Sawt Falasteen - Wimbledon expansion plan gets legal boost

Officials at the All England Club, which owns Wimbledon and has been hosting a tournament there since 1877, want to triple the size of the site for the grass-court Grand Slam.

The proposals would see the construction of 38 new tennis courts and an 8,000-seat stadium on the grounds of the former Wimbledon Park Golf Club, which would allow it to host All England Club qualifiers on site instead of across south London at Roehampton.

Wimbledon's plans were approved by the Greater London Authority (GLA) in 2024.

Campaign group Save Wimbledon Park (SWP), however, told the High Court in January that a statutory trust exists under 19th century legislation, meaning the land must be used "for the purpose of being used as public walks or pleasure grounds" and therefore the development could not go ahead.

Lawyers for the club said the land was never subject to a trust and, if it was, it did not survive the club's purchase of the freehold in 1993.

And Justice Thompsell ruled Thursday the land was "never appropriated or dedicated to the use of public recreation" and instead "was used as a private golf club", adding the All England Club was "unencumbered by any statutory trust".

He said: "It never became the subject of a statutory trust and therefore the 1986 lease and the 1993 transfer of the freehold were each made free of such trust.

"Even if the above proposition is wrong, it is clear that the land was never used or laid out for public recreation."

SWP lost a High Court challenge over the authority's decision to approve the scheme in July last year but has since been given the green light to challenge that ruling at the Court of Appeal, which is expected to be heard at a later date.

The group said it would also seek to challenge Thursday's ruling at the Court of Appeal, given the "nationally important issues of law involved in the case".

Jeremy Hudson, a director of SWP, said: "Wimbledon can do better because there are existing, alternative plans which show that their scheme can be accommodated on their current site."

Debbie Jevans, chair of the All England Club, welcomed Thursday's judgment by saying: "The ruling represents a significant milestone for our plans, which will, as well as delivering 27 acres of beautiful new public parkland on previously private land, allow us to maintain Wimbledon's position as one of the world's most successful sporting events.

"Hosting our qualifying competition in SW19 will bring us into line with the other grand slams, and by increasing the practice facilities for the world's best players, we will bring fans even closer to the sport's best athletes."

The 2025 edition of Wimbledon, the last of tennis' four Grand Slams played on grass, saw Jannik Sinner win the men's title and Iga Swiatek lift the women's trophy.

This year's Wimbledon starts on June 29.

S.AbuJamous--SF-PST