Don't Show Woolsington Woods the Red Card
The Issue
The Woolsington Estate, a Grade II-listed park and garden in the Newcastle Green Belt, has just been bought by Newcastle United Football Club.
The estate, which is in the Ouseburn Catchment wildlife corridor, is earmarked for a £190million training ground for Premier League football.
The historic wood pasture and parkland contains a mosaic of habitats, including grassland, wetland and mature broadleaf woodland and veteran trees, which support bats, birds and invertebrates.
The trees and woodlands are protected by a Tree Preservation Order and Woolsington Woods is a Site of Local Conservation Interest. The area is important for breeding bird assemblages and provides habitat for Badger and Red Squirrel.
The Ouse Burn, one of the most significant wildlife havens in Newcastle, runs through the estate and supports Otter and Brown Trout.
A huge training ground here will likely see loss of mature and veteran trees and woodland and the further erosion of an increasingly fragmented wildlife corridor, as well as pesticide and chemical fertiliser run-off into watercourses and increased light and noise pollution.
The Woolsington Estate is a haven for wildlife and veteran trees: the last of its kind in Newcastle. Any development at Woolsington should protect and enhance the ecology of the area.
In 2016, Woolsington Hall - shamefully left to fall into disrepair since 1994 -burned down in mysterious circumstances, shortly after planning permission was granted to restore the hall. The plans, which would have included the loss of thousands of mature trees, caused huge controversy at the time.
Development of a new training ground at Woolsington could see the long overdue restoration of the Grade II-listed Hall, bringing one of Newcastle’s historic assets back into use. Indeed, NUFC has committed to delivering any development at Woolsington ‘sustainably and responsibly’.
No formal plans have been submitted, but it is difficult to see how such a huge development can accommodate such an ecologically sensitive area.
We must send a clear message to NUFC and Newcastle City Council - who will be responsible for approving any plans - that the natural environment must be front and centre of any development proposals at Woolsington.
Please add your name to urge NUFC and Newcastle City Council to protect and enhance important wildlife habitats in and around the Woolsington estate.
1,065
The Issue
The Woolsington Estate, a Grade II-listed park and garden in the Newcastle Green Belt, has just been bought by Newcastle United Football Club.
The estate, which is in the Ouseburn Catchment wildlife corridor, is earmarked for a £190million training ground for Premier League football.
The historic wood pasture and parkland contains a mosaic of habitats, including grassland, wetland and mature broadleaf woodland and veteran trees, which support bats, birds and invertebrates.
The trees and woodlands are protected by a Tree Preservation Order and Woolsington Woods is a Site of Local Conservation Interest. The area is important for breeding bird assemblages and provides habitat for Badger and Red Squirrel.
The Ouse Burn, one of the most significant wildlife havens in Newcastle, runs through the estate and supports Otter and Brown Trout.
A huge training ground here will likely see loss of mature and veteran trees and woodland and the further erosion of an increasingly fragmented wildlife corridor, as well as pesticide and chemical fertiliser run-off into watercourses and increased light and noise pollution.
The Woolsington Estate is a haven for wildlife and veteran trees: the last of its kind in Newcastle. Any development at Woolsington should protect and enhance the ecology of the area.
In 2016, Woolsington Hall - shamefully left to fall into disrepair since 1994 -burned down in mysterious circumstances, shortly after planning permission was granted to restore the hall. The plans, which would have included the loss of thousands of mature trees, caused huge controversy at the time.
Development of a new training ground at Woolsington could see the long overdue restoration of the Grade II-listed Hall, bringing one of Newcastle’s historic assets back into use. Indeed, NUFC has committed to delivering any development at Woolsington ‘sustainably and responsibly’.
No formal plans have been submitted, but it is difficult to see how such a huge development can accommodate such an ecologically sensitive area.
We must send a clear message to NUFC and Newcastle City Council - who will be responsible for approving any plans - that the natural environment must be front and centre of any development proposals at Woolsington.
Please add your name to urge NUFC and Newcastle City Council to protect and enhance important wildlife habitats in and around the Woolsington estate.
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Petition created on 29 August 2026