A SENIOR councillor has said that the council needs to “step up and decide what to do” after permission has been granted to build dwellings and a care home on the grounds of the football stadium.

Last week permission was granted for 85 dwellings and a care home to be built on the Camrose football stadium site, after a government inspector approved the developer's appeals.

Basingstoke Town Football Club, which occupied the site before it was thrown out by its former owner Rafi Razzak and his company Basron, had been fighting for the borough council’s development control committee refusal decision to be upheld, but the inspector has sided with the developer.

SEE ALSO: Protester fears taking Camrose decision to High Court could be 'last hope' to save the football stadium

Reacting to the news, Cllr Paul Harvey leader of the Basingstoke and Deane Independent group has expressed his ‘dismay’ at the decision.

As previously reported the Camrose Covenant was uncovered by the Gazette, documents suggest that the covenant was still on the ground when former Basingstoke Town FC chairman Rafi Razzak bought the freehold of the Camrose ground in 2016.

A covenant was placed on the ground by Lord William Berry, first Viscount Camrose in 1953, after he gifted the land to the town and its football club

Cllr Harvey said: “We know there is this the covenant, so what is the council going to do now.

“The council need to step up and decide what they need to do and it is fundamental that we do.

“I was disappointed in the decision and the council now has a big responsibility in what they are going to do next.”

He said there is no “like for like or replacement” for the Camrose.

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Despite this the council has since said they will not be taking legal action.

Tom Payne, Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council’s interim executive director of residents’ services, said: “The Planning Inspectorate has allowed two appeals for the redevelopment of the Camrose Stadium, following a public inquiry.

“We review all appeal decisions issued by the Planning Inspectorate. A legal challenge can only be progressed by the council on the basis that the decision contains an error of law or failed to follow the procedural requirements for a fair decision. Our teams have reviewed the decision made by the Planning Inspectorate and there are no grounds for the council to take forward a legal challenge.

“Following this decision, we will await the submission of a reserved matters planning application which sets out further details for the redevelopment of the site such as appearance of the buildings.

“We will continue to work with the applicant to ensure the planning conditions, including upgrades to Winklebury Football Complex as mitigation for the loss of the Camrose site, are met as set out in the Planning Inspectorate’s decision"

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