On Tuesday night, Colne F.C. were granted the freehold for their ground at Holt House. This decision came around after the club had requested the freehold to help them attract investment and grow. Despite requests to the former Labour and Liberal Democrat administration, the club were denied the freehold.
During the local election campaign, the Conservatives pledged to grant the freehold to Colne F.C. and on Tuesday, they delivered on that pledge.
Leader of Pendle Council, Cllr Paul White, commented, “I’m delighted to have been able to deliver so quickly on the pledge we made during the local elections. Colne FC wanted the freehold to be able to continue thrive and grow as a club and I’m glad that the Conservatives have are helping them to deliver that.”
Despite the pledge being very popular with residents across Colne during the election, both the Labour and Liberal Democrat Councillors voted to block the move at the Policy and Resource Committee.
Cllr Joe Cooney, Conservative Councillor for Vivary Bridge, commented, “I’ve been a big advocate for Colne F.C. to get the freehold on their ground and I’m delighted to be part of the new administration delivering that. Like many Colners, I want to see our local team succeed and giving them stability, safe in the knowledge their ground is theirs, helps them to do that.”
The Council will now enter the final negotiations with the Club which will ensure both Colne F.C. and Pendle Council are satisfied with the agreement and the ground is safe for years to come.