Nottingham Forest have submitted plans for a new three-storey club shop close to the City Ground in West Bridgford.
The proposed building would be constructed on vacant land at 13-17 Radcliffe Road, at its junction with Pavilion Road and opposite Trent Bridge Cricket Ground.
The site was previously occupied by a petrol station, which has since been demolished. Remediation work has been carried out, and the land is currently covered mainly by concrete and tarmac.
Under the plans submitted to Rushcliffe Borough Council, the new building would replace Forest’s existing shop further along Pavilion Road.
Retail space would occupy the ground and first floors, while the second floor would contain offices, meeting rooms, staff facilities and storage. The ground floor would also include a customer toilet, accessible fitting room and a small grab-and-go food and drink kiosk.
The proposed building would have a total gross internal floor area of 1,449.6 square metres, divided equally across the three floors.
Plans show a curved corner frontage facing the Radcliffe Road and Pavilion Road junction, with extensive ground-floor glazing and a canopy around the customer entrances. The exterior would include grey brick slips, insulated cladding panels and a red perforated metal screen.
The building has been designed to sit below the ridge height of the neighbouring William Gunn pub. An open forecourt with trees, planting, paving and seating is proposed between the shop and Radcliffe Road.
The main customer entrance would be reached from Radcliffe Road using level and gently sloping access. A passenger lift would serve all three floors, with escalators connecting the two retail floors. Accessible toilets and fitting facilities are included.
No customer or staff car parking would be provided on the site. The applicant’s transport statement says the location is well served by buses and pedestrian routes, with connections to tram and rail services at Nottingham station.
Covered cycle parking would be provided for staff behind the building, with additional cycle stands for customers on the forecourt.
Delivery vehicles would use the site’s two existing accesses from Radcliffe Road, entering through the western access and leaving through the eastern one. These accesses would be controlled by removable bollards and restricted to deliveries.
The transport assessment says the development would not generate a material increase in journeys because it would replace the club’s existing shop.
The site lies within Flood Zone 3, which is the Environment Agency category covering land with a higher probability of flooding. A flood-risk assessment and sustainable drainage strategy have therefore been submitted with the application. The plans also allocate roof space for solar panels.
The land has been the subject of several earlier development proposals. Rushcliffe Borough Council granted permission in 2013 for a three-storey development containing shops, restaurants or takeaways on the ground floor and six flats above.
A later application for a mixed-use building containing a commercial unit and apartments was withdrawn in October 2022. Neither scheme was built.
The club shop plans are also linked in the submitted documents to Forest’s wider proposals for the City Ground. A separate planning application seeks permission to redevelop the Peter Taylor Stand and Trent End, increase the stadium’s capacity and carry out associated public-realm work.
The club shop design statement says the Radcliffe Road building is intended to serve as an entrance point on the approach to the stadium. However, the shop and stadium redevelopment are covered by separate planning applications and will require their own decisions.
Forest’s design team did not seek formal pre-application advice from the council before submitting the club shop scheme. The documents say this was because the project was being brought forward alongside the wider stadium programme.
The club shop application has not yet been determined. Rushcliffe Borough Council will assess the proposals before deciding whether planning permission should be granted, refused or approved subject to conditions.
More information here: Design and Access – Club shop
