Green light for Buxton FC to double seating capacity to 1,005

The plans were rubber stamped at High Peak Borough Council’s development and control committee on Monday November, 11.

The new stand at Tarmac Silverlands will sit in roughly the same position as the existing stand, but aligned to the pitch rather than the road.

Chairman David Hopkins said: “It’s a good time to be Buxton FC.

“We are third in the league, the support from businesses and the community is amazing and we are always looking forward.

“The stadium is more than 50 years old and wasn’t giving the best visitor experience.

“So this planning application is not just for now it’s for the next generation of Buxton fans and for the future.”

The new stand will include a function room, a directors’ lounge, private boxes, and facilities such as toilets and kitchens.

In recent years the club has spent more than £1m investing and upgrading facilities.

In the last seven years the stadium has seen the installation of a new allweather pitch, enabling the creation of a full-time education Academy in partnership with Buxton & Leek College and Derby University.

David said: “We are only doing what our friends at other clubs are doing and looking after our pitch, our grands, our players and our fans.

“I’m very aware that we have the highest stadium in England and with that we have some of the wettest, foggiest, coldest and windiest weather.

“So a new stadium will provide shelter for our fans.”

The additional capacity will be achieved in two ways.

Firstly, by extending the seating closer to the pitch as the current stand has, the first row of seats sat well back from the pitch, in a relatively elevated position.

Secondly, an additional bay will be added to the western and eastern ends of the stand, replacing existing buildings and relocating a large water storage butt.

The new stand would result in a ‘visual enhancement of the site’, being of a similar scale and height as the existing, but being longer, says David.

He added: “It’s great news for the club and we had a lot of standing fans so this will just give them a better experience.”