Back in the running: Plans submitted for athletics track and facilities on Scarborough's South Cliff

Last year, three separate schemes that would have transformed an area of the town into “a centre for sporting excellence” were pulled by the developer.

Now, one of the schemes, a six-lane running track on the former Bramcote School site, has been salvaged and has been submitted to Scarborough Council for planning approval.

It's the latest twist in the long-running saga.

In 2017 Scarborough Council, independent school Scarborough College and property developer Broadland Properties Ltd announced a collaboration for new sporting facilities in the Filey Road area of the town.

It was hoped it would lead to the creation of an international competition standard athletics track on the former Bramcote School playing fields to the south of the town centre, as well as six state-of-the-art tennis courts and bowling facilities nearby, on land between Deepdale Avenue and College Lane.

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The scheme would have replaced the facilities that were lost when the Filey Road Sports Centre closed, the site of which would have been developed by Broadland Properties to create approximately 50 new homes and apartments.

Speaking in April last year, Richard Guthrie, director of Broadland Properties Ltd, said the planning application had simply “run into the ground” following objections from the public and Sport England, though he hoped that the athletics facilities could still be salvaged.

Now it has.

The new plan submitted to Scarborough Council is for a floodlit six-lane hard-surfaced athletics track with an eight-lane finishing straight; a long/triple jump facility and external alterations to the existing sports hall.

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A disability and emergency vehicle parking area will also be created at the site, which sits off Holbeck Road.

The planning documents submitted to the borough council by Broadland go into further details about the scheme, stating: “The facility will be owned and operated by Scarborough College and used by its own pupils, with use by other schools and the wider community, outside school hours, to be managed by Scarborough College via a booking system.”

It adds: “The proposals… represent a less intensive form of development on this site than was the case in the previous application, which sought permission for an eight-lane athletics track, with a greater extent of field activities; the extension of the modern sports hall; and the conversion/extension of the Grade II Listed pavilion – these elements no longer forming part of the proposed development.

“The retention of the sporting use of the site will also ensure that visitors will continue to be able to appreciate the historic use of the listed former tennis pavilion and the enhanced facilities will mean that greater numbers of visitors will potentially be able to appreciate the heritage asset.”

The plans are now out to consultation.