National League new boys Hornchurch reveal plans for a much needed stadium redevelopment and ambitions for the 2026/27 season.
Earlier this month, The Urchins won promotion to the fifth tier after beating Torquay United 3-2 after extra time in the National League South playoff final, coming back from 2-1 down with a late equaliser in the second half then won it in the 117th minute.
So now, the club are making plenty of changes in preparation for life in the National League, the stadium, the structure, and the ticket prices.
Following our interview with our Chairman Alex Sharp, we are pleased to share our redevelopment plans of Hornchurch Stadium.
We have commenced discussions with the London Borough of Havering Council regarding our development proposals to establish planning requirements and… pic.twitter.com/dDd7jFZCIN
— Hornchurch FC (@HornchurchFC) May 23, 2026
CLUB STATEMENT:
Hornchurch Football Club are pleased to share our redevelopment plans of Hornchurch Stadium.As shared in our interview with the club chairman Alex Sharp, due to our promotion to the National League, our home will need to be redeveloped to meet the Step 1 Ground Grading criteria by 31st March 2027.
We have commenced discussions with the London Borough of Havering Council regarding our development proposals to establish planning requirements and likely timelines.
However, due to the extent of the works, we must advise supporters the stadium’s capacity and arrangements may differ game-to-game. This will be communicated throughout the upcoming season.
These proposals are subject to change following consultations with the relevant stakeholders.
A high-level summary of the works required are;
The Riverside will be completely redeveloped and replaced with a new covered terrace, complete with a new TV Gantry.
A new away entrance is to be built, complete with supporting WC and catering facilities, at the Windmill End of the stadium.
The Eastside terracing is to be demolished and replaced with seating.
The Directors Box is to be refurbished/ replaced.
A new boardroom is to be installed.
A further update will be provided in due course.
You can see the proposed plans here;
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Timestamps:0:00 Season Reflections3:33 Stadium Plans6:36 Changes in the Club Structure10:00 Ticket Prices12:06 Season Ambitions14:21 Message to the Fans
Interviewer: “Thank you for your time, Alex. Firstly, now the dust has settled. Has it sunk in that we were playing a National League in August?
Alex: “Yeah. Well, firstly, thanks Jordan and good afternoon. Yeah, it has. I think it was you know, it was a long season really.
“So we had quite a lot of time to contemplate what could happen and I think you know the fact that we were even on the last day of the season was still in the running to go up as champions.
“I think kind of it made it very real that there was a prospect of us being promoted and yeah as we know we kind of went into the playoff setup on the final day of the season and finishing second I think was probably just about right.
“I think we had a great season, probably did exceed all of our expectations, but finishing second was something that in the first instance we could be very proud of.
“Getting into the playoffs, you know, we don’t have a good record in the playoffs as many of the long-suffering Urchins fans will know.
“But I just had a bit of a different feel about it this this season and I think you know the Weston game we were well up for it and I think you know having you know spent a bit of time with Colin and Daryl around the the training and the players you could see that they were really up for it that they felt confident.
“I do think we were helped out by Weston having had to play the the midweek game and going to extra time and penalties that they looked exhausted. It take nothing away from our players. I thought we completely bossed the game and deserve to win.
“But we knew the final would be tough and I think from my perspective probably the best bit was was when you know was starting to express their displeasure at the game being at Bridge Avenue because it’s you know from our point of view we just quietly went about our preparation trained for the match for the day and and whilst we were listening all that kind we didn’t make any comment about it. We didn’t feel we needed to.
“The rules were very clear that whoever finished second had the home tie and that was what we did and you know there’s a reason why it’s called home advantage and I thought we really made it pay on the day and 2-1 I don’t know I think that was the only point where I thought maybe we might not do it and because I thought up until the second goal went in for to I thought we’d been the better team second half was a bit nondescript up until that point and then 10 minutes from time when they scored, you know, I thought to myself, we’ve made a good account of ourselves. I think we’ve had an excellent season. If it was to end now, it wouldn’t be the worst result in the world.
“But you you could see the players, we’re renowned at this club for never giving up on on all fronts, not just on the pitch. And when Henry got the equaliser, and I personally was delighted for him. I think it’s it’s been a tough season for Henry with injuries and and everything else. So delighted for Henry to get the goal and to me at that point there was only ever going to be one winner and I knew it wouldn’t go for penalties at two all.
“You could see the life draining out of the toe players and I just think the interesting stat there, you know, we were only ahead in that game for three minutes and it sums up the spirit of Hornchurch.”
Alex on the stadium plans: “Well I suppose the most obvious one is the ground. So, you know, there’s different requirements to be in the National League to National League South.
“And, you know, obviously we made the ground requirements for the National League South, otherwise we wouldn’t have been out play, but even just to get into the playoffs, we had to put a plan forward that showed how we would achieve the National League ground grading requirements to get into the playoffs.
“And we did that. That was accepted by the league and the Football League and so now the hard work commences because we we’ve essentially got to add a thousand capacity to the ground which we’ll do predominantly by redeveloping the river side of the stadium and I think that may come as a surprise to a few people because obviously there’s, it’s fairly well known that I’ve acquired a site just over a mile from here which with the intention of building a new stadium for the club.
“That is delayed at the moment in red tape with the council where we’re being caught out on the technicality of green belt land where you can build football and sports centres on green belt land but the the big issue comes with the sustainable travel policy where it’s based on the capacity of the ground.
“So the ground that I’ve had designed for over there is 5,000 capacity and it’s 80% of that. So 4,000 people that we’d have to have either buses or train routes or walkable distance to get to the ground and we can’t currently achieve that. So the council are trying to help us by reclassifying the land as gray belt rather than green belt but that process can take a year and it’s not guaranteed that it would be successful and then we’ve probably got about a 30 week planning process once that’s in place.
“So the reality is we’re probably two years away from being able to develop that site. So so that doesn’t work with the timings for the National League.
“You have a timeline of March 2027 put on you to to achieve the ground grading. So we’re having to move forward with a plan to develop this stadium.
“There’s various other things as well, turn styles will be required at the opposite end for segregation and for separate entry for the away fans, and and then there’s some general redevelopment around the ground that we would need to do as well.
“So I’m in discussions with the council at the moment regarding that and looking at the various mechanisms looking at what approvals we would need to do it and uh and then generally making sure that we can pull a plan together that all parties are agreeable to us the Football League and the council in terms of doing these improvements to the ground.
“So, so the short-term plan will be that we’ll develop Bridge Avenue to meet the National League requirements.”
Watch the rest of the interview further up in the article to find out the changes in the club structure, ticket prices, season ambitions and a message to the fans ⬆️⬆️
