Waltham Forest Council has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Leyton Orient Football Club. On its website the football club declares: “Leyton Orient partner with Waltham Forest Council to transform East London”. This grandiose pronouncement is expanded on further: “This landmark initiative represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create a world-class destination for English football, global sport, innovation and entertainment.” At the moment the O’s sit in the lower half of the third level of the English Football League. They consider their Brisbane Road stadium is too small for their ambitions.
Of course, sporting success is not the only consideration. Demolishing the stadium will provide an opportunity to make a handy profit out of its redevelopment just as it has for West Ham Football Club and Tottenham Hotspur Football Club! As they put it: “Relocating within the borough of Waltham Forest to a state-of-the-art venue could also pave the way for a vital new housing development on the current stadium site.” Given Waltham Forest’s penchant for tall buildings this will no doubt mean yet another set of towers on the east side of the Marshes.
All this raises the question of where this new ‘state-of-the-art venue’ will be? The council and the club say they will collaborate in “identifying a suitable site and progressing through the necessary legal, planning and construction stages.” The club wishes to move to a site near to Brisbane Road.
Speculation about possible sites includes New Spitalfields, Leyton Mills Retail Park and Eton Manor https://www.nelondoner.co.uk/sport/27102025-rolling-the-dice-fans-react-to-leyton-orients-potential-new-stadium. However, there is no indication that the City of London plans to move the market at New Spitalfields and Waltham Forest already has extensive plans for housing at Leyton Mills.
If existing concreted spaces are not available then there has to be concern that existing green open spaces or playing fields may be under threat. In the case of Eton Manor, unless building there means demolishing the existing LVRPA sports facilities this would involve the loss of Metropolitan Open Land green space. Even the demolition of those existing sports facilities might not provide sufficient land for a ‘state-of-the-art venue’.
As always in these cases, Leyton Orient say they are “committed to urban greening [and so-called] Biodiversity Net Gain. A new campus may include publicly accessible green spaces and pedestrian/cycle links to the wider area.” Plainly it is entirely unacceptable that Leyton Orient should be allowed to take over any existing green spaces or playing fields for their private use, as Spurs were given permission to do at Whitewebbs Park.
*Clarification 20/11/25: Thanks to a reader who has pointed out that the ground is not owned by Leyton Orient FC, so they will not profit from any redevelopment of the site. The ground is owned by Matchroom, which is owned by Barry Hearn, a previous owner of the club, and his son Eddie Hearn.
Eton Manor is NOT being speculated about for a new ground for Leyton Orient. In fact, I haven’t seen any speculation about a new ground there since Hearn talked about a possible new ground in the year 1997!!!
Leyton Orient and the council are not naming any sites at the moment, with speculation being confined to
Leyton Mills Shopping Centre
Spitalfields Fruit Market
Sainsbury’s (Walthamstow)
The club have signed a memorandum of understanding with the council and following a recent fans forum, it is hoped any preferential site will become public knowledge in the summer of 2026.
The current ground (following extensive due diligence) cannot be increased in terms of capacity (this is unfortunate as most fans would wish to stay) but under plans from the new owner, it is considered that a new ground has to be built and will be a multi purpose venue, possibly with housing, shops and or other venue(s) surrounding.
Thank you again. We posted an article in which Eton Manor was referred to so we think it is fair to say it is being considered by some people, possibly incorrectly. Thank you for pointing out that the list being discussed as far as you are aware does not include Eton Manor. Eton Manor has hosted Leyton Orient as a training ground in the past so it is not surprising that some may think this is a possible site now. This Leyton Orient forum site https://lofcforum.boards.net/thread/16415/new-stadium-location, which may be completely misinformed, includes speculation about Draper’s Field, Ive Farm and the Leyton Cricket site. We are glad to hear that these discussions seem to be incorrect. Please feel free to update us if or when you know more. We did discuss Leyton Mills and New Spitalfields. Leyton Mills would require a complete resetting of the existing planning framework and the probable loss of housing which may not suit Waltham Forest. The City of London has abandoned plans to move the Fruit Market so again this would require a change of mind by the City. Sainsbury’s in Walthamstow would be out of the area in terms of Orient’s present location. We look forward to hearing more.
Very poor research. We can’t make a handy profit out of selling our ground because we don’t own it
Thank you for that information. In fact, we were curious about the ownership of the site as we noted the club signed a new lease fairly recently. However, the ownership of the club also changed hands. Leyton Orient’s statement appeared to claim control when they said “Relocating within the borough of Waltham Forest to a state-of-the-art venue could also pave the way for a vital new housing development on the current stadium site.” But thank you for clarifying that.
It’s pretty unlikely to be on any green space so I wouldn’t worry about that too much.
You say LBWF have a penchant for tall buildings, yet you are concerned about building on green space. Without going up, how do you expect to build the number of new homes needed in the area if green space is out of the question?
Also Whitewebbs was a golf course that had fallen into disrepair, it had only been used as a park in the last four of five years as it regrew.
Orient are one of the most important institutions in the local community, we should be supporting their growth whilst creating a new place that benefits all of LBWF and the wider area.
Whitewebbs, including the former golf course, was purchased for the people of Enfield in 1931. The golf course was always publicly accessible and a much loved local green space, it was landscaped with trees, many of which are now veterans. Spurs are now on a collision course with the local community, and some Enfield fans are even abandoning the club after many years as supporters. This was completely unnecessary; Spurs already have 17 pitches, constructed on land in the Lee Valley Park which it could easily share with its women team, rather than exclude them!
If the new Leyton Orient stadium is not going to be located on green space then why have the club and council not said where it will be sited? We very much hope that it will not be on land in the Lee Valley Park, but recent history suggests many reasons to be wary.
Leyton Orient would do well to look to the examples of the legions of West Ham and Tottenham fans left disgruntled by their moves to much-lauded but problematic new stadium facilities. A new stadium may accommodate more people – but at what cost?
They havent stated where it will be for commercial reasons which is fairly standard.
We can appreciate people will have concerns over any new ground location but in the modern day a succesful football club, available leisure and community facilities can be of huge benefit to local residents.
As no sites have been named it is not worth speculating in my view.
Thank you for taking the time to comment. Sports fans will obviously be keen to see their clubs prosper. However, we do not necessarily agree that sports led development will bring the benefits claimed. Save Lea Marshes was born in opposition to the building of a temporary basketball arena on green space at Leyton Marsh. London 2012 Olympics made all kinds of claims of benefits which were and are simply untrue. We forgot to mention earlier that Waltham Forest wanted to build a lido at Low Hall which would have robbed the local community of green space. This and earlier plans to allow Secret Cinema to occupy green space at Low Hall caused great upset to people there. Developments of these kinds can have negative consequences and, given people’s experience of how the proposals can turn out, it is sensible for those who may be affected to be prepared!
thanks for your comment. As things stand we have no idea where Leyton Orient’s new stadium will be built. We point out that the sites which are being speculated on already have uses marked for them. One of these sites we refer to, Eton Manor, is a green space. Elsewhere people are speculating on other possible green spaces. We very much hope Leyton Orient does move to a concreted space.
However, it is reasonable to have concerns. Waltham Forest planning committee have allowed the substantial expansion of the Lee Valley Ice Centre on green space at Leyton Marsh and wanted to allow Secret Cinema to occupy green space at Low Hall during the pandemic. Whitewebbs is a green space and Spurs are seeking to take it over so it is reasonable to express concern and opposition to the possibility of something similar happening with Leyton Orient.
Regarding tall buildings, we are opposed to their construction near or overlooking open spaces, something Waltham Forest has been allowing on multiple locations along the east side of the Marshes. Enjoyment of green open space is important for people’s health and well being. Crowding such spaces with towers is detrimental to people’s health and the areas where towers are being erected in the south of Waltham Forest are already overcrowded and are the most deprived parts of the borough. The south of the borough also lacks small green spaces and people living there depend very much on the Marshes for relaxation.
Regarding the housing crisis, this is predominantly an affordability problem. Building lots of new housing that poor people cannot afford is not going to solve this problem. Waltham Forest is in fact building more housing than is required in the London Plan and little of it is affordable and even less is social housing. Waltham Forest’s main purpose in building is to raise council tax, as it explicitly stated in its response to the planning inspectors regarding their criticism of the council’s Local Plan.
We have no particular opposition to Leyton Orient’s proposed move per se, only to possible negative consequences. Whether it will provide the benefits claimed or hoped for is yet to be seen.