QPR's Proposed Training Ground Goes Back to Nature
Building delays result in Warren Farm becoming spectacular nature reserve
(Photo @paul_Clarke Photography 2019)
Darren says: " There’s an exciting rewilding experiment taking place at the beleaguered Warren Farm site in Hanwell. It’s been five years since the Council enthusiastically handed over 61 acres of prime Metropolitan Land (Green Belt) to QPR Football Club for free.
"Obviously, from the start back in 2012, there have been massive obstacles for QPR to obtain the necessary planning permission to build several 3 storey buildings, a private swimming pool and 600 car parking spaces on this once publicly owned green space.
"Strangely not only has Ealing Council enthusiastically helped the billion-pound football club to gain permission it has also lobbied the Mayor of London to allow the development to take place.
"In a nutshell, the development of this valued green space violated the terms of Metropolitan Open Land, contravened the Mayor’s London Plan, and was condemned by local and national environmental groups. These objections were swept aside with a combination of Ealing Council’s assistance and the expensive legal firm that QPR employed and unfortunately the poor people of Ealing didn’t stand a chance.
"However, thanks to a combination of these legal objections, and financial pressures at QPR Football Club, construction on the site has yet to start and something amazing has happened.
" Due to the dilapidated state of Warren Farm and the complete neglect by Ealing Council since the 'sale', the site has been returning to nature, at Warren Farm we have a real-world rewilding experiment and the results have been spectacular.
Photo: Darren Moore 2019
"Hanwell Nature, Ealing Wildlife Group, and members of the Ealing Green Party, as well as members of the public, have all been admiring the reclamation of nature and it’s not an overestimation to say that this once forgotten space has truly blossomed and transformed
" The area has now become an impromptu nature reserve, completely unmanaged and is now a key London location of wild acid grasses and wildflowers, home to an incredible array of butterflies, and a number of rare nesting birds. Over the last few months, Hanwell Nature has reported sightings of barn owls, little owls, mistle thrushes, skylarks, starlings, whitethroats, blackcaps, red kites, and kestrels - may of which are on the endangered red list.
" Given that we are at a time of decimation of wild species across the world, it is so exciting to see how quickly nature bounces back when spaces are left to rewild.
" What has overjoyed supporters most is that this has happened over such a short time scale and in such an urban environment, inside the M25 and within a stone’s throw of the M4 Motorway.
" The only problem is, for the flora and fauna of West London this is a dead-cat bounce, the last flourish of nature before the bulldozers and HGVs move in to dump 180,000 cubic metres of 'andfill' on to the natural habitats of all of this Hanwell Nature in preparation for the building works.
" For the sake of the future of all the country’s wildlife, Warren Farm’s current flourishing wildlife, and the air that we all breath: I urge you Christopher Lee of Populous Architects, you QPR Chairman Amit Bhatia, you Julian Bell of Ealing Council, and you Sadiq Khan Mayor of London to reconsider.
" And if you’re reading this from your desk in London, we urge you to unplug, head down to Trumpers Way, come and get some fresh air and experience the benefits and beauty of being present in this thriving natural paradise while you still have the chance."
The 61 acre site is being leased to QPR by Ealing Council who have plans for a multi-million pound facility which will allow their first team squad and youth teams to train at the same location. They currently use shared training facilities in Harlington. Since they first raised the idea in 2013 there has been fierce resistance from local residents but a High Court decision last year cleared the way for the project to proceed.
Local residents have been notified about their intention to start construction work to prepare the way for QPR's training ground. This first stage will involve 180,000m3 of soil needing to be brought to the site which the Warren Farm Sports Centre Interest Group says will result in up to 20 HGV movements per hour for up to a year. There would be demolition work and initial work is likely to last for up to six weeks.
QPR's plans to build a multi-million pound training facility at Warren Farm received the final green light in November last year, with the success of Ealing Council’s defence against an appeal to the Supreme Court over its development.
You can read more about this here.
August 5, 2019
