Wrexham's Training Ground Controversy: Councillor's Rebuke

Wrexham have been told in no uncertain terms to “get their act in order” after pushing ahead with work on their new training ground without full planning approval.

The rebuke came from councillor Mike Morris, chair of Gresford community council’s planning committee, who used a recent meeting to spell out his frustration at the club’s approach.

Councillor blasts ‘retrospective’ approach

At the centre of the row is a new pavilion at Wrexham’s training site. Building work had already started before the club submitted a retrospective planning application last month, a sequence that left Morris unimpressed.

“I do wish that people would get their act in order and not put in retrospective applications just because it suits you,” he said, making clear that on-field success offered no shield from local rules. In his view, the club pressed ahead because it wanted the job done in the summer, regardless of the planning timetable.

“You wanted to do it in the summer, and you know the fact you’ve had good results, and you know the football club is doing very well, we all applaud that,” he continued, “but it’s no excuse for not following the procedure properly.”

Morris stressed that Wrexham’s global profile under their high-profile owners would not buy them any special treatment in the council chamber.

“It’s no different to any other retrospective application,” he said. “So it will be a matter for members to consider whether they are going to support it or not, and that will come out in the debate.”

Club issues formal apology

Faced with the criticism, Wrexham’s chief strategy officer Aidan Miller moved quickly to apologise to both the committee and local residents.

Miller accepted that the club had not followed the ideal legal sequence, even if it believed it was acting in a practical way for the site and the community.

He explained that Wrexham had deliberately tried to squeeze the works into the summer off-season, when activity at the training ground is at its lowest, to keep disruption down.

“The club sought to undertake the works during the summer off-season period, when activity at the site is significantly reduced, allowing construction activity and associated impacts to be managed effectively and within the site footprint,” his statement read.

“The club recognises that planning permission would ordinarily be secured before development commences, and we sincerely apologise to the committee and local residents.”

Miller insisted that, despite the timing misstep, Wrexham had tried to behave responsibly: choosing an established sporting location, using existing infrastructure and designing the pavilion to limit the impact on neighbours and the wider area.

He added that the club had “engaged fully and thoroughly with the planning process”, pointing to pre-application consultation, talks with statutory consultees and responses to concerns over parking, highways and phosphate mitigation.

Off-field friction, on-field struggles

The planning dispute lands at an awkward moment for Phil Parkinson’s side.

While the owners push ahead with infrastructure plans and talk of long-term growth, results on the pitch have stalled. A brutal 6-0 defeat to West Ham United at the London Stadium has left Wrexham marooned in 16th, with just one win from their opening seven league games.

The contrast is stark. Ambitious building work, ambitious rhetoric, but a team searching for rhythm and confidence.

For now, the council will decide whether the pavilion can stay. The bigger question is whether Wrexham can match their off-field drive with performances that justify all this rapid expansion.