We are thrilled with the success of our public CrowdJustice campaign so far and we are truly grateful to our very many supporters and donors for their generosity in backing our claim for Judicial Re… The Save Wimbledon Park campaign (“SWP”) has been actively working since 2021 against the proposal of the All England Lawn Tennis Club (“AELTC” the private club that annually run the Wimbledon tennis Championships) to develop the highly protected former Wimbledon Park golf course into an industrial-scale tennis complex We believe the scale and scope of the proposed development is unjustified and unlawful.  SWP are crowdfunding to proceed with a Judicial Review (“JR”) of the GLA’s grant of planning permission for the proposed development JR is a legal process that allows courts to examine whether a decision made by a public body is lawful  Legal fees for a JR are expected to be approximately £200,000 This includes expenses already incurred of over £50,000 which have been funded by a small group of seed funders.  The heritage land is a valuable irreplaceable habitat meant for the people to appreciate as a public recreational green space protected under Trust.  It is Metropolitan Open Land, a Grade II* listed park, in a Conservation Area and a heritage “Capability” Brown landscape.  It is one of the most protected spaces in London.  Click here for a summary of the environmental issues There are over 50 Metropolitan Open Land sites in Greater London which are similarly under threat from development The land, located in both Merton and Wandsworth Councils, was purchased in 1993 by the AELTC subject to a restrictive covenant prohibiting development - making any large-scale development unlawful. Click here for more information on the covenants Merton approved the AELTC’s planning application whilst Wandsworth unanimously refused it The GLA ultimately approved the planning application The High Court has now issued an Order confirming that Save Wimbledon Park may proceed for Judicial Review of the GLA’s planning decision.  The Court decided that “The Claimant [SWP] has raised arguable grounds which merit consideration at a full hearing”.  The case is now listed for Trial in July 2025. Click here for more information on the current legal situation Save Wimbledon Park Ltd firmly believes that disputes are best settled by discussion not by resorting to lawyers and the courts and continues to encourage a healthy dialogue to resolve the dispute.  despite our repeated requests we’ve not been able to persuade the AELTC to meet with us to try and resolve this matter.  We are extremely grateful to members and supporters who have generously contributed to the seed-funding which enabled us to receive legal advice and take these first legal steps Without your help this would not have been possible It’s a real David and Goliath story playing out and we truly believe in the community having a voice Click here for Frequently Asked Questions or visit our website www.savewimbledonpark.org for more information and we are truly grateful to our very many supporters and donors for their generosity in backing our claim for Judicial Review of the Deputy Mayor's decision to grant planning permission When we launched this public CrowdJustice campaign 4 weeks ago we considered that £120,000 was a reasonable goal for this part of our fundraising efforts while at the same time we were exploring other possible sources of funding direct to SWP Now that the trial of Judicial Review is closer and now that with such generous help from our public supporters we have conducted a careful review of the expected legal expense of fighting this action we consider it prudent to increase our public campaign goal to £160,000 in order to fully engage our legal team and ensure we can conduct the litigation to the highest standards We remain very hopeful that our supporters will continue to generously back our campaign and help us to reach this goal On Saturday 5 April the total raised by our Crowd Justice campaign passed the £100,000-mark a truly magnificent (and quite humbling) achievement after just 20 days and this was from 685 donors  We are so grateful to our supporters and donors for your generosity and public-spiritedness in backing our claim for Judicial Review of the Deputy Mayor’s decision to grant planning permission We held two very successful fund-raising meetings towards the end of March  We are very grateful to local resident (and TV personality) Andy Hamilton for compering both events  Star guests at both were actress Thelma Ruby and Gabriel a local schoolboy who had organised a petition among his classmates Our campaign has evidently attracted the attention of the BBC  They ran a piece on the local evening news ahead of our St Barnabas meeting  Last Sunday the Politics London show broadcast quite a lengthy segment in which our MP Paul Kohler challenged the AELTC Chair Debbie Jevans to meet with SWP to discuss the scheme and to consider the possibility of a compromise  Ms Jevans agreed to a meeting but was non-committal about her willingness to compromise  We will keep our supporters updated on this front the trial of the Judicial Review proceedings has been fixed for 8 & 9 July 2025 relating to the statutory public recreation trust are expected to reach trial towards the end of this year  We will keep our supporters briefed on this as matters develop the AELTC’s latest Community Newsletter suggests that the local community is champing at the bit to realise the “many community benefits” offered by their development  There is no acknowledgement of the major legal hurdles which they have to surmount in order to be able to proceed with their development  The AELTC appear unwilling to acknowledge or respond to the massive local opposition to their scheme  Still no mention of the restrictive covenants which would totally prevent this development Please continue to tell your friends and family about our campaign In under two weeks of crowd funding we have raised £75,000 Thank you for helping us towards our target of £120,000! We are so heartened at the strong response with recent donations from £5 to £5000+ Many donors have written comments with their donations Thank you for these personal reflections highlighting your depth of feeling for protected green spaces concern about the environmental devastation lack of trust in the AELTC’s promises On Wednesday 26 March we held a well attended public meeting in Wimbledon with special guests of local residents Andy Hamilton, Thelma Ruby (100) and schoolboy Gabriel (9). We are hosting another public meeting on Monday 31 March in Southfields. Details here Please tell your friends and family about our campaign and events If you would like to get in touch with us directly, for general questions please email [email protected] and for fundraising related issues email [email protected] Thank you to our supporters who have helped us to raise £50,000 in just one week!  There are now two court cases currently in progress concerning the AELTC’s proposed development on the former golf course land in Wimbledon park It is for this case that SWP is actively crowd-funding on this site  SWP is challenging the legality of the Mayor of London’s decision to grant planning permission for the development  This challenge is called Judicial Review and SWP is having to fund its considerable legal expense of fighting the case   We have therefore updated our funding target to £150,000 The second case is entirely separate and concerns the legal status of the land  SWP say that the land is protected by a statutory trust and that the proposed development is incompatible with public rights of access  The AELTC disagree and have started court proceedings to decide the point SWP has issued the following statement about this second case: “To resolve the question of whether a statutory trust exists on the former Wimbledon Park Golf Club land the All England Club currently considers that it is in the public and local community interest to put that question before the court for a decision Save Wimbledon Park Ltd has agreed to act as a representative defendant in this case the All England Club has agreed to cover Save Wimbledon Park's legal costs in order to ensure fair opportunity for both sides to put their case to the court Both parties agree that having this matter resolved is an important step in establishing the status of the land.” Neither of these two court cases addresses the covenants which the AELTC entered into when it acquired the golf course land preventing building on the land and restricting its use to leisure and recreation  Both the AELTC and London Borough of Merton remain silent about whether the development can proceed with these covenants in force We hope to see you at one of our upcoming events on 26 and 31 March.  Click here for details There are no public comments on this case page Sean Jones called us to order for the usual briefing on a lovely day for running was taking part in the London Marathon the next day The most interesting piece of news this week was the milestone achieved by John (VM80-84) and Francesca Carter (VW75-79) Between them they have completed 1000 parkruns John has done 471 parkruns and Francesca 529 John has completed 391 at Wimbledon Common and Francesca 473 They are not just regular runners but have also volunteered often - Francesca 316 times and John 161 times They are veritable stalwarts of Wimbledon Common parkrun Whilst on the subject of milestones the following also reached significant milestones Jack Hildrup (SM25-29) was first over the line in 17'54"; it was his first time at Wimbledon Common Second was Ruby Carter  in a PB of 18'06" and third was Matt Shaw (SM30-34) in 18'24" Amongst the women second was Emmie Gilbert (SW18-19) in a PB of  20'39" Third was Lisa Thomas (VW60-64)  in 21'01 The remarkable point of Lisa's run was that she was fastest on an age graded basis with 91.04% This was better than her performance last week of 90.04% We have not seen a 90% a score before last week for a long time Out of 596 runners 133 were first timers and 93 achieved a personal best Interesting pose for running - is it efficient Just a reminder that as 5K Your Way supports us by taking part in parkrun we should support them too Wimbledon Common parkrun started on 6th January 2007 Since then 38,963 participants have completed 282,153 parkruns covering a total distance of 1,410,765 km These figures were made possible by 1,642 individuals who have volunteered a total of 17,830 times © parkrun Limited (Company Number: 07289574) No part of this site may be reproduced in whole or in part in any manner without the permission of the copyright owner Taking place in Wimbledon Park over two days this June Wellnergy brings together wellness experts and thought leaders from around the world to help you achieve balance in your life As well as a dedicated corporate wellness day on the Friday with workshops and talks focused on the workforce of today the 2025 edition of Wellnergy will also feature talks from mental fitness expert Maya Raichoora and American pediatric endocrinologist Dr Robert Lustig; interactive workshops covering nutrition mental health and sustainability; movement and exercise classes; holistic healing sessions; and mindfulness and meditation zones You’ll also be able to explore a range of health eco-friendly and organic brands at the exhibitor village Fearne Cotton is back with the fifth edition of her Happy Place Festival this summer and this time she’s hosting it in Gunnersbury Park with the festival’s areas curated around the seven key pillars of meditation Katy Hill and All On The Board will be speaking Founded by friends Andrew Swiney and Ed Deakin in 2022 micro-festival Wellness in the Wild is back for a third year this summer the intimate festival features areas dedicated to fitness You can take a vinyasa yoga class or join a trail run; you can meditate with a sound bath; hit the sauna or have a massage at the Woodland Spa and Therapy Field; and you can have a go at pottery or terrarium-making in the Make Tent There’ll be acoustic performances during the day DJ sets at night and plenty of food and drink on offer throughout Sign up to our drops & get us in your inbox.We’ll be in your inbox every Wednesday at 11:30am.Put the kettle on Save Wimbledon Park (SWP) said it has made submissions to the Greater London Authority arguing for a judicial review of plans to convert a swathe of the former Wimbledon Golf Club into a vastly expanded grand slam venue. The protest group says it has taken this “momentous” decision to stop “inappropriate” development of the 29-hectare (73 acres) site. Read moreThe move comes after the decision by the mayor of London’s office to approve planning permission for the development in September spoke at the time of the “very significant benefits” that would come from the plans an 8,000 seat show court and the restoration of a lake designed by Capability Brown Local opposition has been consistent since expansion plans were accelerated in 2018 arguing that access to “metropolitan open land” would be restricted relating to a covenant that was agreed by the AELTC when it bought the freehold on the land from Merton council in 1993 a version of which is published on the SWP website the land could not be used “otherwise than for leisure or recreational purposes” The SWP argue that “the proposed private tennis entertainment complex” breaks those terms “We have taken this momentous step because our directors members and the community feel strongly that this precious historic and highly protected environment should be preserved from inappropriate development and continue to be available for community use for sport and recreation,” the SWP’s Jeremy Hudson said in a statement The AELTC’s counterargument is that a once private golf course will now be converted into land that will offer access to the public with further green space also open throughout the year outside the Championships It also contends that scaling up the facilities at the All England Club is necessary to maintain the prestige of Wimbledon’s grand slam tournament A spokesperson for the mayor of London said: “The mayor believes this scheme will bring a significant range of benefits including economic social and cultural benefits to the local area creating new jobs and cementing Wimbledon’s reputation as the greatest tennis competition in the world.” Campaigners argue that City Hall ‘made errors of law and planning policy’ when it granted permission for the scheme News | London A row over plans to massively expand the site of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships has ramped up after local campaigners revealed they are taking legal action against City Hall for approving the project The Save Wimbledon Park (SWP) campaign said it had taken the “momentous step” in order to prevent the “inappropriate development” which will comprise 38 new practice courts and an 8,000-seater stadium The structures will be built on a former golf course directly opposite the All England Lawn Tennis Club’s (AELTC) existing site on Church Road and will almost triple its total footprint Planning permission for the scheme was granted by London’s deputy mayor for planning at a City Hall hearing in September last year Mr Pipe said the project would help to “secure the future of these Championships in this location” and would bring “significant associated economic benefits” But opponents of the plan continue to argue that it will cause serious harm to the area’s biodiversity and heritage and could set a dangerous precedent for development on sites which are meant to enjoy a high level of protection due to their designation as ‘metropolitan open land’ SWP claims that City Hall “made errors of law and planning policy” when it granted permission for the project as it “failed to take into account the implications of the statutory public recreation trust and the restrictive covenants [on the land] both of which prevent the proposed development” relating to the land’s status as a “historic heritage asset” and as a site for “recreational provision” said: “We have taken this momentous step because our directors and continue to be available for community use for sport and recreation This step is not just for our local community but also important for many other Metropolitan Open Land spaces under threat of development.” The campaign hopes to follow an example set in Shropshire last year where a housing development was overturned on the grounds that a statutory trust created in 1926 gave residents rights of recreation over the land London defies bad weather to welcome New Year with spectacular fireworks display In Pictures: Carol service brings some joy at end of difficult year for royals 10 food brands and destinations to satisfy your Christmas cravings Before taking a decision on the application earlier this year City Hall sought its own legal advice on the issue which found that “the land is held subject to a statutory trust for its use for public recreation” City Hall’s officers warned however that “the matter is far from clear cut and there are arguments pointing in both directions” Shortly before Christmas, AELTC made the surprise announcement that it would take the ‘statutory trust’ question to the High Court itself in an attempt to prove that no such issue stands in the scheme’s way “It is understood that an application has been made for the court to determine this matter and it is therefore inappropriate for the mayor to comment further at this stage.” AELTC has been named as an “interested party” in SWP’s challenge, as have Merton and Wandsworth councils - each of which considered the planning application before it reached City Hall AELTC declined to comment on the SWP’s legal challenge but said in December: “The possibility of a statutory trust on the land was raised by the GLA in their officers’ report and the issue was dealt with appropriately by the GLA in granting planning consent and that adopted by Merton Council on advice a statutory trust affecting the former Wimbledon Park Golf Course land.” It added that the project “will maintain our position at the pinnacle of tennis” while delivering “year-round benefits for local people with 27 acres of newly accessible parkland for everyone to enjoy” It is understood that a judge will now review all of the papers that have been filed by SWP and the other named parties and will then decide whether or not to grant permission for a judicial review to take place SWP estimates that a decision on whether to take the case forward could be reached within two or three months and a full trial could then take place in approximately 12-18 months from now The golf club land was sold to AELTC by Merton Council in 1993 during which time the authority imposed a set of restrictive covenants to preserve the openness of the land Approached for comment on SWP’s legal challenge Merton pointed to a statement it issued when City Hall granted planning permission in September The council said at that time that “the granting of planning permission does not override the covenants” and it “intends that the covenants be respected” while refusing to say anything further on the matter at this stage Wandsworth Council leader Simon Hogg said: “We share the view of local residents that the plans are damaging to the environment and are therefore not right for our community Protecting the environment and access to green spaces are issues we are committed to We will continue to liaise with residents and campaigners to ensure that the voices of those in Wandsworth are heard.” Prince 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Read our policy By 2025-02-18T11:57:00+00:00 Judge says campaigners have raised ”arguable grounds” to challenge approval of £200m scheme Allies & Morrison’s proposals for the 8,000-seat showcourt Allies & Morrison’s plans to treble the size of the Wimbledon Championship’s grounds have been thrown back into limbo by the High Court’s decision to allow a judicial review of the scheme’s planning consent Campaign group Save Wimbledon Park launched a legal challenge at the beginning of January against the Greater London Authority’s approval of the £200m plans arguing that it had “made errors of law and planning policy” The court has now accepted all three of the group’s grounds for a judicial review with Mrs Justice Lang saying this week that the bid had “raised arguable grounds which merit consideration at a full hearing” showing the existing tournament grounds on the left with the expanded site on the right the largest expansion in the grand slam tournament’s history would add 38 new tennis courts and an 8,000-seat show court on Metropolitan Open Land (MOL) neighbouring the All England Lawn Tennis Club’s (AELTC) main site in Wimbledon But the scheme has been bogged down by planning disputes since autumn 2023 when Wandsworth council voted to refuse the application due to concerns over the loss of public land The remaining 90% of the site is located within Merton council which had approved the scheme two weeks earlier The scheme was then thrown a lifeline in January 2024 when the application was called in by City Hall and finally approved by deputy mayor Jules Pipe in September following a series of design changes intended to increase public access to the site from the neighbouring Wimbledon Park But Save Wimbledon Park argued in its judicial review bid that the decision had failed to take into account restrictive covenants on the land which the group said would prevent the proposed development The group is also claiming that a proposed private tennis entertainment complex is “not an ‘alternative sports and recreational provision’ as required by planning policy” which is currently occupied by a golf course comprises the western half of the remnants of an 18th century landscaped garden designed by Capability Brown The AELTC had argued that scheme would include heritage benefits by removing the golf course and partially restore of the landscaped park.  Save Wimbledon Park countered that that the golf course development was “in planning policy terms ‘deliberate damage’ to this historic heritage asset such that the rectification of such damage should not count as a benefit.” said legal action had been launched because the “community feel strongly that this precious and continue to be available for community use for sport and recreation.  He added: “This step is not just for our local community but also important for many other Metropolitan Open Land spaces under threat of development.” The court will now set a date for the hearing The AELTC said: “Our plans to transform land that was formerly a private members’ golf club into beautiful new publicly accessible parkland as well as securing the future of The Championships for generations to come has been extensively discussed and analysed over the past three years “We are confident in the process undertaken during this time including the GLA’s decision to grant planning permission at a public hearing in September.” The deputy mayor concluded in the September hearing that the scheme would provide “very significant” public benefits that would “clearly outweigh” any harm done to public land while the development would be “inappropriate” on MOL “has been extremely constricted for the past century The AELTC has said the expansion is needed to maintain the global prestige of Wimbledon which is currently the only grand slam tournament which is unable to hold qualifying rounds on its own grounds Seating to be expanded by 20% with a new pergola and terraced areas High Court has accepted all three grounds raised by local campaign group for legal challenge Allies & Morrison’s plans to treble the size of grand slam tournament’s grounds finally approved after year-long planning saga The centre will contain buildings up to nine storeys in height Plans designed by Gensler for a £1bn cancer research and treatment centre in south London have been submitted for planning by developers Aviva Capital Partners and Socius Retrofit of 150 Aldersgate includes new terraces a reconfigured entrance and a public art installation Howells also scoops two awards for Birmingham office scheme and a cafe at a grade I-listed country house Site powered by Webvision Cloud The long awaited decision over the planned expansion by the AELTC in Wimbledon Park is coming to a head and anticipation from local residents is high On Friday morning several representatives from the group Save Wimbledon Park will go to City Hall to hear the planning hearing at 10am when it’s thought a decision on the planning proposals will be heard Merton Friends of the Earth will also be joining a Save Wimbledon Park demonstration in Central London The group is encouraging those opposed to the project to protest “against this devastating plan and to fight for our environment and protect Wimbledon Park for everyone.” Local residents came out in force on Monday evening to hear the Save Wimbledon Park group’s thoughts and analysis of the GLA Planning Officers’ report which was published on Thursday 19 September The All England Club had gained an advantage last week in their hopes and plans to build 39 new tennis courts on Wimbledon Park The GLA Planning Officers recommended that the Deputy Mayor should grant conditional planning at the hearing at City Hall on Friday 27 September Officers said that “there are no material considerations that are considered to justify the refusal of consent.” This development has left many residents disappointed and angry and at Monday’s meeting they expressed their concern Merton Council had approved the plans but the proposal was referred to the GLA after Wandsworth Council rejected them One of the main issues being contested is the covenant that the AELTC signed in 1993 when it bought Wimbledon Park land stating that it would only be used for recreational purposes or as an open space Jonathan Moorish from Save Wimbledon Park explains that until that covenant is lifted then there are major complications and legal issues surrounding the planning application “The thing is that until Merton release the covenant then it doesn’t matter what City Hall decides This is gold-plated protected land and it has the highest form of protection there is,” he explains Also present at the Monday meeting was Paul Kohler “This report does not mean that all is lost Even if the Deputy Mayor ignores our compelling arguments on Friday and decides in favour of the AELTC  we have a number of legal avenues down which we can go.” A large turn out is expected at City Hall on Friday when a full planning hearing will take place Deputy Mayor of London Jules Pipe will be making the decision because Sadiq Khan excused himself from the process after having publicly expressed he was in favour of the expansion the planning could then be escalated to the government “This could go on a long time,” says Jonathan “We just don’t know which way this is going to go… but we are not giving up.” “We are pleased that the GLA’s planning officers have recommended that our transformation of the former Wimbledon Park Golf Course should be approved by Deputy Mayor Jules Pipe “We believe that these plans will deliver one of the greatest sporting transformations for London since 2012 “The land that we propose to enhance has been used as a private members’ golf course for well over 100 years and we will create 27 acres of beautiful new parkland “We now look forward to the Greater London Authority’s decision at a public hearing on 27 September.” YouGov polling (conducted May 2024) showed that 59 per cent of those polled in the capital supported plans to treble the size of the Wimbledon site Controversial proposals to triple the size of Wimbledon, the third Grand Slam of the tennis calendar The Greater London Authority (GLA) granted the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) planning permission to build 39 new grass tennis courts In December 2024, campaign group Save Wimbledon Park (SWP) instructed lawyers to challenge the decision, which could ultimately lead to a judicial review in the U.K High Court and the reversal of the planning permission The AELTC simultaneously announced its intention to take its own plans to the court system Then, in January 2025, SWP formally confirmed its legal challenge to the Wimbledon plans to keep it on equal footing with the other three Grand Slam tournaments: the Australian during the second week of that year’s tournament High Court will hear both sides’ arguments Campaign group starts legal action against Wimbledon tennis expansion The AELTC plans to build 39 new grass courts on the old Wimbledon Park golf course which would almost triple the size of the grounds at the Wimbledon Championships One of these courts will be an 8,000-seat show court AELTC chief executive Sally Bolton and chair Debbie Jevans said that the courts won’t be ready until the early 2030s following the granting of planning permission in September 2024 They were also cagey about when development work could actually start — pointing to the fact that there was still scope for appeals to be lodged With the AELTC and SWP having initiated separate legal proceedings in December 2024 and the judicial review into the granting of planning permission set for July 2025 SWP believes that the planning permission contradicts a “statutory trust,” which requires certain areas of land to be kept free for public recreation The AELTC believes that this does not apply to the land in question That is at the center of their two newest legal processes The AELTC wants to have its own plans rubberstamped by the U.K SWP wants the AELTC to acknowledge the statutory trust and is petitioning the GLA to quash its granting of planning permission on this basis This dispute goes all the way back to 1993 when the AELTC bought the Wimbledon Park golf course land from Merton council for £5.2million ($6.6million) the AELTC signed a covenant agreeing that it would not use the land “other than for leisure or recreational purposes or as an open space” believe that the AELTC’s proposals violate that covenant when the AELTC purchased the Wimbledon Park golf club the AELTC has pushed hard to expand in order to bring Wimbledon in line with the other Grand Slams Merton Council approved the AELTC’s plans October 2023 but they were rejected by Wandsworth Council (the club straddles both areas) a month later The matter was then referred to the General London Assembly (GLA) who in a 221-page report published in September 2024 found “no material considerations that are considered to justify the refusal of consent” and recommended that the deputy mayor Jules Pipe should grant planning permission for the scheme Mayor of London Sadiq Khan recused himself from the process three years ago having previously expressed support for the proposals Save Wimbledon Park (SWP) confirmed that it will challenge the permission granted by the Greater London Authority (GLA) at a public hearing Friday September 27 The GLA said: “The Mayor believes this scheme will bring a significant range of benefits including economic creating new jobs and cementing Wimbledon’s reputation as the greatest tennis competition in the world It is inappropriate for the Mayor to comment further ahead of court proceedings.” The AELTC is adamant that this expansion is the only way to keep up with the other three Grand Slams which has always been the pinnacle of tennis The AELTIC wants fans through the gates in qualifying week which is currently held at Roehampton a few miles away Moving qualifying to the Wimbledon site would see up to 10,000 fans enter the grounds per day compared to the 2,000 capacity at the Bank of England Club in Roehampton The AELTC hopes that the new space would allow for average daily attendances of 50,000 during the Championships proper; 2024’s average daily attendance was 37,603 will also reduce wear and tear across the tournament Wimbledon currently operates with the minimum number of match courts for a Grand Slam while its third-biggest court (Court 2) is the smallest of the four majors “It’s important that Wimbledon maintains its place at the pinnacle of the sport,” Jevans told reporters after the hearing Going all the way back to 1993 and the covenant that the AELTC would not use the land “other than for leisure or recreational purposes or as an open space,” there is a feeling that promises have been broken “Call me old-fashioned but I believe promises should be kept,” Paul Kohler the Liberal Democrat MP for Wimbledon said during the public hearing said: “We completely understand and support everyone’s determination to keep the land open and we have purchased the land on that basis.” Protesters also have ecological and social concerns with net tree loss and major impacts on biodiversity cited among damage that development would do Experts in this field called to the planning hearing by the AELTC rejected this characterization pointing to plans to plant five times as much trees as would be removed under the plans The experts also said that the area would perform better ecologically thanks to projects like planting pockets of wet woodland A recurring theme from the objectors was a perceived lack of compromise and a feeling that local residents had not been consulted more so than complete dismissal of the idea of expansion There is a real depth of feeling among the objectors many of whom positioned themselves outside City Hall on the day of the hearing holding placards outside the building with slogans like “green not greed!” Around 80 of the 140 in the public gallery were said to have been people opposing the plans boos and cries of “shame on you” rang out from some of the campaigners present Protesters outside the public hearing outlined some of their concerns when interviewed by The Athletic a member of environmental group Friends of the Earth and a former Liberal Democrat councillor in Merton pointed to some of the ecological damage the expansion would do and the long period in which local residents would be affected by the development “There’s going to be up to 10 years’ disruption whilst this stuff is built,” she said Jeanes and other residents also reject the idea that Wimbledon has to improve to keep pace with the other slams They argue that Wimbledon’s heritage and prestige mean it will always a special Roehampton and Southfields Fleur Anderson told The Athletic that: “The balance here is about saying ‘Is it opening up an area of land that was previously a golf club and so it’s a good thing Or is it saying that the whole area should be a public park and actually that only 22 per cent of it is going to be public and that’s a bad thing?’” a local resident in support of the development praised the AELTC for its “ample consultation” with the community London Wildlife Trust chief executive officer spoke of the plans having “ecological enhancement” and said that “the golf club is ecologically pretty dead.” It was later pointed out that the Trust was relying on AELTC data that had not been independently corroborated Local resident and a lifetime member of the Wimbledon Society Thomas Moulton said that “significant benefits will be appreciated year round and outweigh the negatives.” A 23-acre public park “will benefit future generations,” he said There will also be a four-acre public park at the northern entrance to the site adjacent to the entrance to the existing Wimbledon Park outside of the qualifiers and the Championships This is one of the big counter-arguments against the objectors: the fact that ‘Save Wimbledon Park’ is a bit of a misnomer The AELTC is planning to build on what has been a private golf club for 100 years be off limits to the public for some of the year (and in some parts all of the year) but it is not replacing land that is currently public or has ever been in modern times Pipe said: “The proposed development would facilitate very significant benefits including those to public open space and recreation “These would clearly outweigh the harm caused by the proposal and represent very special circumstances I agree with the GLA planning officer’s recommendation and grant planning permission.” Wimbledon is the most prestigious tournament in world tennis and contributes to London’s brand in terms of culture sporting heritage and as a visitor destination.” A judicial review hearing will take place July 8 and July 9 of 2025 in which the AELTC and SWP will outline their arguments regarding the expansion of Wimbledon (Top photo: Historic England Archive / Heritage Images via Getty Images) A former TV soap star has kicked up a racquet over Allies and Morrison’s Wimbledon expansion plans who appeared as Lily Dempsey in ITV’s Coronation Street in the 90s is now the star of the Save Wimbledon Park campaign She says she is ready to rally over the ‘evil plan’ insisting she will chain herself to a tree and face arrest before she sees work commence on the Grand Slam site The All England Lawn Tennis Club’s said plan – which will see hundreds of  trees felled to make way for 39 new tennis courts – has already had to bounce back from Wandsworth Council’s refusal a decision that was recently overturned by the Mayor’s Office Now they face another  volley from 99-year-old Thelma Once it is inevitable that they plan to start then I will truly chain myself to a tree.’ The small but highly sought-out design debates at which architecture practice fourth_space plies built environment specialists with liquor then throws them a topical bone to scrap over But one speaker at a recent Negroni Talk on was disillusioned enough by the ruckus to set up a rival event In what can only be interpreted as a two-fingered salute to the Negroni Talks more bubbly’ atmosphere at its October launch Tags BDP’s College of Arts & Society at Coventry University has been named… Lewisham Council has given Turner Works planning permission for a mixed-use regeneration… Wandsworth Council has given Gehry Partners planning permission for two more residential… Southwark Council has approved tp bennett’s plans for a 25-storey student tower… “We Want The AELTC To Think Again” says Save Wimbledon Park as it launches legal action and becomes a limited company Save Wimbledon Park Ltd have announced they are to take legal action in their next move to try and stop the expansion of the AELTC as the row over Wimbledon kicks off again at the start of a new year SWP have submitted a formal request for a Judicial Review (JR) of plans to develop a large area of Wimbledon Park after the GLA approved the plans for 39 new courts and an 8,000 seat show court be allowed to remain accessible and continue to be available for community use for sport and recreation,” the SWP’s Jeremy Hudson said in a statement Save Wimbledon Park believe that the planning decision made ‘errors of law and planning policy’ for several reasons Nominally that it didn’t take into account the implications of the statutory public recreation trust and restrictive covenants Meanwhile in December the AELTC announced that they wish to start their own legal proceedings asking a court to decide whether the former golf course is subject to the statutory public recreation trust AELTC have always maintained that there is no public recreational trust over the land They say that the first time the possibility of a statutory trust affecting the land was raised by objectors was in spring 2023 (following the decision in the Shropshire -v- Day legal case) Whilst they maintain there is no trust over the site by launching legal action to give AELTC and the local community reassurance that there is no statutory trust on the land and following the grant of planning permission in late 2024.” Susan Cusack a founder member of Save Wimbledon Park says: “The judge has now received the papers calling for a JR and we have narrowed it down to three major reasons why we believe the planning decision made errors of law and planning policy.” “Even the GLA’s own KC concluded that the land was held in trust and so if they had taken that into full consideration they shouldn’t have allowed the planning to go through so it is a number one reason and cause for concern.” SWP has not only taken steps down a legal route going from a local campaign group to a limited company –  with directors and members Susan Cusack is now a member of the new group and says: “We aren’t crowdfunding yet but encouraged by continuing strong commitment throughout the community we are taking the process step by step as our resources allow.” It is not known how long a decision on the Judicial Review (JR) will take but SWP believes the first step could be in the region of 2- 3 months and the outcome may be known 12 to 18 months later The AELTC continues to argue that development of the land will make the once private golf course available to the public It also emphasises the fact that by enhancing and increasing the facilities at the All England Club then the Wimbledon Championships will continue to compete on a world stage of grand slam tournaments A spokesperson for the All England Club commented “Our plans to transform land that was formerly a private members’ golf club into beautiful new publicly accessible parkland has been extensively discussed and analysed over the past 3 years We are confident in the process undertaken during this time including the GLA’s decision to grant planning permission at a public hearing in September.” The proposals have been deeply controversial, with local residents warning of 10 years of disruption as well as the creation of a huge “tennis industrial complex” that would lie silent for much of the year. However, officers at the GLA recommended on Thursday that the deputy mayor should grant conditional planning permission at a public hearing on Friday 27 September. Read moreIn the conclusion to a 221-page report the officials said the project complied with most relevant planning policies and there were “no material considerations that are considered to justify the refusal of consent” The report also said the proposal would bring in £336m of annual benefits and “would result in the creation of 40 year-round jobs and 256 Championships jobs” The AELTC has argued that it needs a third 8,000-seat show court along with 38 other grass courts that would largely host qualifying matches and improved practice facilities to ensure Wimbledon remains the world’s pre-eminent tennis tournament Residents have maintained it will cause environmental damage and a loss of green spaces on protected metropolitan open land (MOL) Merton council initially approved the plans but the proposal was referred to the GLA after Wandsworth council rejected the scheme last November The land in question straddles the two boroughs The full planning hearing will take place at City Hall on 27 September excused himself from the process having publicly expressed his support for the plans in 2021 The planning officers’ decision was welcomed by Deborah Jevans who said: “We believe that these plans will deliver one of the greatest sporting transformations for London since 2012 The land that we propose to enhance has been used as a private members’ golf course for well over 100 years and said they were “extremely disappointed” by the report “The AELTC plans as they currently stand are simply not fair for our constituents in Wandsworth,” she said “We will continue to work alongside local campaigners and residents to ensure that our case is made clearly.” That sentiment was shared by Jonathan Morrish of Save Wimbledon Park “The general direction of the report is not what we wanted and the admission of loss of open space and harm to protected MOL is deeply distressing to local residents whose views haven’t been taken into consideration,” he said “We will be out in force at the GLA meeting on Friday 27th.” Festive gear was out in force as a crowd of around 400 runners joggers and walkers took part in our annual Santa park run fundraiser The pent-up energy was evident after last week’s activities had been cancelled due to Storm Darrah Run Director Sean Jones rightly reminded us that this is (probably) “the best and most gorgeous park run in the country” Norway won the prize for the most exotic location from which we welcomed a visitor this week Run Director Sean addresses the gathered Santas In June 2024, 10 boomerangs left South Beach, Western Australia to embark on park run journeys around the world. One of them arrived at Wimbledon Common this week, having passed through Germany and the Netherlands en route, and all set to be handed on to our Norwegian visitor. You can read more about the wonderful adventures all 10 boomerangs are having around the world here A Park run boomerang arrives from Down Under This week we were lucky enough to be joined by the team from stem4 a digital mental health charity for children and young people 1 in 5 young people in the UK suffered from a probable mental health disorder Stem4 provide various services to support mental health There were numerous notable milestones achieved amongst this week’s runners: Simon Bodle (Hercules Wimbledon AC) completed 450 park runs; Lynn Cox (Wimbledon Windmilers) completed 200 park runs; and Matthew Morbin Colin Edwards (Wimbledon Windmilers) and Marnie Bruce all completed 150 park runs Hugh Torry (Serpentine RC) completed 100 park runs; and Osborn Spurling Alison Orr and Hamish Innes all completed 25 park runs Congratulations on these great achievements Today’s park run took place on the ‘normal’ Wimbledon Common course with our hornet friends now a distant memory Alex Binley (Hercules Wimbledon AC) was the first female across the line in 21:38 Victoria Crawford (Serpentine RC) was the second female home in 21:49; and Marjolaine Briscoe (Highgate Harriers) was the third fastest woman first across the line was Tom Bristow in 18:38 in 18:55; and Alexi Cross (Thames Hare & Hounds) in third in 19:10 The top of the Age Grade rankings was dominated by female runners this week with the ever-consistent Lucy Woolhouse achieving 88.54% followed by Elisabeth Pennell with 86.58% and Gerald Hellings (Wimbledon Windmilers) with 79.81% Another nine runners achieved Age Grade scores above the 70% mark of whom 50 were first timers at Wimbledon Common (and 13 of these were first timers at any parkrun) Representatives of 31 different clubs took part muddy conditions on various parts of the course 45 runners recorded new park run Personal Bests A tree-mendous finish Chance to join the RunThrough Wimbledon Christmas run (and raise money for the Commons) RunThrough’s Wimbledon Common Christmas Run is taking place on Sunday 22nd December Its organisers are kindly supporting Wimbledon and Putney Commons (WPCC) by offering 20 free places on the run - provided that each runner makes a minimum donation of £25 towards the Commons please contact Lynnie Farrant at WPCC on lynnie.farrant@wpcc.org.uk thanks to the huge efforts of our volunteers We are grateful to the following 33 volunteers who made this week’s event happen: Everyone who has volunteered this year is invited to the highly-anticipated Wimbledon Common park run Volunteers party on 18th January 2025 Good news for those looking for a fast start to their 2025 running: we have permission to host a park run on New Year’s Day please contact the super friendly volunteer team who will guide you on roles where you can help Today's full results and a complete event history can be found on the Wimbledon Common park run Results Page Wimbledon Common parkrun started on 6th January 2007 and is the second oldest parkrun Since then 37,442 participants have completed 274,212 parkruns covering a total distance of 1,371,060 km A total of 1,597 individuals have volunteered 17,198 times The course male record is held by Chris Parr who recorded a time of 15:04 on 23rd April 2011 (event number 224) The female record is held by Justina Heslop who recorded a time of 16:33 on 17th March 2012 (event number 271) The Age Grade course record is held by Jane Davies who recorded 92.99% (21:24) on 29th January 2011 (event number 212) Report writer: Alexi Chan. Photographer: Stephen Willerton. This report contains only a few of Stephen’s wonderful images of this week’s park run, which really capture the spirit of Christmas on Wimbledon Common. Please follow this link to see the full library of this week’s photos The plan will see 39 new courts built on the former Wimbledon Park Golf Club Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice Permission has been granted for the Wimbledon Tennis Championships to almost triple in size by expanding onto a neighbouring golf course In a landmark decision at City Hall, the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC) was given the green light to build 39 new courts - including an 8,000-seater stadium - across the road from its existing site London’s deputy mayor for planning reached the verdict following a public hearing on Friday morning where residents and politicians opposed to the scheme warned it would cause unacceptable harm to the local area AELTC has said the project will “deliver one of the greatest sporting transformations for London since 2012” and will “create 27 acres of beautiful new parkland The planning application reached City Hall after dividing opinion between the two local councils whose border is straddled by the site of the former Wimbledon Park Golf Club on Church Road. Merton Council had approved permission for the scheme in October last year, but Wandsworth Council refused to do the same in November Both of the area’s local MPs - Putney’s Fleur Anderson (Labour) and Wimbledon’s Paul Kohler (Liberal Democrat) - were also firmly opposed to the project Arguments against the scheme focused on the impact it would have on the land’s biodiversity and heritage - particularly as it once formed part of landscape architect Capability Brown’s original design for Wimbledon Park Concerns were also raised over disruption caused by the construction works and whether a dangerous precedent could be set for building on sites designated as ‘Metropolitan Open Land’ which are meant to enjoy the same level of protection as the Green Belt planning officers at City Hall had told Mr Pipe there were “no material considerations that are considered to justify the refusal of consent” The report also said the project would create 40 year-round jobs and 256 jobs during the Championships the annual tournament as a whole will contribute roughly £336m to the UK economy “Local people are the losers in this deal,” said Labour MP Ms Anderson adding that there was “no guarantee” that AELTC would not in the future look to build on the new area of parkland which it is proposes to make publicly accessible most of the year Housing market ‘is reviving’ amid growth in house prices and mortgage approvals Mother of jailed British-Egyptian activist starts hunger strike Banksy’s bullet-proof Union flag vest on sale for £300,000 Make education a priority with help from these acclaimed resources The MP suggested that AELTC instead explore improving its existing set of qualifying courts at Roehampton which she said would be “really welcomed” there London Assembly member for Merton and Wandsworth I don’t think if the proposal fails to go ahead that the prestige is going to vanish… and I don’t think putting this very large structure into a Capability Brown heritage landscape is something we should support.” whose home directly overlooks the golf course that would be built on pointed out that the land has for the last century only been accessible to its members “You weren’t just allowed to rock up and play with Ant and Dec naming some of the former golf club’s members would at least open some of it up to the public as well as enabling circular access round the park’s lake thanks to a proposed boardwalk AELTC chair Debbie Jevans warned the deputy mayor that if the project did not go ahead “Wimbledon will fall behind all the other Grand Slam events” Wimbledon is one of four such events in the world - the others being the Australian Open “We are the only Slam that doesn’t host our qualifying event on the same site as the main tournament,” Ms Jevans said “Qualifying for Wimbledon currently takes place in Roehampton on a time-limited and rented site “We know that this holds us back in offering a truly world-class experience We have a real need for a third show court which mirrors that of the other Grand Slams and includes a roof to mitigate against the evermore disruptive weather.” The issue of the ‘statutory trust’ that could protect the land is set to go to court There has been a major development in the ongoing battle between the AELTC and local residents in Wimbledon Park over the expansion of the Wimbledon Championships On Wednesday 11th December the AELTC announced that they would be putting to court the matter of whether a statutory trust affects the former Wimbledon Park Golf Course land which is integral to the objections against the planned expansion The GLA has formally issued planning permission for the application for the development of Wimbledon Park Golf course but the issue of a statutory trust on the land was raised at planning hearings The AELTC said: “The possibility of a statutory trust on the land was raised by the GLA in their officers’ report and the issue was dealt with appropriately by the GLA in granting planning consent a statutory trust affecting the former Wimbledon Park Golf Course land “In the circumstances we recognise that the correct thing to do is to put the matter before the court to establish that there is no trust over the land “That is why we have taken the decision to issue a letter before action Save Wimbledon Park reacted to this announcement saying: “We have been pointing out for a considerable time that the statutory public recreation trust on which the AELTC hold the heritage golf course is a fundamental block on the proposed AELTC development “We are glad to hear that the AELTC now recognise this point and note that they wish to take this to litigation In a more detailed statement released by Save Wimbledon Park they have cited numerous reasons as to why they consider the GLA’s decision “wrong in law.” They said it “failed to take into account the implications of the statutory Public Recreation Trust and the restrictive covenants both of which prevent the proposed developments.” They also said that the ruling had not acknowledged that the heritage of the golf course is environmentally protected as an “irreplaceable habitat” amongst other points Save Wimbledon Park have instructed Russell-Cooke solicitors to challenge the validity of the GLA’s decision via a Judicial Review On the issue of the1993 restrictive covenants SWP added: “Although the covenants have been dismissed by AELTC and Merton Council as “not a planning issue” our objection raises independent legal rights and issues which we can also pursue regarding both the statutory public recreation trust and the restrictive covenants.” The AELTC argues that the Wimbledon Championships have fallen behind other grand slams in terms of practise facilities and qualifying courts In its expansion plans it wants to build an 8,000 seat show court on the grounds of the old golf club and to use 38 courts for qualifying and practise The Wimbledon Championships will almost triple in size from 41 to 115 acres Anyone expecting a quiet parkrun after the fevered excitement of our 888 Nelson was in for a shock as 783 people ran jogged or walked around our two laps of paradise As well as the closure (Boat Race) of Fulham Park parkrun many of our special guests had come along to compete in a three-way mob match between Wimbledon Common stalwarts Wimbledon Windmilers our black and white stripy friends from across the water Fulham Running Club it’s a mass participation event where clubs field as many people as possible and everyone counts Well nearly everyone; you need the number of scoring runners to be equal You normally knock a couple or three more off to make the field as consistent as possible Then you run the race and the first runner gets one point the second two and so on - the team with the lowest total wins and the parkrun results service makes totting up the totals very simple Michelle called us to order and reminded the 186 first timers of the key facts in case they had forgotten in the five minutes that had elapsed since the first timers’ briefing not least because we had no fewer than 21 milestone achievers to locate and acknowledge Mark Sorkin and Rory Perkins hit their tenth runs Seven people earned their purple 25 t-shirts The quartet of parkrunners going into red at 50 runs were Isabel Nelson Eamonn Bashar and Oliver Mason whilst a trio of Sophie van Maurik Fiona Cameron and Tim Fozzard went one better taking black on their 100th outing Alicia Duran Crespo and Nick George received kudos for their 150th events Steve Banham was applauded for his 200th and top of the pops this week was Caroline Harris with a whopping 350 showings With a final cheer for the Windmilers providing their excellent pacing services for the second week in a row Thames Hare & Hounds) was first across the line with a new Personal Best of 16:33 First-timer Edward Connolly (SM25-29) was second home at 17:12 and Graham Pattle (VM35-39 Fulham RC) completed the podium and was the first mob match man home with 17:43 14th overall) led the women home with a new PB of 18:53 72nd overall) took the third step with 20:59 Five runners delivered age graded scores of over 80% Patricia Ronksley in her mob match mission for the (surely misnamed) Stragglers scored a huge 90.54% and regular chart topper Lucy Woolhouse was a whisker behind at 90.14% Special mentions for Norman Urquia (82.84%) Gabriel Sterne (82.55%) and James Constable (80.12%) Finally, hats off to all the 783 finishers representing 41 clubs including 130 PBs, 152 first time visitors to Wimbledon Common and 34 additional brand new parkrun careers. Congratulations to all and as always full results can be found here Event 889 was bigger than expected and happened thanks to the sterling efforts of Paul Tibbs It’s Easter and the future roster is looking rather lighter than we like. Volunteering is great fun and anyone and everyone can make a difference and the best place to start is by flicking through the roles on the volunteer pages and see how simple helping out is. Once you’ve decided how you’d like to help just email Kylie Jo and Tamsin to give them the welcome news This report contains just a few of Stephen’s fantastic images, see the full library of his awesome photos of event 889 right here The opening topic in the last couple of reports has been the weather and how cold it is I am not going to change that introduction as at 4’C it was cold enough for people to question their sanity turning out in such weather talking to participants they felt a glow of self-satisfaction having got up and got out to run of whom 20 were first timers and 19 recorded new Personal Bests We are very grateful to the volunteers who made this event happen: Tamsin ABBEY Today's full results and a complete event history can be found on the Wimbledon Common parkrun Results Page The mercury was just above zero when Jo called the remarkably strong field to the bench for an efficiently rapid winter-style briefing The newcomers were welcomed again (having already been pre-welcomed at the first-timers pre-briefing-briefing) and a rapid search for tourists concluded that no one was mad enough to visit the UK two days before the saddest Monday of the year there were nearly 500 locals so Jo switched tack to focus on… On the day it was a struggle to find people prepared to own up to special milestones but a quick bit of data analysis reveals that there were ten Alice Cooke earned a white t-shirt for ten runs David Browning and Stephen Fitzgerald achieved purple entitlement with their 25th events Helen Harker and Leo York Muthu doubled that No t-shirts but huge kudos to Annabelle Wright for 150 and Timothy Hughes for 200 There is an attractive teal t-shirt waiting for Christian Fielder now he has 250 events to his name that is me!) got a shoutout for his 450th parkrun but there have been a couple of cancelations which messed up my timings… In a slow news week it is great to have something to look forward to… Next Saturday is the 3rd Birthday of our inspirational friends at 5KYourWay encouraging people to move against cancer by walking They join us on the last Saturday of each month and aim to bring together anyone touched by cancer in any way at all Stroud & District AC) took the honours at 17:02 Ranelagh Harriers) setting a new PB just one second behind with a time of 17:03 Lewis Perfitt (SM20-24) completed the podium 17th overall) led the women home with a new PB of 20:40 19th overall) took silver with 20:57 and Milly Barker (SW20-24 23rd overall) owned the third step on her first visit to Wimbledon Common parkrun at 21:27 There was a small cluster of age grades above 80% with Lisa Margaret Thomas claiming the best with a whopping 83.91% Ros Tabor was close behind at 82.53% with Nick Impey's 81.23% added to his new PB to help secure that second overall spot The total field was 496 with everyone that ran jogged and walked the course a winner in the fight against the freezing January conditions 57 focussed types recorded new Personal Bests and representatives of 34 different clubs took part As always, today's full results can be found on the Wimbledon Common parkrun Results Page Event 877 was only possible because Jo was joined by another twenty-eight volunteers who helped her make it happen Sophie and Jo to give them the welcome news it is only 51 weeks to go to the 2025 Volunteer Party (in January 2026) so make sure you qualify as soon as possible Since then 37,794 participants have completed 276,416 parkruns covering a total distance of 1,382,080 km These figures were made possible by 1,614 individuals who have volunteered a total of 17,379 times This report contains just a few of Stephen’s fantastic images, see the full library of his awesome photos of event 877 right here I admit it said a chilling minus six degrees in the car when I got in it but the sun did decide to make a rare appearance on Saturday Perhaps that was to mark the fact that our parkrun was celebrating its 18th birthday this week (actual day 6 January) run director Tamsin announced that we would like to celebrate the extra-special people who organise the teams of volunteers that help our parkrun to go smoothly They are Alex Binley who organises the report writers Louise Robinson who takes care of photography and Simon Cheetham She also warned us about the two lots of ice on the far corner of the course and then it was time to get our skates (or trail shoes) on has run Wimbledon 630 times and must know the course like the back of his hand Sam Dalgleish was just one second behind in 18:57 clearly not too exhausted from sorting out the report writers' rota of whom 70 were first timers and 53 recorded new Personal Bests Representatives of 29 different clubs took part The event was made possible by 33 volunteers: Don't forget the volunteers' party is this Saturday Today's full results and a complete event history can be found on the Wimbledon Common parkrun Results Page Since then 37,723 participants have completed 275,920 parkruns covering a total distance of 1,379,600 km A total of 1,613 individuals have volunteered 17,350 times Now eligible for red T-shirts are Thomas Gellender and Christopher Blair who completed 50 parkruns and Levi Oliver a smart black number after his 100th The usual two challengers for top spot in the age grade stakes were Lucy Woolhouse and Lisa Thomas but the status quo remained and the unstoppable Lucy came out on top with a whopping 87.45% to Lisa’s 80.63% Jacqueline Richardson rounded up the podium with 77.97% Words by John Carter ♦ Photographs by Louise Robinson The All England Club has revealed it is taking its own project to the High Court to ‘resolve’ lingering questions over its legality The owners of Wimbledon tennis have announced they will go to the High Court to prove that their controversial plans to expand onto a neighbouring golf course are legal The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC), which runs the annual championships, secured planning permission for its project from City Hall in September The scheme will see the tournament’s footprint almost triple in size with 38 new courts and an 8,000-seater stadium set to be constructed the club revealed that it wanted to “resolve” lingering questions over the plan’s legality which opponents of the project had been looking at as a potential avenue to block it At the heart of those questions is the issue of whether the Wimbledon Park Golf Club land is held subject to a statutory trust Campaigners against the scheme hope to follow an example set in Shropshire last year AELTC has now revealed that rather than wait for the project’s opponents to launch a legal action on those grounds the club will instead proactively take the issue to the High Court itself An AELTC spokesman said: “Last month, the Greater London Authority (GLA) formally issued planning permission for our application to transform the former Wimbledon Park Golf Course These plans will secure the future of one of the world’s most treasured sporting events and deliver year-round benefits for the local community in Merton “The possibility of a statutory trust on the land was raised by the GLA in their officers’ report and the issue was dealt with appropriately by the GLA in granting planning consent Today we have issued a letter before action in order to begin this court process We believe that having this matter resolved is an important step that will deliver reassurance to us and to the local community “This marks the next phase of our long-term project that will maintain our position at the pinnacle of tennis and to deliver year-round benefits for local people with 27 acres of newly accessible parkland for everyone to enjoy.” Transformation of London's old City Hall wins planning permission More than 200 stalking offenders to be given GPS tags under new scheme Mayor hails 300 new and upgraded CCTV cameras as crucial safety boost Why you should try The Wine Flyer for Christmas gifts announced that it had secured the status of a limited company in order “to progress any future legal action that may be advised” The new company said it had already instructed the Putney-based firm of solicitors Russell-Cooke to advise on its legal strategy for challenging AELTC A spokesman for Save Wimbledon Park Ltd said: “We have been pointing out for a considerable time that the statutory public recreation trust on which AELTC hold the heritage golf course land is a fundamental block on the proposed development “We are glad to hear that AELTC now recognise our point of view and note that they wish to take this to litigation rather than engage in any discussion.” The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club’s (AELTC) plans to expand Wimbledon have been approved by the Greater London Authority (GLA) the plans will see Wimbledon almost triple in size The AELTC is intent on transforming the former Wimbledon Park Golf Course into 39 new grass tennis courts having first submitted its planning application in July 2021 This will include a new 8,000-seat stadium Wimbledon will generate more than £300m for the London economy when the redevelopment is complete with the project set to create 250 new jobs The redevelopment will also increase the Wimbledon’s green area accessible to the public by 50% as the club increases its biodiversity by 10% The proposed expansion however has drawn criticism from local residents over fears of environmental damage caused by the project an opposition group which launched in 2022 has expressed concerns that the redevelopment could turn the area into a “huge industrial tennis complex” A petition launched by Save Wimbledon Park has garnered almost 21,000 signatures at the time of writing  “Every stage of this project will be delivered with a meticulous attention to detail and the utmost respect for both our neighbours and the environment,” said Deborah Jevans “We look forward to working with all parties to bring this vision to life delivering one of London’s greatest sporting transformations since the 2012 Games and securing Wimbledon’s future at the pinnacle of world sport.” Stay up to date with the world of sports business by subscribing to the Sport Industry Daily. Sign up today for the latest news in one daily email The All England Club is expected to be granted planning permission at City Hall on Friday to build 39 new courts at Wimbledon Park despite local opposition Few contests in the All England Lawn Tennis Club’s 147-year history have been as prolonged or fractious. But at City Hall on Friday the battle over plans to build 39 new courts at Wimbledon will reach a potentially decisive point. On one side of the net stands the AELTC, which will say that the expansion is needed to ensure Wimbledon remains the world’s pre-eminent tournament. However, that is disputed by local residents’ groups and MPs, who question why Wimbledon needs to almost triple in size from 41 to 115 acres and the legality of building on metropolitan open land. Both will present their cases to London’s deputy mayor for planning, Jules Pipe, who will be sitting in the umpire’s chair before determining whether planning permission should be granted. Read moreWhy does Wimbledon say it needs 39 extra courts?The AELTC argues it has fallen behind the other grand slams in three areas: practice facilities qualifying and the stature of its third show court It wants to build an 8,000-seat show court on the grounds of the old Wimbledon Park golf club and to use the other 38 courts for a qualifying tournament and practice facilities Wimbledon gets about 40,000 visitors a day but the AELTC believes the new development would increase that by about 10,000 It also hopes that 10,000 fans a day may come to the qualifying tournament which is far higher than the 2,000 capacity at the Bank of England club in Roehampton they maintain the expansion is not needed because Wimbledon will remain the biggest slam by virtue of its history and reputation They also warn that the proposals will cause “corporate ecocide” as well as 10 years of disruption to the local area Finally they say the plans will create a huge “tennis industrial complex” – with 9km of pathways player hubs and corporate hospitality that will lie silent for much of the year is among those to question the plans from a legal perspective Grade II-listed metropolitan open land,” she says “This means that ‘very special circumstances’ must be proved for it to be built on.” Unsurprisingly it rejects much of this analysis It also points out it will plant 1,500 trees and spend £6m on silting the lake in Wimbledon Park It says it will allow residents to play on a minimum seven courts after Wimbledon finishes until the end of the summer It has also committed to building a boardwalk around the Wimbledon Park lake Such moves have been welcomed by the local heritage group However Save Wimbledon Park describes them as merely “crumbs on the table” When the AELTC bought the Wimbledon Park golf course land from Merton council in 1993 for £5.2m it also signed a covenant agreeing that it would not use the land “other than for leisure or recreational purposes or as an open space” Some residents’ groups believe they have violated that pledge with their proposals Another key point in all this is that the golf club’s lease on the land was due to last until 2041, but in 2018 the AELTC offered each golf club member £85,000 to give up their club early The AELTC has since pushed hard to turn its expansion into reality critics maintain it did little to consult residents when formulating its plans Because the land in question straddles two boroughs – one (Merton) that approved the plans last October and the other (Wandsworth) that rejected it a month later After that it was kicked up to the mayor’s office The deputy major is acting as umpire because Sadiq Khan has recused himself from the process after publicly expressing support for Wimbledon’s plans A decision is expected at 3pm on Friday, but Pipe does have five days to make up his mind. Most expect Wimbledon to win, especially after the Greater London Authority’s planning officers said there were “no material considerations that are considered to justify the refusal of consent” Save Wimbledon Park says the GLA report contains “shallow and poorly thought-out planning analysis which seems to have taken the AELTC views at face value” who designed the new No 1 Court and Henman Hill between 1992-1997 says “all is not lost” even if the deputy mayor rules in favour of the AELTC Kohler points to a supreme court case last year that stopped houses being built on a park protected by a 100-year-old statutory trust Save Wimbledon Park’s Nick Thomas also says they like tennis at Wimbledon too “But we object to the scale of the proposals and the entitled attitude of the club,” he says “And the club’s notable refusal to discuss how a compromise might be reached.” Those braving a rather damp and murky December day so we could all take part were: Al Lee Third fastest Lisa came out on top with 83.91% followed by second fastest Jacqueline 76.78% then Louise Greenwood 75.74% a special mention for JW10 junior Cassidy-Lee Cooper who achieved a new PB in 24:10 and an impressive age grading of 70.62% Just to remind you there’s a parkrun on the Common on New Year’s Day January 1 – the perfect way to work off any NYE overindulgence Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon We help you navigate a myriad of possibilities Sign up for our newsletter for the best of the city By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news Sign up for our email to enjoy London without spending a thing (as well as some options when you’re feeling flush) Our newsletter hand-delivers the best bits to your inbox Sign up to unlock our digital magazines and also receive the latest news By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news, events, offers and partner promotions. London Has the arrival of the warm weather got you looking forward to a sport-filled summer? Great news, because the Wimbledon Tennis Championships – aka the oldest tennis tournament in the world – is back in SW19 in a matter of weeks.  Missed out on tickets in the ballot this year Can’t face camping out on the street for a chance to nab day tickets You don’t have to make the pilgrimage to Murray Mound (fine Henman Hill) to feel like you’re part of the action and as usual it’ll be peppered with big screens showing all the Centre Court action in so much blown-up high-res glory that you might as well be court-side.  This year the tournament (which started in 1877!) runs from Monday June 30 2025 and you’ll catch screens across the capital showing televised matches for the duration of the contest so there are plenty of opportunities to spend an afternoon or evening in a sweet viewing spot.  There will be more big screens announced nearer the time many of which will also have extras such as special edition cocktails food offers and even pop-up tennis coaching So grab yourself some M&S gins in tins – and a nice big punnet of strawberries while you’re at it – and pull up a pew at a summery screening near you.  RECOMMENDED: Our full guide to Wimbledon 2025 Is there anything that says Quintessential British Summer more than watching Wimbledon with a Pimms cocktail in hand? We’re not sure there is. There’ll be lashings of the fruity liqueur on hand at Covent Garden’s tennis screenings this summer. Head down to the iconic Covent Garden Piazza to grab yourself a glass at The Crêpe Stop before battling it out with tourists and off-duty living statues for a striped deckchair in front of its massive outdoor screen. Photograph: Four CommunicationsPortman Square Garden’s Summer in the Square returns for its tenth year this summer with another programme of outdoorsy summer fun including wellbeing workshops and activities courtesy of pop-up venue The Wellness Den as well as a fully stocked bar and specially-picked street food stalls And it wouldn’t be summer without Wimbledon. It’ll be showing all the major matches in the final week of the tournament Expect comfy deckchairs and food from popular local restaurants on rotation in the guest kitchen.   Take a pew in a deck chair or pack a picnic and lounge on the grass alongside Paddington Basin for Merchant Square’s Wimbledon screenings The event is free to attend throughout the tournament so plan accordingly to avoid disappointment Ramp up the Wimbledon vibes by tucking into strawberries and cream (or with ice cream) from nearby vendors or take part in beach tennis from coaching club Game Set Beach on some days Photograph: Ecclestone Yards ScreenThis is a perfectly posh little spot to enjoy the tennis The Eccleston Yards courtyard will feature a pop-up bar plus access to all of Belgravia’s cutesy and the suntrap of a site will also be showing England Test Match cricket as well as the Olympic Games throughout the summer months.  Photograph: Kings Cross Screen on the CanalAs outdoor cinemas go Screen on the Canal will be streaming a tonne of films What better place to enjoy the tournament than from the sunny riverside?  Photo: Sister LondonTake in every backhand and ace on a 188-inch screen in Spitalfields’ Bishops Square, which will be populated by deck chairs to keep you comfy, even if the action gets a little nail-biting. The surrounding food and drink outlets will be running special promotions to keep your hunger and thirst at bay, while there’ll also be bocce lanes and dartboards at Alfi if watching the pros makes you want to get involved in something at least a little physical. If you can’t make it to the tennis courts themselves but still want to head to SW19, try Wimbledon’s The Piazza. There’ll be a big screen broadcasting matches throughout the tournament, meaning you can stay up to date from just a tennis ball’s throw away from the action. Photo: Borough YardsBorough Yards’ outdoor screen at Soap Yard can fit 100 people, so expect the atmosphere to be high at its Wimbledon screenings. The good news? The screen is under a railway viaduct so, should the great British weather strike, you'll be able to stay relatively dry. Get down early to nab a seat and, once you’re done, take a stroll around the shops and restaurants to round off a lovely day out. Head to Hammersmith to take advantage of rows of deck chairs and a massive screen, as part of the area’s Summer Festival. Matches will be shown every day of the tournament and won’t cost you a penny to attend. © AELTCWhether you’re a legitimate tennis fan or just in it for the Pimm’s and oh-so-toned players the Wimbledon Tennis Championships are once again upon us and it’s time to get excited.. Thanks for subscribing! Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon! tiktokfacebooktwitteryoutubeAbout us Contact us Comedian Andy Hamilton was one of the key figures taking part in Save Wimbledon Park’s held their sixth public meeting in opposition to the mammoth proposed development of the former Wimbledon Park golf club The All England Tennis Club (AELTC) submitted ground-breaking expansion plans which were approved by Merton council and rejected by Wandsworth council That decision is now the subject of a Judicial Review launched by Save Wimbledon Park earlier this year The estimated legal costs of bringing such a challenge are £200k for which a crowdjustice funding appeal is currently underway A capacity crowd at St Barnabas Church in Southfields heard legal and environmental presentations about the nature of the judicial challenge and the impact to the area if it all goes ahead Special guest and local resident Andy Hamilton (A Have I Got News For You regular) gave an impassioned speech on the importance of green open spaces under threat Mr Hamilton said: “It’s important that the community win this battle to stop the AELTC swallowing up valued green spaces in order to build an industrial scale tennis complex.” Save Wimbledon Park say AELTC were invited but did not attend with their place on the stage was taken by a tennis racquet bearing their name Meeting organiser Simon Wright said “Another sell-out meeting indicates the strength of local feeling that these are the wrong plans for Wimbledon Park the audience made it very clear that they do not want 39 practice courts concrete driveways and a stadium the size of the Royal Albert Hall to be built in Wimbledon Park.” Among those speaking out against the planned expansion was Thelma Ruby who said: “I am 100 year old actress living overlooking Wimbledon Common golf course I am appalled by the Wimbledon tennis plan to ruin my life by chopping down hundreds of precious trees and turning a glorious heritage landscape into a polluting building site “If I have to see the desecration of my view and polluting lorries passing my door every 10 minutes and hear chain saws cutting down the trees I love instead of the sound of birds and Canada geese I am prepared to chain myself to a tree to save it.” said: “I think the AELTC planning is a terrible idea A few months ago I started a petition to save the trees in Wimbledon Park  My friends and I spoke to the whole school “My petition is about the trees and wildlife because I care about the environment  I also love tennis I even play every week at the Wimbledon Club but I would rather keep the trees and quit tennis if it helped  I think it is important to protect these trees at all costs.” headteacher at Bishop Gilpin Primary School said: ” Gabriel has devoted himself to ensuring that the school community knows and understands the Save Wimbledon Park campaign “Gabriel has worked tenaciously in his own time to share the message and has demonstrated his true belief in the cause and we are very proud of him.” Pictured top: Wimbledon expansion opponents seen here who made legal and environmental presentations Thelma Ruby (with a bouquet for her birthday) and Andy Hamilton (Picture: Auriel Glanville) Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" The residents’ group fighting Wimbledon’s tennis expansion plans — which include adding one stadium court and 38 further courts to the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) grounds — has High Court approval to proceed with a judicial review of the Greater London Authority’s (GLA’s) granting of planning permission to the AELTC Save Wimbledon Park (SWP) said it had cited three grounds of legal significance all of which had been accepted as “arguable” by the High Court The court will now set a date for the judicial review SWP’s arguments relate to the history of the land which the AELTC intends to develop most recently used as Wimbledon Park Golf Course the AELTC bought the land from Merton council for £5.2million ($6.6m) It signed a covenant agreeing that it would not use the land “other than for leisure or recreational purposes or as an open space,” which SWP argues prevents the land being used as what it calls “a private tennis entertainment complex” under the AELTC’s plans Its other two arguments relate to the golf course itself having been in breach of a statutory trust which requires certain areas of land to be kept free for public recreation The AELTC believes that this does not apply to the land in question; SWP believes that it does It also believes that replacing the golf course with public parkland as well as the new tennis courts per the AELTC’s plans does not supersede the aforementioned covenant Jeremy Hudson of SWP said it wants the AELTC to “think again” about its plans With a lot of obstacles between now and the possibility of the GLA’s decision to grant planning permission being reversed it’s not clear what concessions the SWP wants or thinks are realistic An SWP representative did not immediately respond when asked about its desires The AELTC said in a statement: “Our plans to transform land that was formerly a private members’ golf club into beautiful new publicly accessible parkland This follows SWP last month confirming that it would challenge the permission granted by the GLA at a public hearing Friday Sep The GLA issued final confirmation of that planning permission Nov approved the AELTC’s proposals after a 221-page GLA report found “no material considerations that are considered to justify the refusal of consent.” A GLA spokesperson said at the time: “The Mayor believes this scheme will bring a significant range of benefits including economic recused himself the planning process in October 2023 after expressing support for the proposals a GLA representative said that the mayor had yet to be formally served with court papers and so it would not be appropriate to comment further The AELTC believes its plans will ensure that Wimbledon does not fall behind the Australian One of the 39 new courts will be an 8,000-seater stadium and the other 38 will allow the AELTC to move the qualifying event on-site That event is held the week before the main tournament starts and Wimbledon is the only Grand Slam of the four not to already have its qualifying event in the same location as the tournament Also in January, the U.S. Open revealed that its singles event will start a day earlier, meaning there will be 15 days of full tournament play as at the Australian Open and French Open, again leaving Wimbledon as the outlier. Tim Henman a member of the AELTC board and four-time semifinalist at the All England Club has since told reporters that the appetite for a 15-day tournament at Wimbledon is “zero.” The Grand Slam arms race and a global battle for tennis supremacy joggers and walkers for Wimbledon Common park run #886 of whom 65 were first timers at this event 80 runners recorded new Personal Bests for this park run Sublime running conditions Run Director Ian El-Mokadem welcomed visitors from Horsham A number of notable milestones were announced James Spinks (Wimbledon Windmilers) completed an impressive 400 park runs of which 359 have been done at Wimbledon Common many with dog Chester; whilst Keith Russell (Shepperton Running Group) completed 150 park runs on his first visit to Wimbledon Common Sophia Cross completed 50 park runs; whilst Oliver Bithrey Fiona Bunker and Jessica Clark all completed 25 park runs Ian welcomes visitors from near and far first across the line was Tai Elvin-Andrews in his first ever park run; and Duncan Campbell-Cave (Kings Heath Running Club) in third in 18:54 Close behind in fourth position was Wimbledon Common park run regular Koki Sagiyama A new PB for Koki Lisa Thomas (Hercules Wimbledon AC) was the first female across the line in 21:48 Lucy Woolhouse was the second female home in 22:23; and Lizzie Wright (Wimbledon Windmilers) was the third fastest woman Close behind in fourth position amongst the female runners was junior Laura Shala (JW11-14) in 22:40 we had three runners above the 80% mark this week: Lucy Woolhouse with a stunning 89.20% Lisa Thomas with 86.54% and Gabriel Sterne (Wimbledon Windmilers) with 82.48% in a time of 19:07 whilst Naomi Wright (JW11-14) scored 73.27% with a time of 22:42 of whom 65 were first timers at Wimbledon Common (and 20 of these were first timers at any parkrun) Representatives of 27 different clubs took part an exceptional 80 runners recorded new PBs for this park run Windmilers push all the way to the line Today's full results and a complete event history can be found on the Wimbledon Common park run Results Page Since then 38,354 participants have completed 279,995 parkruns covering a total distance of 1,399,975 km A total of 1,631 individuals have volunteered 17,687 times Report writer: Alexi Chan. Photographer: Benjamin Leaver. This report contains only a few of Benjamin’s images of this week’s park run. Please follow this link to see the full library of this week’s photos Read moreAn issue raised at the planning hearing was whether there is a statutory trust for recreational use on the land that would restrict development The All England Club is adamant there is not but is instigating a court process to resolve the matter once and for all before beginning any works A spokesperson for the club said: “Our position and that adopted by Merton council on advice In the circumstances we recognise that the correct thing to do “Today we have issued a letter before action in order to begin this court process This marks the next phase of our long-term project that will maintain our position at the pinnacle of tennis and to deliver year-round benefits for local people with 27 acres of newly accessible parkland for everyone to enjoy.” It is not yet known how long resolving the issue could take while there is also the possibility of a judicial review on the project Meanwhile, transgender women will be banned from playing in the female category in most domestic tennis competitions in Britain from next month. Lawn Tennis Association rules allow players to self identify but trans women and non-binary individuals assigned male at birth will only be allowed to compete in the male category in specified competitions These include leagues and tournaments in tennis and padel involving players from different clubs and venues from the national championships down to local level such as club championships and social tournaments have been designated non-specified and it will be up to individual venues to decide their own policy Susan Cusack, SW19 resident and one of the spokespersons for Save Wimbledon Park (SWP) on why she and the SWP campaign team will see this match out to a full five setter No one knows more about this ongoing issue of the planned AELTC expansion of the Championships than Susan Cusack Susan moved to Wimbledon from Barnes with her young family in Spring 2003 “I was invited to join the Belvedere Estate Residents Assocation (BERA) by the late Roger Chadder who also got me involved in the tennis charity car parking at St taking responsibility for planning matters a few years later and becoming the Chair about 8 years ago Little did I know how much time I would soon be committing to the role with more and more planning applications especially the AELTC one since April 2021.” Since then Susan has been an active member of the campaign to challenge the expansion of the Wimbledon grounds but when did she know the scale of what she was dealing with “In Spring 2021 there were three Zoom briefings by the AELTC about the application but it was only at the second briefing that all the RA’s and societies attending were made aware of the size and scope of the largest application that Merton has ever dealt with.” When the application was first registered in July 2021 there were 120 documents and two further tranches have since been put in by the AELTC bringing the total number to over  200 It was then that SWP set up a petition against the application which now has over 20,000 signatures Whilst SWP aren’t active during the Championships Susan joined a large gathering at Southfields “A small group of us then headed off to the Restore Nature Now march from Hyde Park to Westminster I’ve never been on a march before and there was an incredible atmosphere with 100,000 people walking peacefully along closed roads in the centre of London Speeches about the environment were made by Emma Thompson and Chris Packham What motivates and drives her energy to save the environment and our natural surroundings  We’ve two daughters and my first grandchild on the way and we have a responsibility to take care of the world for future generations.” “ The thing is we never disrupt the tennis I love tennis and we are not standing in the way we are just not comfortable about the environmental impact this will have on the area People don’t realise the space the queue to the tennis takes up and there is parking all over what was the golf club So the public park is taken away and there is no room for locals “There are a lot of people in Southfields that don’t have a garden and the public park is their only option of green space… And if you make the queue bigger then you take away their access to local parks.” Read the AELTC response It’s clear that Susan is passionate and informed about her plight to Save Wimbledon Park and her analogies of the impact the stadium would make are stark “This is already like a Premier League football match being played every day for 15 days in a row and dependent on the District Line which is unreliable and ill-equipped to deal with the number of people One of the main arguments for the expansion is that people can enjoy watching the tennis on the practise courts but Susan contests that people can watch practising in Raynes Park and qualifying in Roehampton a wonderful site which already has concrete surrounded engineered grass tennis courts in situ “There is a also a real opportunity to spread the AELTC money and magic into other parts of the UK which would benefit other areas with the tourism and attraction of the tennis.” Her other concern is the precedent that allowing the plans to go through would set “There are over 50 parks across London which are under threat of development by private The decision about the proposals now lies with the GLA and there will be a 21-day notice before the GLA decision is heard Wandsworth council have voted against the proposals in a meeting held on Tuesday 21 November 2023 But Merton Council’s planning committee has given permission for the 39 new courts to be built on the site of the former Wimbledon Park Golf Club The AELTC insists that the proposed expansions will ‘maintain the championships at the pinnacle of sport and will provide year-round substantial public benefit to those who live locally to the Grounds.” It won’t be long until Susan and all of SWP and the whole community will find out how it’s going to play out Read the response from the AELTC Your guide to London's culture and transport news and events taking place across the city Published on 27th September 2024 by ianVisits in Architecture A controversial plan to substantially enlage a public park in southwest London by taking land from a golf club has been approved by two councils and a Deputy Mayor for London The reason you might not have immediately recognised the news is that it’s the golf club next to the Wimbledon tennis courts and the remainder of the golf club will be turned into a large expansion of the tennis courts The aim is to avoid the need to use tennis courts in other locations for some of the early qualifying rounds and offer more flexibility in the main championships the plans have been exceptionally controversial locally and the planning application had to go to City Hall for a public inquiry before getting the final approval to go ahead The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) will also need to spend around £10 million on upgrades to the existing park improvements to the main road that will run between the two tennis sites and expand the the existing site biodiversity by at least 10 percent While there’s a valid argument that the development of the golf course deprives the users of a golf club and that development will see the lawns replaced with tennis courts — it’s equally valid to note that a golf club is hardly a hotbed of biodiversity and that the tennis courts will also be covered in lawns There will be 39 additional tennis courts on the old golf club most of them small courts for qualifying and practice matches and one additional large court with a retractable roof for the major matches The switch from using a site in Rohamption would allow some 10,000 people per day to watch the earlier matches instead of the around 2,000 who can currently do so The additional crowds coming to the tennis courts which are a fair walk from the nearest tube stations and the construction work were the main reasons for local objections However, the 221 page report commissioned by the GLA found that the scheme’s public benefits clearly outweighed the harm identified allowing planning permission to be granted recused himself from involvement in this planning application last October so that it would be handled by the public inquiry and decided by the Deputy Mayor The Secretary of State could in principle call in the application at any point until the final decision notice is issued to the AELTC (which could be a number of weeks) she stated in a letter today that she is content for the GLA to determine the application but that would prove challenging to secure considering the lengthy planning process the proposal has already gone through This website has been running now for over a decade, and while advertising revenue contributes to funding the website, it doesn't cover the costs. That is why I have set up a facility with DonorBox where you can contribute to the costs of the website and time invested in writing and research for the news articles It's very similar to the way The Guardian and many smaller websites are now seeking to generate an income in the face of rising costs and declining advertising Whether it's a one-off donation or a regular giver every additional support goes a long way to covering the running costs of this website and keeping you regularly topped up doses of Londony news and facts If you like what you read on here, then please support the website here There is always the option for seeking a JR but they are very hard to win Applicants have to show there was a major error in the planning process and those errors made the final determination so egregiously wrong so as to be pervese baded on the evidence And even if they win the faulty process can just be repeated so as to cure the error it does look like people will be able to walk around the lake plus a line of trees demarcating the tennis courts from the pathway Typical wealthy NIMBYs any extra access is a major improvement Also there is major backing for the plan from key green bodies in respect of its biodiversity very similar situation to the wealthy NIMBY moaners who complained about the Hampstead Heath ponds being rebuilt Once the work was finished what was all the fuss about I’m sure some golfers will lament the loss but the area is hardly short of golf courses A sensible response to the transport concerns could be to run a road train during the tournament from Wimbledon Park station this could mainly run along paths through the new park – quieter and probably more popular with ticket holders Wandsworth rejected them that is why it had to go to the GLA The history: the golf course was part of a public park Thirty years ago they sold the freehold of the golf part of the park to AELTC for a pittance A covenant was put in place stating that the land should should remain open space and never be built on The person in charge of AELTC at the time agreed – look at the Guardian’s piece last week for an exact quote of his words You may wonder what their intentions were in that case… Local objections are not just about the area becoming busier The plans involve destruction of supposedly protected open space The plans are excessive involving a main court building some eleven storeys high I and thousands of other people think this is outrageous And I am not wealthy thanks – there is a very large amount of badly designed and built municipal housing to the east of Wimbledon Park The toffs are largely imported for the tennis event to make the local area unbearable for the rest of us Removing a private golf course for a larger public park and a brighter future for one of the most famous brands from the UK and website in this browser for the next time I comment and the latest news published on ianVisits You can unsubscribe at any time from my weekly emails © ianVisits the Wimbledon Park Fireworks (also run by Merton council)  boasts two displays – an earlier kid-friendly showing and a later affair The ‘musical fireworks’ event sets the illuminations to tunes – last year’s theme was one-hit wonders get yourself to the funfair to make the most of the rides By 2025-03-12T12:30:00 The judicial review of the decision to approve Allies & Morrison’s plans to treble the size of Wimbledon’s grounds will start on 8 July The High Court has set a date for the two-day hearing at which arguments for and against the Greater London Authority’s (GLA) approval of the £200m scheme will be presented Existing Subscriber? LOGIN REGISTER for free access on selected stories and sign up for email alerts Subscribe to Building Design and you will benefit from: which won permission from City Hall last week will see 39 new tennis courts built on a former golf course Campaigners opposed to the Wimbledon tennis expansion plan have vowed to fight on following their defeat at City Hall and are considering legal action to stop the scheme The project, which secured planning permission last week, will see the construction of 39 new courts - including an 8,000-seater stadium - on a golf course across the road from the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club’s (AELTC) existing site AELTC said the decision - made at a public hearing by Sadiq Khan’s deputy mayor for planning, Jules Pipe - will keep Wimbledon “at the pinnacle of world sport” while delivering “newly accessible parkland for the community” and creating “substantial economic and employment opportunities” But members of the Save Wimbledon Park (SWP) campaign who have led the charge against the project say they are taking “professional advice” as to how best to challenge its legality Both of the area’s local MPs have told the Standard they would support such a challenge but we remain firm in our belief that it is wrong to allow AELTC to proceed with this aggressive and environmentally damaging development “We draw breath to consider our next steps carefully and with the benefit of professional advice Permission for the scheme was granted despite Mr Pipe admitting that the project “constitutes inappropriate development” on Metropolitan Open Land which is meant to enjoy the same level of protection from building as the Green Belt He concluded however that the project’s benefits outweighed the harm as it would help to “secure the future of these Championships in this location” and would bring “significant associated economic benefits” In a hint that his decision may not be the end of the planning saga the deputy mayor also said: “Whether or not the land is held subject to a statutory trust The question of whether the golf course is subject to a trust could prove important because the Supreme Court last year overturned planning permission for a housing development in Shropshire on the grounds that a statutory trust created in 1926 gave residents rights of recreation over the land SWP could attempt a similar appeal to stop the Wimbledon expansion in its tracks London house-building must 'markedly increase' Wimbledon expansion: All England Club gets green light to build 39 new tennis courts In Pictures: Maggie Smith reached peak of her fame decades after Oscar victory Eight great stores you may not know at Westfield's two London centres Another potential avenue for the campaign would be to call for a judicial review, focusing on the covenants that AELTC agreed when it bought the golf course land from Merton Council in 1993 According to a report by City Hall planning officers the covenants “require the owner to use the golf course land only for leisure and recreation or as an open space” and include certain restrictions around the erection of buildings Labour MP for Putney - whose constituency includes the northern part of the golf course - said she would be willing to “support anything that would stop this development” She said: “We’re a big local campaign and quite a few of them are lawyers so they will be looking at the small print of that verdict because there are potentially ways in which this can be challenged.” similarly said he will “support all lawful means available to prevent this gross over-development of Metropolitan Open Land and force AELTC and Merton Council to keep the solemn promises they made to the community in 1993 when AELTC bought out the golf club lease” Mr Kohler also said he was “dismayed” at Mr Pipe’s “willingness to take at face value claims by AELTC to have consulted widely with the local community when all they have done is to lobby residents via a PR campaign whilst repeatedly refusing to attend public meetings or enter into meaningful discussions with elected representatives seeking compromise” AELTC chair Debbie Jevans said on Friday that she and her colleagues were “delighted” by the deputy mayor’s verdict “Our proposals will deliver 27 acres of newly accessible parkland for the community and enable us to bring the qualifying competition for the Championships on-site with all of the substantial economic and employment opportunities this presents,” she said “Every stage of this project will be delivered with a meticulous attention to detail and the utmost respect for both our neighbours and the environment Changes to parking rules across the Southfields area will come into effect on Monday 1 July at the start of the Wimbledon tennis championships The changes are designed to keep parking spaces in the area available to use by local residents and their visitors and prevent an influx of tennis fans arriving by car which begins on Monday 1 July and concludes (weather dependant) on Sunday parking controls across the Southfields area will be in operation from 8.30am to 8.30pm every day All the area’s existing parking zones will be combined to form one single tennis event zone (EZ) This zone will also include some streets in the area that do not have existing parking controls Motorists who have an existing permit for the S1 Q1 and Q2 parking zones will be entitled to park anywhere in the EZ zone All households within the zone have been issued with two free-of charge temporary permits which can be used by their visitors This is because pay and display machines throughout the area apart from those serving the shops in Replingham Road will be switched off to ensure that tennis fans do not occupy residents’ parking spaces These temporary permits should also be used by residents who normally park in streets within the EZ that are not normally subject to parking controls People using these permits should place them on the dashboard so they can be clearly seen They do not need to be displayed if the vehicle already displays a valid resident resident visitor permit or a disabled person's blue badge These free EZ temporary visitor permits remain the property of Wandsworth Council and are not for resale Anyone caught attempting to sell these permits is likely to face legal action All roads within the EZ will display signs informing residents and visitors of the changes These signs will be prominently displayed on lighting columns and signposts in each road Signs will be placed on the perimeter of the zone to warn motorists that they are entering a restricted parking area Residents are also being advised that some parking bays in the event zone Queensmere Road and Princes Way will be suspended for the duration of the tournament at the request of the police Vehicles will be essentially banned from parking in the affected spaces along these roads Some other roads will also see parking bays temporarily removed and an extension to the hours of waiting restrictions such as in Wimbledon Park Road and Queensmere Road Motorists are also being advised that the parking bays and yellow lines at the following locations will be in operation continuously throughout the tournament This means that parking on these yellow lines is not permitted at any time of the day or night and vehicles parked within the bays must be displaying a valid permit •    Revelstoke Road (between Wimbledon Park and the junction with Heythorp Street)•    Southdean Gardens•    Kingscliffe Gardens•    Gartmoor Gardens•    Penner Close•    Campen Close•    Frimley Close  All vehicles parked incorrectly over the Wimbledon tennis fortnight are liable to receive a parking ticket and may be relocated Residents with an EZ permit are being urged not to park in the roads closest to the All-England club where parking is at a premium Gonston Close and Boddicott Close - unless they actually live on the Queensmere Estate (North EZ permit holders will be monitored in these roads and your EZ permit may be revoked if a vehicle persistently parks in any of these streets with a EZ permit issued to an address outside the Queensmere Estate Different rules apply for parking on housing estates in the area The housing department provides its tenants and leaseholders with permits and visitor permits which are unaffected by the changes to the rules on parking on the public highway Anyone who unlawfully parks their car on an estate without displaying a valid permit is liable to receive a parking ticket The council intends to continue to provide further robust parking enforcement in the residential roads that are located close to the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club to prevent private hire vehicles parking at these locations for prolonged periods Civil Enforcement Officers (CEOs) will be speaking to drivers who leave their engines running unnecessarily and where applicable may issue a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) Motorists are also being reminded that the banned left turns leading from Wimbledon Park Side into Withycombe Road and the northern and southern arms of Inner Park Road will continue to be enforced during the tournament One new addition this year will be an experimental London taxi rank and private hire drop off point on either side of Wimbledon Park Road (between the junctions with Victoria Drive and Princes Way) to help move congestion away from residential areas Its continuation in future years will be subject to review For more information about parking arrangements in Southfields during the Wimbledon fortnight please contact the parking enforcement team on (020) 8871 6660 and choose option two from the automated service Sign up to our newsletter The decision on whether to grant permission for the scheme will be taken at public hearing by London’s deputy mayor for planning The fate of a plan to almost triple the footprint of the Wimbledon Tennis championships will be decided in a little over two weeks, City Hall has confirmed A public hearing to decide whether to grant permission for the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club’s (AELTC) expansion project will be held on Friday September 27 - with residents opposed to the scheme planning to protest outside The plan would see the construction of 39 new tennis courts, including an 8,000-seater show court, on the former site of Wimbledon Park Golf Club At the hearing, London’s deputy mayor for planning will consider the strength of arguments for approving or refusing the project It comes after the plan split opinion between the two neighbouring boroughs who host the annual championships, with Wandsworth Council rejecting the proposal and Merton Council approving it Campaigners opposed to the project believe it would cause unacceptable damage to the area’s biodiversity and heritage They also argue it could set a dangerous precedent for sites like the former golf course which are designated as ‘Metropolitan Open Land’ and are protected from development in most circumstances But AELTC say the scheme will “secure the future of the Championships” by enabling them to better compete with other global tennis tournaments and that it will create “year-round benefits for the local community” The plan proposes opening up part of the former golf course as parkland with ‘permissive’ access to the public and building a boardwalk around Wimbledon Park’s lake Mr Pipe will be presented with a report prepared by City Hall’s planning officers who will make their own recommendation as to what he should decide based on their assessment of where the balance lies between the scheme’s harms and benefits The report is expected to be published on Thursday Any final decision by the deputy mayor could still be over-ridden by the Secretary of State for Housing should she decide to ‘call in’ the planning application herself Both of the area’s local representatives in Parliament - Putney’s Labour MP Fleur Anderson and Wimbledon’s Liberal Democrat MP Paul Kohler - are opposed to the plan Travel visa scheme to mean all UK visitors need permission and face charge The Spectator: Who is new owner Sir Paul Marshall Save £20 per person on autumn and Christmas days out by steam The hearing will be held in the Chamber at City Hall (Kamal Chunchie Way, London E16 1ZE) on September 27, starting at 10am. It will also be livestreamed. Those wishing to attend are advised to notify the Greater London Authority by emailing [email protected] Nick Abbot is Leading Britain's Conversation The UK is bracing for several days of warm weather next week with temperatures expected to reach as high as 27C - the hottest day in April in seven years Forecasters predict conditions will become increasingly warm from Monday – but whether any parts of the country will see an official heatwave remains to be seen Wednesday and Thursday look set to be the warmest days of the week The hottest April temperature ever recorded is 29.4C in London on 16 April 1949 The last time the temperature reached highs of 27C was April 2018 in Cambridge said: “This would always have been a naturally warm spell you can expect it to add a degree or so to the values that we would have expected it’s likely that the temperatures for this event will be slightly higher it looks as though we’re probably not going to see heatwave conditions met.” the definition of a heatwave is three consecutive days of temperatures exceeding the “heatwave threshold” Read More: Dry April and March leads to more wildfires in the UK so far in 2025 than in any full year over past decade The warmer weather comes after a difficult period for fire services across the country which battled wildfires earlier in month following historically low rainfall in March More land in the UK has been burned by wildfires so far in 2025 than in any full year over the past decade Data from the Global Wildfire Information System which has been recording fire activity since 2012 show that more than 29,200 hectares have burned so far in 2025 The previous record set in 2019 was 28,100 hectares The researchers said that a long stint of dry sunny weather in March and early April created the right conditions for fires Wildfires are a regular occurrence in the UK during early spring as dead or dormant vegetation left over from winter can dry out quickly and ignite easily See more Latest UK News See more More Topics Wimbledon tennis court is set to triple in size as the London Mayor’s Office approves plans from All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) to build new courts The project will involve constructing a third covered show court with the capacity to hold 8,000 spectators The project will also create 27 acres of new parkland The project will commence on Wimbledon park The expansion will allow Wimbledon to switch from Roehampton The plan for the Wimbledon tennis courts will also result in an upgrade in facilities for the players as well as allow 10,000 spectators and up to 50,000 people to enter the grounds every day It is understood that Angela Rayner has decided against calling the plans for ministerial review instead saying that these plans should be determined at a local level said: “These plans for the site of a former private golf course will bring significant benefits to the local area providing increased access to open green space and sport Hosting qualifying events on the same site as the Championships will put Wimbledon on a global footing with other grand slam tournaments and ensure it remains one of the world’s top sporting events The scheme brings a huge range of economic social and cultural benefits which will contribute to building a fairer greener and more prosperous London for everyone.” very pleased – it has been a long journey to this point Equally there is a journey to go through before we start to build is that we could see tennis balls being hit on that site between 2030 and 2033.” Building & Construction Today website is the place to come for compelling and informative features news and products for a diverse audience serving a wide construction sector Wimbledon’s controversial expansion plans have been given the green light by the Greater London Authority (GLA) means the All England Lawn Tennis Club’s (AELTC) proposal to build 39 new courts on the adjacent former Wimbledon Park Golf Club and nearly triple the size of its current site looks set to go ahead The decision had been expected after GLA planning officers recommended permission be granted financial and community benefits to both the tournament and city the proposed development would facilitate very significant benefits,” he said “I agree with my officers that these benefits clearly outweigh the harm.” Central to Wimbledon’s case has been the desire to hold its qualifying competition which is currently staged at nearby Roehampton Chair Debbie Jevans said: “We are delighted that the Greater London Authority has resolved to approve our applications to transform the former Wimbledon Park golf course “Our proposals will deliver 27 acres of newly accessible parkland for the community and enable us to bring the qualifying competition for The Championships onsite with all of the substantial economic and employment opportunities this presents delivering one of London’s greatest sporting transformations since the 2012 Games and securing Wimbledon’s future at the pinnacle of world sport.” Another boost for the AELTC came with the news that Angela Rayner has decided not to call in the application leaving legal challenges as the only avenue open to protesters hoping to stop the development The mayor of London’s office took charge of the application in January after Merton Council approved the plans and Wandsworth Council rejected them late last year The land for the proposed expansion sits primarily in Merton but one section of it is in Wandsworth Mayor Sadiq Khan recused himself from the process having previously expressed public support for the development Plans were first submitted to Merton back in 2021 three years after the AELTC bought out golf club members with the intention of developing the land and the issue has become increasingly acrimonious Protesters assembled outside City Hall ahead of the hearing and a number spoke in the chamber during a morning session lasting more than three hours Laughter could be heard at several points while after a GLA planning officer explained why they had recommended the deputy mayor approve the scheme said giving a green light to the scheme would set “a dangerous London-wide and national precedent” while Christopher Coombe from the Save Wimbledon Park group added: “Approval at this stage would be really shocking who was previously the lead planner for the building of Wimbledon’s Court One and the development of Henman Hill Those against the plans believe the harm they would cause to open land is not justified while the AELTC argues it needs to expand to keep up with the other grand slams which have all invested heavily in improving their sites in recent years The proposal includes parkland accessible to the public and community-minded developments Get access to richer content, exclusive reports, unparalleled business intelligence, and community benefits to help you navigate the next frontier of sport and make more informed decisions with a SportsPro+ Premium 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Log in here CITY HALL, LONDON — The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) has been granted planning permission to add 39 new courts and triple the size of the grounds at the Wimbledon Championships deputy London mayor Jules Pipe concurred with the recommendation of officers at the General London Assembly (GLA) who in a 221-page report last week found “no material considerations that are considered to justify the refusal of consent.” boos and cries of “shame on you” rang out from campaigners present for the hearing who said they would continue to fight against Friday’s decision The objectors positioned themselves outside City Hall on Friday morning holding placards outside the building with slogans like “Green not greed!” Around 80 of the close to 140 in the public gallery were said to have been people opposing the plans including Wimbledon MP Paul Kohler (a Liberal Democrat) and Southfields) can make two further legal challenges — a judicial review in the High Court who is also the Secretary of State for Housing but she wrote to the Wimbledon Society before the verdict confirming that she would accept the deputy mayor’s decision Mayor of London Sadiq Khan excused himself from the process three years ago Anderson said that passing the AELTC’s plans would “set a dangerous London-wide and national precedent for development on the green belt.” Although the AELTC has owned the Wimbledon Park freehold — including the golf course — since 1993 its purchase of the land from Merton Council included a covenant that it would not develop the land “other than for leisure or recreational purposes or as an open space.” Residents groups believe that the proposals violate that covenant the AELTC also purchased the Wimbledon Park golf club Anderson added that only 28 per cent of the new area would actually be open to the public if the plans went ahead “Local people are the losers in the deal,” she told reporters petitions and TV stars' £65m golf club sale: Inside Wimbledon expansion row Pipe’s decision is the most significant moment yet in what has been a fractious battle between the AELTC and local groups The AELTC believes the plans will ensure that Wimbledon does not fall behind the Australian and the other 38 will allow the AELTC to bring the qualifying event on-site and Wimbledon is the only Grand Slam of the four not to already have its qualifying event on-site is the smallest of the third courts across the majors Objectors said that Wimbledon’s prestige is sufficient that it does not require new infrastructure to keep up Jevans and AELTC chief executive Sally Bolton told reporters afterwards that early 2030s is the rough aim for when the courts will be ready for Wimbledon action The principal arguments at the hearing were ecological and social with net tree loss and major impacts on biodiversity cited as some of the major damage that the development would do AELTC experts in this field present on Friday rejected this characterization pointing to the intended planting of five times more trees than are set to be planning to removed if plans are approved They also said that the area would perform better ecologically thanks to projects like planting pockets of wet woodland a local resident in support of the development praised the AELTC for its “ample consultation” with the community spoke of the plans having “ecological enhancement” and said that “the golf club is ecologically pretty dead.” It was later pointed out that the Trust were relying on AELTC data that had not been independently corroborated said that The Wimbledon Park Heritage Group had changed its mind and were in support of the AELTC’s plans City Hall’s decision will not mean the end of appeals but it is a decisive step in the AELTC’s plans for the future of Wimbledon by | Sep 28, 2024 | Off Court, Wimbledon The All England Lawn Tennis Club has been given the green light by the Greater London Authority to proceed with its Wimbledon Park Project proposal to build 39 new courts on the adjacent former Wimbledon Park Golf Club a project that will nearly triple the size of its current site The decision was taken on Friday by Jules Pipe CBE following a public consultation at City Hall and made on the recommendation of GLA planning officers the proposed development would facilitate very significant benefits,’ he said ‘I agree with my officers that these benefits clearly outweigh the harm.” “We are delighted that the Greater London Authority has resolved to approve our applications to transform the former Wimbledon Park golf course,” Deborah Jevans “Our proposals will deliver 27 acres of newly accessible parkland for the community and enable us to bring the qualifying competition for The Championships onsite “Every stage of this project will be delivered with a meticulous attention to detail and the utmost respect for both our neighbours and the environment Another boost for the All England Club came with the news that Angela Rayner leaving legal challenges as the only recourse for protesters still hoping to stop the development The Mayor of London’s office took charge of the application in January after Merton Council approved the plans and Wandsworth Council rejected them late last year The land for the proposed expansion sits primarily in Merton Mayor Sadiq Khan recused himself from the process having previously expressed public support for the development three years after the All England Club bought out golf club members with the intention of developing the land A new 8,000 seat stadium is included in the AELTC Wimbledon Park Project plans Mr Pipe concurred with the recommendation of GLA officers who found ‘no material considerations that are considered to justify the refusal of consent’ “These plans for the site of a former private golf course will bring significant benefits to the local area new parkland and a host of new jobs,” Mr Pike said “Hosting qualifying events on the same site as the Championships will put Wimbledon on a global footing with other Grand Slam tournaments and ensure it remains one of the world’s top sporting events “The scheme brings a huge range of economic greener and more prosperous London for everyone.” boos and cries of ‘shame on you’ rang out from campaigners present for the hearing who said they would continue to fight against Friday’s decision Objectors positioned themselves outside City Hall on Friday morning ‘Green not greed!’ while around 80 of the close to 140 in the public gallery were said to have been people opposing the plans can make two further legal challenges – a judicial review in the High Court Anderson said that passing the AELTC’s plans would ‘set a dangerous London-wide and national precedent for development on the green belt’ Although the AELTC has owned the Wimbledon Park freehold its purchase of the land from Merton Council included a covenant that it would not develop the land ‘other than for leisure or recreational purposes or as an open space’ the AELTC also purchased the Wimbledon Park Golf Club which led to each member receiving £85,000 Anderson added that only 28% of the new area would actually be open to the public if the plans went ahead The proposals will deliver 27 acres of newly accessible parkland for the community but objectors say that this is sufficient and does not require new infrastructure to keep up The GLA report also presented the economic benefits of the plans stating that they ‘would result in the creation of 40 year-round jobs and 256 Championships jobs’ The Championships would contribute £336m to the UK economy each year It is already London’s most valuable sporting event adding £200m to the city’s economy in 2023 according to research from Sheffield Hallam University reported in the Evening Standard Jevans and AELTC Chief Executive Sally Bolton told reporters afterwards that early 2030s is the rough aim for when the courts will be ready for Wimbledon action with net tree loss and major impacts on biodiversity cited as some of the major damage that the development would inflict AELTC experts in this field rejected this notion pointing to the intended planting of five times more trees than are set to be removed if the plans are approved They added that the area would perform better ecologically thanks to projects like planting pockets of wet woodland rather than a complete dismissal of the idea of expansion praised the AELTC for its ‘ample consultation’ with the community London Wildlife Trust Chief Executive Officer spoke of the plans having ‘ecological enhancement’ and said that ‘the golf club is ecologically pretty dead’ It was later pointed out that the Trust were relying on AELTC data that had not been independently corroborated said that The Wimbledon Park Heritage Group had changed its mind and were now in support of the AELTC’s plans Major disappointment for Jack Draper but sheer elation for Casper Ruud as he wins the Mutua Marid Masters title – his first at ATP 1000 level to add to the 12 he already had in his locker accepting a wild-card in France worked out perfectly for Naomi Osaka while Dalma Galfi and Bianca Andreescu picked up titles in Spain In the last match of the WTA 1000 Mutua Madrid Open Romania’s Sorana Cirstea & Anna Kalinskaya from Russia won the doubles title on their debut as a team World No 1 Aryna Sabalenka landed her 3rd Mutua Madrid Open title on Saturday beating 4th-seeded Coco Gauff in straight sets after an hour and 39 minutes of play ahead of lifting the WTA 1000 trophy Jack Draper’s run at the Mutua Madrid Masters continues as he scored another straight sets win to secure a place in the final where he will face Casper Ruud who progressed earlier in the day This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. 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The All England Club looks set to win its lengthy battle to build 39 new courts on the former Wimbledon Park golf site after the Greater London Authority (GLA) recommended that the project should be approved The AELTC’s plans have been the subject of considerable opposition from local residents and the expansion was referred to the GLA after Wandsworth Council rejected the proposal last November Merton Council initially approved the plans officers at the GLA recommended that the deputy mayor should grant conditional planning permission for the scheme which also involves building an 8,000-seater stadium that would act as a third Wimbledon show court at a public hearing on Friday September 27 the GLA officers concluded that it had found “no material considerations that are considered to justify the refusal of consent” They accepted there would be a loss of open space but stated that the “balance is clearly in favour of” approving the scheme The expansion will allow the All England Club to host the qualifying competition for Wimbledon on site as is the case at the three other Grand Slams the qualifying competition takes place in the comparatively humble surroundings of the Roehampton community sports centre a few miles away Local opposition groups like Save Wimbledon Park have said that the expansion would leave the area as a “huge industrial tennis complex” Jonathan Morrish of Save Wimbledon Park said that this latest development “is deeply distressing to local residents whose views haven’t been taken into consideration” said she and local leaders were “extremely disappointed” by the report What happens when a general election enters the Wimbledon bubble The GLA’s report and recommendation now puts the decision in the hands of Jules Pipe after Sadiq Khan excused himself from the process three years ago having expressed support for the proposals The full planning hearing will take place next Friday with Save Wimbledon Park protesters promising to be “out in force” But it would be a surprise now if there was a late obstacle said: “We believe that these plans will deliver one of the greatest sporting transformations for London since 2012 XFASTINDEX A planning application from the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) to transform the former Wimbledon Park golf course has been approved by London deputy mayor for planning secretary of state for planning & housing has indicated that she will not call in the application The plans will see an additional 38 grass courts This will allow the AELTC to bring the Wimbledon qualifying event on-site for the first time The expansion project is expected to employ an average of between 50 to 400 construction workers per day between 2025 and 2033 Deputy mayor Jules Pipe said: “These plans for the site of a former private golf course will bring significant benefits to the local area Got a story? Email news@theconstructionindex.co.uk 9 hours Following a recent expansion into North America, Murphy Group has now entered Australia. 3 days A Devon housing development has emerged as the centre of a web of corruption. 9 hours Controversial government plans to allow developers to pay into a central nature levy to offset local environmental harms are generating increasing opposition. 3 days Dolphin Living has appointed The Hill Group to deliver the redevelopment of the New Era housing estate in Hackney. 3 days Tilbury Douglas continues to progress after collapse of parent company 3 days John Sisk & Son has started work on a £65m refurbishment of Haringey Civic Centre in London. © 2025 The Construction Index [Company No ' + response[i].created_nice + ' ' + response[i].description + ' Daniel Ben-David is a reporter and community correspondent for the Jewish Chronicle to chain herself to a tree in protest against Wimbledon Tennis Club expansionThelma Ruby is campaigning against plans for 38 new courts and a stadium Daniel Ben-David 4 min readA 99-year-old Jewish actress has promised to chain herself to a tree in protest against a massive renovation of a local park that is estimated to cost hundreds of millions of pounds “I’ve been a law-abiding citizen for a century I’m willing to change that,” said Thelma Ruby Ruby has lived in a flat “overlooking a most extraordinary and beautiful sight" created in the 18th-century by famed landscaper Capability Brown could soon see a transformation under a multi-year expansion project proposed by Wimbledon’s All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC) the All England Club has argued that it needs to create 38 brand new grass courts in place of the private golf course that currently occupies the land as well as a third 8,000-seat show court to ensure Wimbledon "remains the world’s pre-eminent tennis tournament” planning permission for the scheme was granted by London’s deputy mayor for planning Mr Pipe said the project would help to “secure the future of these Championships in this location” and bring “significant associated economic benefits” campaigners against the project have announced that they would be taking legal action arguing that the building work would damage the area’s biodiversity and heritage and that City Hall “made errors of law and planning policy” when it granted planning permission and objecting to the “terrible” development plans Ruby has identified a tree in view of her window to which she plans to attach herself when the weather gets a little warmer “My relationship with the trees and my view of them has built up over many years,” Ruby said “The sight of them is part of me and part of my whole happiness.” Proudly displayed on Ruby’s website are pictures she has taken of the view over the years capturing the landscape under stunning sunsets and to look out my window at this wonderful view is the source of my spiritual strength buildings and pathways using concrete are laid with loud lorries passing my window every minute I’ll do whatever I can to stop that plan going ahead I’ll chain myself to one tree to save hundreds more.” the soon-to-be centenarian has enjoyed working alongside the likes of Orson Welles Ruby began her decades-long career in entertainment by travelling throughout the country to perform for wounded soldiers during the Second World War Later roles included West End stage performances as Golde in Fiddler on the Roof a recurring role as Lily Dempsey in Coronation Street in 1996 and an appearance as Great Auntie Renee in the 2024 Amy Winehouse biopic Back to Black Ruby starred in a one woman show about her life She is not sure where the idea to chain herself to a tree came from “Perhaps I was thinking of the suffragettes who used to chain themselves to railings to bring about change” "But when I first proposed the idea into a microphone in a town hall setting Ruby says she has even had offers from other people to do the “night shift” for her “I’m not just going to do it for me or my view; it’s for future generations,” she said but each one captures carbon and helps to save the planet I don’t know how they [AELTC] can sleep at night digging up turf and desecrating this glorious landscape Ruby will be celebrating on the day and “all week long” the AELTC announced that they would be going to court to resolve the dispute over the development plans “At the GLA’s public hearing in September 2024 the possibility of a statutory trust on the land (meaning that the land must be available for public recreational purposes) was raised in their officers’ report “Our position was and remains that there is not is to put the matter before the court to establish that there is no trust over the land.” They added that it was their wish “to maintain Wimbledon’s position as one of the pre-eminent sporting events in the world to maintain our position at the pinnacle of tennis and to unlock significant year-round benefits for local people among them 27 acres of newly accessible green space for everyone to enjoy in perpetuity” Wimbledon Thelma Ruby The All England Club is pushing forward with plans to expand A 99-year-old veteran actress is prepared to chain herself to the ground of the All England Club in protest over their plans to expand Wimbledon The Wimbledon Park Golf Club was sold to the All England Club five years ago with plans for the 23-acre site to be redeveloped for new tennis courts But the expansion plans have been met with pushback from local residents who fear 10 years of disruption The All England Club want a new 8,000-seat show court to go along with 38 other grass courts The proposals would allow qualifying to take place at the All England Club as opposed to the sports centre at Roehampton The size of the development stretches over borders of both Merton and Wandsworth Councils and they've been unable to agree on the proposals but Wandsworth rejected the scheme last November There is concern that development will cause irreparable harm to protected Metropolitan Open Land JUST IN: Tyson Fury reveals extravagant amount of money he lost on Anthony Joshua vs Daniel Dubois fight is ready to stage a protest against the proposals in order to protect the land While speaking at a public meeting organised by Save Wimbledon Park Ruby threatened to 'chain myself to the grounds' of the All England Club When asked whether she was afraid of being arrested The actress felt the need to act after a conversation with someone 'from the tennis courts' “I said: ‘What’s going to happen?’” she added and there will be eight tennis courts between you and the lake and it’ll take years to build.’ READ MORE: Mike Tyson flooded with supportive messages after making emotional admission ahead of Jake Paul fight The Wimbledon Park Golf Club was sold in 2018 “This beautiful view I get when I look out of my window is not only going to be a building site but there are going to be polluting lorries passing my window every 10 minutes "I look several times a day out of the window and enjoy my view Wimbledon want to build a new 8,000-seater stadium The proposal was referred to the Greater London Authority (GLA) after Wandsworth Council's rejection last November It was revealed last week that the GLA have recommended the Deputy Mayor should grant conditional planning permission London mayor Sadiq Khan excused himself from the process after expressing support for the development plans three years ago On Saturday Parkrun celebrated its 20th anniversary  It was started on Saturday 2nd October 2004 at Bushy Park as the Bushy Park Time Trial with 13 runners   It was two years before the next was started and that was on Wimbledon Common  There are now over 2300 events in 22 countries everywhere from the slopes of Mount Etna to 25 UK prisons to the Falkland Islands  In a typical week around 350,000 runners take part  We are still on the “hornets’ course” which is now familiar to everyone except perhaps the less regular participants  and still contribute to the welfare of all the participants on the course Well done to these two runners who contributed to the celebration of Parkrun’s 20th birthday with their dinner shirts and ties         Slightly unusual kit for parkrun but he did observe the invitation to wear fancy dress The man on the right looks as though he is on his 400th run (receding white hair) or is he thinking about the report he has to write Paul took part in the first Wimbledon Common parkrun Congratulations to Hugh Woolhouse on completing 500 parkruns The following have reached significant milestones in terms of the number of parkruns completed Last but by no means least (in importance!) the results: The first three men home were Thomas Gandee  (SM20-24) in 18’37” Edward Davies (SM30-34) in 18’56” and Patrick Gibson (SM25-29) in 19’52” Hannah Roberts (SW20-24) was the first finishing 9th overall in 20’31”; then came Nadia Ogilvie (SW25-59) finishing 18th overall in 21’14” and  Jemima Chantal D’Arcy (SW25-29) finishing 25th  in 21’37” As regards the Age Grade scores two out of the top three were women: first came Lucy Woolhouse (VW60-64) with 84.84%  Second was Brandon Parkes with 73.18% and third was Hannah Roberts with 72.14% of whom 103 were first timers at Wimbledon Common (and 37 of these were first timers at any parkrun) The Football Season starts today - Wimbledon Common Parkrun continues Now we move on to another important sporting event Wimbledon Common parkrun carries on regardless The news this week was that the hornets were back and we would consequently be running on the Hornets course (so called because there are no hornets For those who might not have known the Hornets Course we are grateful to our assistant providing the map To judge by the looks on people’s faces no-one is unhappy about the Hornets Course Congratulations to the blind gentleman with his guide dog I understand he has done numerous parkruns around the country Results For the third week running the first to cross the finishing line was Charles Taylor (SM30-34) in 17’29’ second was the ubiquitous Unknown and third was Noah Fernandez (JM15-17) in 18’33” the first over the line was Rebecca Ward (SW20-24) in 20’49” She is also a first timer at Wimbledon Common in 21’10” and third was Elissa O’Brien (VW35-39) As regards the age gradings Heather Walker was first with 83.31% second was Lisa Thomas (VW55-59) with 81.50% and third was Sandy Pfeifer (VM60-64) with 81.39% Milestones The most notable piece of news this week is Sue Rothwell completing her 500th run which in itself is a considerable milestone By chance she was the 500th runner to cross the finishing line – a position she might be less pleased about but happily parkrun is not a race Whilst on the subject congratulations go to Alistair Kinnear and Katherine Jones who both completed 250 runs and Daniel Roets and Gerard Aston who both completed 50 runs Since then 36,255 participants have completed 267,154 parkruns covering a total distance of 1,335,770 km A total of 1,566 individuals have volunteered 16,648 times