Surrey reveal £50m redevelopment of the Kia Oval

Surrey have submitted a planning application for the first stage of the £50million redevelopment of the Kia Oval.

The proposals, CGI images of which were released today, would raise the capacity of the ground by 2,500 to 28,000 by April 2021 and come as the county announced record profits of £3.6m.

Part one of the redevelopment will cost £26m and result in the Peter May Stand extended to join the Micky Stewart Members’ Pavilion, which will also have an extra wing added.

On top of the Peter May Stand, two tiers will be added - to be named Lock and Laker to recognise that the Lock-Laker Stand that once joined the Peter May Stand and the Pavilion will no longer exist. There will also be further roof terracing, while a building called 1 Oval Square will curve the perimeter of the ground.

“We are really excited by this project,” Richard Gould, Surrey’s chief executive, told Standard Sport.

“We keep selling more tickets, both for Surrey’s T20 cricket and when England play here, so we have a lot of demand out there and not enough seats. The natural thing is to keep growing to meet that demand.”

The hope is that the application will be approved by Lambeth council this autumn, with work beginning a year later after a huge summer of cricket in 2019 during which The Oval will play an important part in the Ashes and the World Cup, where it will host the opening game (England v South Africa). The following summer, 2020, the ground’s capacity will be reduced to 22,000, with Ireland visiting for an ODI and West Indies for a Test.

The Oval is also a host venue for the ECB’s new concept “The Hundred”, which is due to launch that year.

Surrey’s ambitious plans do not end with their capacity of 28,000 in 2021. The club hope to redevelop the Bedser Stand, which sits on the

Harleyford Road side of the Pavilion End and currently has only 1,800 seats.

There is much scope for increased seating there, because it has plenty of offices and corporate sections; by the time the whole redevelopment is completed (possibly in time for the 2023 Ashes), the hope is that the ground will have a capacity deep into the 30,000s, making it the biggest cricket ground in the country.

“We are taking a phased approach, we don’t want to extend ourselves financially,” said Gould. “We know that with the growth of audience that we are seeing, we need that extra capacity as soon as possible. We will move forward again as soon as we achieve sell-out with the bigger crowd this creates.”

The architects are Kennington-based Rolfe Judd (who designed the new Peter May Stand, which opened in 2016) and the design follows the template for the front of the Pavilion, which was put in four years ago. The update to the 1890s building won architectural awards and has since been listed.

The redevelopment, which was revealed to the club’s members (who, like local residents, have been consulted over the last year) at their AGM last night, also provides Surrey with an opportunity to extend their conference and events facilities, with scope for hosting events for more than 700 guests.

Surrey are also the preferred bidder on the site of the Ovalhouse Theatre and the neighbouring White House, which sit across Harleyford Road near Oval Station. The club’s plan for the White House, which is Grade 2 listed and was the birthplace of Viscount “Monty” Montgomery of Alamein in 1887, is to develop living accommodation for young players, while Surrey are looking at a “variety of commercial uses” for Ovalhouse. The theatre itself will remain local to Lambeth, moving to a site opposite Brixton Village in 2020.

The record profits announced at the AGM will be reinvested in the club and the redevelopment of the ground. With the Champions Trophy in town, the Kia Oval hosted 10 ODIs in 2017 and the 100th Test in its 173-year history, while Surrey also sold out five of its seven home T20 Blast matches.

“The last year was a superb year for the club and these financial results - the largest profits in our club’s history - are testament to the work of our entire staff,” said Richard Thompson, the chairman. “Generating profits like these enable us to maintain and increase the investment in our playing squad and our work to create new generations of Surrey and England cricketers.”

Standard Sport also understands that Surrey plan to continue running the Surrey Stars women’s T20 team, despite the arrival of the ECB’s controversial new competition, “The Hundred”, which appeared to leave the Kia Super League - and its teams - redundant. Despite not knowing what competition the team will play in, Surrey plan to run the Stars programme in line with the men’s team.