Nottingham Forest’s long-running plans to redevelop the City Ground have developed from a replacement stand and apartment scheme into a proposed transformation of three sides of the stadium.
If the latest applications are approved and all phases are completed, the capacity of Forest’s riverside home could eventually rise from just over 31,000 to 52,500.
The scheme would also bring significant changes outside the ground, including reduced stadium parking, possible matchday restrictions across surrounding residential areas, new park-and-ride packages and potentially fewer traffic lanes on Trent Bridge.
However, several elements remain proposals rather than confirmed changes. The principal stadium applications are still being considered by Rushcliffe Borough Council, while parking controls and alterations to Trent Bridge would require separate agreement and consultation.
Here is how the plans have developed.
The original City Ground redevelopment
Forest first unveiled plans to redevelop the City Ground in 2019.
The centrepiece was the demolition of the existing Peter Taylor Stand and its replacement with a larger five-storey stand accommodating around 10,000 supporters.
That proposal would have increased the stadium’s overall capacity from approximately 30,500 to about 35,000.
The scheme also included expanded hospitality areas, the demolition of the existing club shop and Champion Centre, improvements to the public space around the stadium and the removal of the nearby Britannia Boathouse.
A residential development was proposed on adjoining land to help support the wider project. The original submission envisaged up to 250 homes, although this was later reduced to approximately 170 apartments with commercial units at ground-floor level.
The plans encountered delays involving land ownership, the replacement of Nottingham Rowing Club’s facilities, environmental assessments and negotiations between Forest and Nottingham City Council, which owned the stadium freehold.
Approval in 2022
Rushcliffe Borough Council’s planning committee approved the original redevelopment in July 2022, with nine councillors voting in favour and two against.
Full permission covered the replacement Peter Taylor Stand, public realm, club shop and associated stadium works. Outline permission was granted for the residential development.
Work did not begin before the consent approached its expiry date, however, and the proposals returned to the planning process in 2025.
During that period, Forest’s promotion to the Premier League and growing demand for tickets led the club to consider a substantially larger development.
Land negotiations and a possible move away
A separate issue concerned ownership of the land beneath the stadium.
Nottingham City Council had been charging Forest £250,000 a year in rent, but a proposed increase to £1 million contributed to an impasse between the parties.
The uncertainty prompted discussions about whether Forest could leave the City Ground, with land at Toton among the possible alternative locations considered.
In July 2024, the city council agreed to make the City Ground freehold available for sale to Forest.
Forest said any purchase would be conditional on securing the planning permissions needed to deliver its larger stadium ambitions.
The 2025 version
The Peter Taylor Stand and apartment plans returned to Rushcliffe Borough Council in June 2025, largely because of the time that had passed since the original approval.
The residential element had been revised to 169 apartments, comprising 88 one-bedroom, 76 two-bedroom and five three-bedroom homes. Seven commercial units and 67 parking spaces were also proposed.
The plans were approved again, with an updated Section 106 agreement covering matters including transport, education, sports facilities and the replacement rowing facilities.
At that point, the scheme remained focused on a stadium of around 35,000 seats.
The apartments were later dropped as Forest developed a more ambitious stadium-only proposal.
The latest plan: first 45,000, then 52,500
In January 2026, Forest submitted two new linked applications for a stadium holding as many as 52,500 supporters.
These replace the earlier model centred on the Peter Taylor Stand and residential development.
The first is a detailed application covering:
- Demolition and complete replacement of the Peter Taylor Stand
- New lower, middle and upper seating tiers
- Infilling of the corners beside the Trent End
- Expanded hospitality and event facilities
- New public plazas and riverside spaces
- Improvements to walking and cycling routes
- Demolition of the existing shop, Champion Centre and two boathouses
This phase would increase the City Ground’s capacity to approximately 45,000.
The new Peter Taylor Stand would dominate the southern side of the ground. Its roof would rise to around 67 metres, with a sculptural arch reaching approximately 82 metres at its highest point.
The design includes a continuous red roof and stone cladding intended to reference Nottingham’s sandstone architecture.
More than 5,500 hospitality seats are proposed across the redeveloped parts of the stadium, with facilities designed to accommodate conferences, community uses and other events outside matchdays.
The second application seeks outline permission to demolish and rebuild the Brian Clough Stand at a later date.
That phase could provide up to another 7,500 seats, taking the final capacity to 52,500 and creating a more complete wraparound stadium.
Forest’s indicative programme envisages the Peter Taylor Stand and Trent End works being completed for the start of the 2030/31 season. The Brian Clough Stand could follow by the beginning of the 2033/34 season.
Those dates remain dependent on planning permission, construction arrangements and the delivery of the different phases.
Riverside and public spaces
The latest plans are not limited to the seating areas.
Forest wants to open previously inaccessible riverside land, improve the Trent Valley Way and provide larger pedestrian plazas around the Peter Taylor Stand.
The existing Peter Taylor Stand car park would largely disappear and be replaced by public space.
Walking and cycling routes around the stadium would be widened or reorganised to accommodate the substantially larger crowds expected before and after matches.
A separate planning application has also been submitted for a new three-storey club shop near the stadium. No customer or staff parking is proposed as part of that development.
Homes acquired for enabling works
Forest has secured permission to demolish five vacant properties it owns near the ground.
The properties are at 27 Rosebery Avenue and 17, 19, 21 and 23 Colwick Road.
The demolition is intended to allow utility, infrastructure and site-preparation work to be undertaken before the main construction programme.
Rushcliffe Borough Council’s decision allows the houses to be demolished, but it does not grant permission for the wider stadium redevelopment.
Parking at the City Ground
A central part of Forest’s transport strategy is reducing the number of supporters driving directly to the stadium.
The City Ground currently has around 375 spaces, including 41 accessible bays. The proposals would remove 143 and leave approximately 232.
Parking beside the Peter Taylor Stand would fall from 152 spaces to nine, allowing most of the land to become a pedestrian plaza.
On matchdays, the remaining stadium parking would be pre-booked and largely restricted to operational staff, disabled visitors and VIPs. General supporter parking inside the ground would end.
Cycle parking would increase from ten to 140 spaces.
Matchday parking controls across West Bridgford
An initial Stadium Event Day Controlled Parking Zone could cover around 4,800 currently unrestricted on-street spaces across parts of West Bridgford, Lady Bay and areas north of the River Trent.
The suggested zone would operate for eight hours on event days, beginning four hours before kick-off and ending four hours afterwards – normally around two hours after the final whistle.
It could reserve spaces for residents and businesses with permits and extend existing restrictions on matchdays.
Forest’s assessment says the measures could reduce drivers searching for spaces or using residential streets close to the ground.
The club would also stop officially directing supporters towards independent car parks that accept cash or payment on arrival. Drivers would instead be encouraged to use pre-booked parking, park-and-ride sites and larger car parks outside West Bridgford and Lady Bay.
No controlled parking zone has been approved. Its boundary, hours, permit system, funding and enforcement arrangements would require agreement between the relevant councils and consultation with residents and businesses.
The proposed £7 park-and-ride package
Forest wants to work with Nottingham Express Transit to offer a combined parking and tram package costing about £7 per vehicle.
The price would include a reserved space and tram travel for the driver and up to three passengers.
The proposed participating tram sites are:
- Clifton
- Forest
- Wilkinson Street
- Phoenix Park
- Moor Bridge
- Hucknall
- Toton Lane
Supporters would be encouraged to leave the tram at Meadows Embankment and walk for around 30 minutes to the City Ground using Wilford Suspension Bridge.
More than 5,000 spaces are available across the seven tram-connected sites, while Forest’s assessment says the three nearest sites have remained well below capacity on matchdays.
Forest is also proposing matchday shuttle buses from Queen’s Drive and Racecourse park-and-ride sites.
Queen’s Drive buses would drop passengers near Wilford Suspension Bridge, around a 12-minute walk from the stadium. Racecourse services would stop near the Brian Clough Stand.
The proposed shuttles would operate every ten minutes, or when full, from three hours before kick-off and after the match.
Other parking locations
The transport assessment identifies more than 11,000 spaces within a 20-minute walk of the City Ground or a short tram journey.
Nottingham railway station and Nottingham Emmanuel School are among the sites that could be promoted routinely. Parking at Meadows Embankment and Meadow Lane could be advertised when higher demand was expected.
The assessment assumes public matchday parking at County Hall would be discontinued, although parking for staff working at County Hall and the Environment Agency offices could remain.
Two traffic lanes could be removed from Trent Bridge
One of the most significant transport options involves the permanent removal of one traffic lane in each direction across Trent Bridge.
The space would be converted into protected pedestrian areas to accommodate larger numbers walking between the City Ground, Nottingham railway station and the city centre.
Forest’s consultants considered 12 traffic-management arrangements before narrowing these down. Temporary measures, including a post-match contraflow, were reportedly ruled out by highway authorities on safety and network-impact grounds.
The transport assessment says the acceptable option would be a permanent increase in pedestrian space, leaving one lane for general traffic in each direction.
Modelling predicted localised increases in weekday journey times. The largest strategic increases were between 42 and 46 seconds on routes into Nottingham during the morning peak, while detailed modelling forecast delays of about 30 to 35 seconds around Radcliffe Road and the southern end of Trent Bridge.
Consultants concluded the arrangement would not have a significant adverse effect on the wider highway network and could improve safety by separating supporters from vehicles after major events.
The lane reduction is not approved. It is an option contained in the transport assessment and would require the agreement of the highway authorities before it could proceed.
What has actually been approved?
The distinction between the different plans is important.
The smaller Peter Taylor Stand and apartment development received planning approval in 2022 and was approved in revised form again in 2025.
Forest has since moved away from that scheme and submitted the more extensive stadium-focused applications.
Permission has been secured for the demolition of five vacant houses near the ground, but that decision covers enabling work only.
The full application for the Peter Taylor Stand, Trent End corners and associated public realm, together with the outline Brian Clough Stand application, remains under consideration.
The matchday controlled parking zone, £7 park-and-ride package, shuttle buses and changes to Trent Bridge are supporting transport proposals. They are not yet confirmed schemes.
If every phase ultimately proceeds, Forest would remain at the City Ground while transforming it from a stadium of just over 31,000 seats into a 52,500-capacity ground, accompanied by some of the most significant matchday transport changes seen in West Bridgford for decades.
