposal was for an Astro turf pitch to be installed which would help increase the usage of the stadium and allow it to be used for community use. The football club were working closely with Maidenhead Athletic Club and they were a partner in the project, there would be a four lane 300m track on the site. It was important that the open environment currently at Braywick was preserved, a number of trees would be maintained at the site.

The main benefits of the move to Braywick would allow a high quality community sports facility to be developed for the benefit of the town. The proposal would secure the long term future of the football club and the community programmes. Growth of participation in community sport, health and wellbeing activities would be supported and it would establish Braywick Park as the sport, health and wellbeing hub of Maidenhead. The development would also provide facility improvements for other users, such as Maidenhead Athletic Club, Maidenhead Rugby Club and local schools and community groups.

Jon Adams concluded the presentation by outlining the timescales involved. A consultation would take place between May and November 2022 with supporters, stakeholders and the public. It was anticipated that a planning application would be submitted by the end of 2022.

Councillor Baldwin commented on biodiversity at the proposed site at Braywick Park and how this would be managed.

Jon Adams said that the football club would need to demonstrate how it would meet the requirements for biodiversity net gain, this would be submitted as part of the planning application.

Councillor G Jones thanked Jon Adams for the presentation, he was a representative on the Older People’s Advisory Forum and knew the impact that the Magpies in the Community project had, it would be useful to invite Jon Adams to a meeting of the working group. Councillor G Jones asked if the fans of the football club wanted to move from York Road.

Jon Adams said that there would be a number of supporters who would be disappointed to leave York Road. However, he believed that the supporters also recognised the challenges the football club faced and to allow the club to continue to play at a high level and be a major community asset, the move needed to happen.

Councillor G Jones asked what the current attendances were for Maidenhead United men’s first team games.

Jon Adams said the average was around 1,500 with the biggest attendance during his time at the club being around 3,000. It was realised that York Road was an old ground with outdated facilities, it was hoped a new stadium with modern facilities would be able to attract more fans.

Councillor Baskerville commented on how communication had been with Maidenhead Rugby Club, who would be impacted by the proposed move to Braywick Park.

Jon Adams said that Maidenhead Rugby Club were generally supportive of Maidenhead United’s proposals. The football club was looking to engage with the rugby club during the consultation process, they wanted to work together to find a solution to the issues that had been raised. Jon Adams added that there was a desire for Maidenhead United to become full time, which would allow the team to increase the amount they could train and become more competitive in the National League. There were a number of ex-EFL clubs like Wrexham, Notts County and Chesterfield who were currently competing in the National League.

Councillor Baskerville noted that in the past, York Road had been used for things like local cup finals. He asked if there were plans for other events to use the facilities at the new stadium.

Jon Adams confirmed that the installation of an Astro turf pitch at the proposed new stadium would allow the football club to host more games and events. It was hoped that the stadium would also attract more people to use the sport and leisure facilities at Braywick Leisure Centre.

Councillor Stimson said that the work the football club had done throughout the pandemic was hugely beneficial to the local community.

Jon Adams said that the football club supported residents in contributing to their community and it was about giving back to the community.

Councillor Singh asked about the athletics track at the proposed site and how this would be funded and maintained.

Jon Adams said that the athletics track would be paid for by the football club and they would be the trustees of the track, it was important that it was maintained as a good facility for the athletics club and the wider public. There would be opportunities for the public to use the facilities. Construction of the site was planned to take around a year.

The Chairman thanked Jon Adams for attending the Forum and said that he looked forward to seeing plans progress.