April 6, 2016
Wrenbridge Sport was founded in 2012 and has gone from strength to strength in the past 4 years. Richard Arnold, the man behind Wrenbridge Sport has developed a portfolio, that ranges from becoming the project manager on the new Brentford Community Stadium, which includes over 1,000 residential apartments, to being in partnership with Scarborough Borough Council to deliver a 2,000 capacity stadium with an Olympic legacy swimming pool for Scarborough Athletic.
Richard’s background is in the delivery of stadia. From 2006 until 2012, he was with the Olympic Delivery Authority in London, where as Project Director he was responsible for the delivery of a number of the new permanent and temporary venues, including the highly acclaimed Velodrome where his role was recognised as the RIBA Client of the Year for London in 2011.
Prior to the London 2012 Games Richard has also been project manager on a number of stadia projects including the Ricoh Arena Coventry, Estadia da Luz Lisbon, Stadium of Light Sunderland and The Valley Charlton.
Richard’s focus now is entirely devoted to Wrenbridge Sport. The portfolio has an impressive capital value of over £250 million, consisting of 5 stadiums, 4 swimming pools, 3 sports halls, 2 cycle tracks, an ice-rink and a white water centre. Richard Arnold is at the forefront of this success, being responsible for the delivery of new stadia through mixed use real estate development. He is currently focussing on a number of schemes throughout the UK that are enabling community assets to be brought forward through private sector investment.
Wrenbridge Sport’s Scarborough project is funded primarily from the development of enabling sites which Wrenbridge have procured sales to Lidl for a new store, Gleeson homes for 45 affordable homes together with a new University building for Coventry University and a new University Technical College associated with Hull University. This innovative development has enabled a massive step forward for Scarborough both for sport and wellbeing but also providing a new Education campus, housing and retail. The scheme has a total development value of £45m
Wrenbridge Sport are also the development partner and project manager with leisure operator Greenwich Leisure Ltd for the City of York Council’s flagship project. The scheme located at Monks Cross just outside of the city centre, incorporates an 8,000 seat stadium for football and rugby league together with a leisure complex sports hall, 25m swimming pool, gym, dance studio, climbing wall and outdoor artificial pitches. The community hub will be fully integrated in the scheme and will provide bespoke facilities for York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Explore York Libraries and a local Cancer Trust.
Wrenbridge Sport is developing 60,000sq.ft of new retail, a 13 screen IMAX cinema and several restaurants that form a brand new entertainment complex for the city and this provides the funding that ensures the stadium project can finally be delivered. Overall over £50m of private sector funding has been put into the project with £5m from the public sector, which is a fantastic result for the community and an exemplar as to how this type of public project can be delivered.
Wrenbridge Sport are the project managers for Brentford Football Club for the new 20,000 seat Brentford Community Stadium which will be funded largely from enabling development of over 1,000 residential units to be developed by Wilmott Dixon. Planning consent has been secured and works are expected to start later this year.
Away from sport and following the successful completion of Brentford Football Club’s Youth Academy building at Uxbridge High School, Wrenbridge are continuing to work with the school and are project managing the new drama and music centre, which will be completed in time for the new academic year.
Author: Richard Arnold, Wrenbridge Sport