Peter Shilton is back in the frame as Nottingham Forest’s City Ground expansion has been pushed back again, with planning approval now being worked toward for September 16. The delay keeps the redevelopment timetable moving later and stretches the wait before any building work can start.
Councillor Steve Battlemuch said: "I think another delay is disappointing for fans because the longer approval takes, the longer the building takes and the more seasons that new fans won't be able to get into the ground." Forest had originally told fans that planning approval was aimed for May, with initial enabling works expected this summer.
City Ground and Rushcliffe Borough Council
Recent planning documents now show Forest and Rushcliffe Borough Council working toward the later date. That leaves the approval process tied to September 16 instead of the club’s earlier target, and it pushes back the first stage of work on the Peter Taylor Stand expansion and the Trent End corners.
The opening phase is designed to take capacity to 45,000 from the current 30,000. The wider project would go further, with the Peter Taylor Stand rebuilt to 58 metres and overall capacity set to rise to 52,500 by 2033. Those numbers make the delay more than a paper change; they move back the point at which those extra seats can become usable.
Steve Battlemuch on the delay
Battlemuch, a Nottingham Labour city councillor and Forest fan, said the hold-up has already gone on too long. "It's been going on for far too long, but obviously Forest came up with very ambitious new plans and that's caused certain people to put objections in, so I think the council just want to make sure they've got answers to all the questions," he said.
He also pointed to Forest’s wider ambitions around the site. "The club has got big ambitions to have hospitality and conferencing at the ground, so whether the purchase is to expand that stand further back or to have different car parking facilities available, I don't know, but I think it shows the ambition of the owner that they want that whole area around the ground to be available."
Forest and the £5 million purchase
The latest delay comes after Forest bought the freehold for the Environment Agency’s Trentside offices for £5 million. Battlemuch said that move signalled how much of the area around the ground the owner wants under Forest’s control.
Forest first unveiled City Ground expansion plans in 2019, received approval in the summer of 2025 and then unveiled even more ambitious plans in December 2025. The new timetable, the £500 million first phase and the later £300 million second phase now all sit behind the September 16 target, with the £63,000 council budget agreed to cover staff working hours as the process continues.
