About Us
Computer generated images of proposed stadium
(click image to enlarge)
We are a diverse group of Barnet residents, largely living in and around Mill Hill. We have come together independently, to support plans announced by Saracens Rugby Club and Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers, for the regeneration of Copthall Stadium.
'Residents for Regeneration' have two simple aims; 1) to allay fears of over development and 2) to emphasise the community benefits, especially for local youth, presenting the facts in logical, calm manner.
"We don't see this as a threat, but rather as a golden opportunity to put the heart back into the community and give local kids in particular access to top class facilities and even more importantly, the chance to excel and gain self confidence" explained Mill Hill resident, Bruce Dickson. "We have been disappointed by the reaction of a minority of our fellow residents, who have focused largely on the potential for traffic problems, rather than working with those proposing the scheme to find acceptable solutions. However we hope this has been the result of a lack of accurate information, rather than selfish motivation. We have set up a website to help set the record straight and put people's minds at rest."
The group ranges in age from seventeen to almost seventy. We believe the plans are a much more suitable solution than the much larger stadium designs, proposed a decade ago, with the added advantage of the facility being available for schools and community groups for the majority of the time. "The Barnet FC plans were for a stadium twice the size of this one and would have involved significant intrusion into the greenbelt. I would personally have opposed that scale of development" says Barnet resident, Monica Dorozynska. "This is completely different. Athletics can still take place on the new track, so improvements that have already been made, won't be wasted. We can't afford to ignore a £10 million investment in the area, when we will all be as much the beneficiaries, as Saracens and Barnet Shaftesbury Harriers! Where else is the money going to come from? Why would the athletics club support the plans if they were going to be at all disadvantaged? Why would all the local schools?"
Taken from a press release issued March 2010
Thank you to everyone who attended the informal meeting at Quench Cafe on Thursday 28th April.
Safe For The Future
▲ Back to the topA WELCOME INVESTMENT OF £18 MILLION IN COPTHALL STADIUM In THESE DIFFICULT ECONOMIC TIMES!
THE CREATION OF A FACILITY WE CAN FINALLY BE PROUD OF
A NEW HEART FOR MILL HILL, HENDON and BARNET, SAFE FOR THE FUTURE AND FOR OUR CHILDREN – JUST AS IT WAS ORIGINALLY INTENDED TO BE!
This is a welcome investment in Copthall Stadium in difficult financial times and secures the future of an amazing, year round venue, for use by our community
The plan by Saracens and Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers to share Copthall Stadium and invest £18 million in creating excellent facilities, and make them available to our community with the exception of 16 matchdays, a year is a wonderful opportunity.
Copthall Stadium currently costs the council up to £350,000 each year, not to fund improvements, but just to maintain it! All the track improvements and costly investment (mainly provided by Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers, such as the photo-finish camera equipment) will REMAIN. THE INVESTMENT WILL NOT BE WASTED!
The A Class certification so often quoted by the opponents of the scheme as evidence that the stadium is already an excellent venue, actually applies to technical specifications for Athletics use. IT DOES NOT APPLY TO THE CURRENT STATE OF THE BUILDINGS OR FACILITIES.
The stadium will indeed by given a new lease of life and the facilities will really become A class in every sense!
It will have:
- A year round, indoor training centre with new track, jump pit and throwing cage.
- Floodlit external areas for throws and jumps for all year usage
- A cross country/endurance training slope
- It will be open far longer than currently – which is limited to two days a week. It will be open Monday to Friday from 9 am to 9pm.
Saracens are planning to invest up to £18 million in providing us with a true heart for our community, safe for the future; for this generation and the next.
AND IT WONT COST ANY OF US ONE SINGLE PENNY!!!!
No More Uncertainty
▲ Back to the topIT IS ONLY HALF THE SIZE OF THE PREVIOUS STADIUM, PLANNED TEN YEARS AGO, FOR A MUCH MORE INTRUSIVE DEVELOPMENT BY BARNET FOOTBALL CLUB. This is a modest 10,000 seat stadium. Two of the four stands would be completely removed for a quarter of the year, during the summer when most of the athletics meets take place. Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers are FULLY BEHIND THE SCHEME. It is much more in keeping with the area and IT SITS WITHIN THE EXISTING STADIUM PARAMETERS. THERE IS NO THREAT TO THE GREENBELT.
IF SARACENS DO REGENERATE THE STADIUM - THERE WILL NO LONGER BE ANY QUESTION OF BARNET FC BUILDING SOMETHING MUCH BIGGER!!!!
For 'big games' such as finals or semi finals – Saracens will continue to use Wembley – as they have already done for the past two years!
Local Support
▲ Back to the topLocal businesses throughout the area will benefit – from restaurants, pubs and wine bars, to grocers and greengrocers, takeaways and supermarkets.
Local schools are massively in favour as they will earn valuable income from satellite car parking – over £6,000 per school, per season! Add to that the free use of the stadium – when at the moment they are paying £1.65 per child per session!
Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers, together with Local schools, Sports Clubs, Sport England, LOCOG (the London Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games) are all in favour of the scheme.
http://www.saracens.com/sarriestv/?Id=402
Trojan Horse?
▲ Back to the top15,000 fans to break even? Will it mean a bigger stadium in the future? NO!
Here's the root of the Trojan Horse Scare Story ……
Opponents of the scheme trumpet Saracens' CEO, Edward Griffiths saying Saracens need 15,000 to make a profit. This was selectively taken from an article in the Guardian published on 7th March 2009, just after the South African investment and at a time of great upheaval. At that point the club had not made any decision about where they would play in future, and there was still a faint hope that Vicarage Road in Watford could somehow attract bigger crowds, if the team started to perform better. The full quote reads:
'The last home game, against Sale, attracted a crowd of 8,311. The only other Premiership game at Vicarage Road this year drew 5,881. Griffiths advises that 15,000 is the figure required to turn a modest profit.'
The 15,000 attendance figure was then re-quoted, in Watford Observer a year later – but still applied to Vicarage Road in Watford. IT DOES NOT APPLY TO COPTHALL!
Note that the article actually says that the crowds at Watford were considerably less than 10,000. This contnues to be the case. The average Saracens crowd at Watford this season has been around 7,000. The opponents of regeneration at Copthall didn't bother to point that out! If you read the article it is clear that all computations refer to Saracens' costs whilst playing at Watford.
There is no reference to Copthall – because of course, at that time, there was no plan to revive the Barnet Copthall stadium!
Again this is typical of the hysteria and misinformation from those opposing this scheme. It is inaccurate – and totally misleading!
Why don't Saracens just stay at Watford?
As you've already seen – the crowds simply don't come to see Rugby in Watford. Saracens have done everything possible to try to attract local fans. Saracens is, in essence and history a North London Club which started in 1876 in Hampstead, then was based for many years round the corner in Southgate, at Bramley Road, where the amateur club still plays. Bramley Road is simply not suitable for development as a rugby ground.
Watford Football club has now activated the break clause in Saracens' contract with them – in other words, Saracens cannot stay at Vicarage Road!
Another misleading quote from the nay-sayers, is from the London Evening Standard of the 1st April 2010 – over a year ago. It says:
"However, we are looking at possible alternatives in terms of sharing because the cost of a new build is prohibitive. We are studying options because playing at Watford is nowhere near sustainable."
Taken out of context, we agree this could be interpreted as meaning the club is looking to share with a football club, or perhaps another rugby club – but we would urge you to read the full article.
With hindsight it is clear that the club was already talking to Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers about the possibility of sharing Copthall with them! It also makes it crystal clear that even at that stage, the costs associated with Watford were unsustainable. Saracens had already learned their lessons about sharing with a Football Club. It had not worked.
This year, average crowds at Watford are even smaller than those quoted in that article, only around 7,000 a match.
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