More details on new Leamington FC stadium are due to come forward in September

Warwick District Council’s cabinet – the coalition of Green Party and Labour councillors in charge of major service areas – signed off the vision for the Fusilier’s Way development in Myton Green.

It features housing, residential amenities, education provision to help cater for nearby housing developments, a new athletics track and offices as well as the new Myton Path – a path and cycleway connecting Myton Road and Fusilier’s Way – and wider connectivity with Warwick Technology Park.

Phase one – Myton Path and the new athletics facility – was also approved by the cabinet with a neighbourhood centre and repurposing of a listed farmhouse forming phase two.

The football stadium and its enabling development is part of the third phase with council papers detailing an initial capacity of 4,000 with the potential to extend that to 5,000, an artificial pitch and the inclusion of community uses around fitness, parent and toddler, community education and community health provision.

Design work has started but changes are “likely” as more detail comes forward. The report, scheduled to be discussed by the cabinet on Wednesday, September 4, is set to include funding options, more detail around the mix of facilities and design.

While the new ground is far from rubber stamped, the progress of the masterplan is a big step forward, particularly as elements of the council acknowledges its vision for the whole area relies on interdependent projects.

Councillor Jonathan Chilvers (Green, Leamington Brunswick), the district’s portfolio holder for resources, welcomed the step forward but was cautious on the stadium project.

“We brought forward the masterplan to emphasise the sequencing and prioritisation, it is quite a complex project but one that we think can add significant community benefit,” he said.

On the stadium, he added: “The stadium could be a really significant community asset for us.

“We have done a good deal of work on that already but there is still an awful lot to be done, especially working through the significant financial challenges and modelling.

"Funding will need to be agreed in the context of the council’s finances as a whole.

“We are going to be bringing separate reports on phase two and phase three, by prioritising these projects in this order, the aim is to bring clarity and focus to help with the delivery and hopefully break down some of the dependencies.”