14/05/2024
🗞️ Club Statement from Peter McCormack:
Today, I informed the council and Mayor Tom Wootton that we are ceasing all negotiations with
them regarding our ground lease. I am also calling for Mayor Wootton’s immediate resignation
due to his unacceptable handling of this matter, specifically with the effective ban he wants to
place on women’s football.
This decision follows the receipt of new lease terms last Friday that are not only unreasonable
but discriminatory. The proposed terms include a significant, arbitrary increase in rent and
oppressive rules that could force us out of our current ground within three years. Most
disturbingly, the terms include clauses that ban women from playing football at our ground.
In January, after two years of lengthy negotiations that had concluded with agreed-upon terms,
the new Mayor instructed the council not to renew our lease. This instruction came after he met
with Bedford Town Football Club representatives and made plans to allocate our facilities to
them, a meeting held shortly after his induction as Mayor.
Despite these challenges, we pursued a renewal in good faith, agreeing to virtually all conditions
proposed by the council and all extensions they required to the deadline. It seemed we had
reached an agreement when Mayor Wootton finally consented to grant us a new 15-year lease on
April 26th. However, the terms we received last Friday were shocking:
• An excessive and uncompetitive rent increase, far surpassing that of our neighbours at
Bedford Town.
• A planned additional £10,000 annual rent increase from the third year, signalling a clear
intent to displace us without providing alternative grounds.
• Vague termination clauses that give the council undue power to evict us.
The most alarming clause states that the council will terminate our lease if our ground is used for
anything other than “senior men’s first-team football”, despite the council being fully aware of
our ladies’ team playing at the ground.
This is a direct attack on our women’s team, which has just won a league and cup double and is
contenders for a historic treble.
Read more on the club website.