Barnet Football Club’s supporters hoping their team’s top-of-the table position in the National League bodes well for a return to Underhill

Leaflets promoting Bring Barnet Back are being distributed across the town as the campaign hots up to persuade Barnet Council to approve plans for a new football stadium at Underhill.

If playing form is any guide, the club might be hoping for a warm welcome: Barnet is currently top of the National League and well placed for promotion to League Two of the English Football League.

Barnet haven’t been beaten in their last 21 National League fixtures. The Bees have now established an nine-point lead at the top of the table after their stunning mid-week 5-0 defeat of Yeovil Town at The Hive (4.3.2025).

However promising their performances on the pitch, the chances of Barnet playing again at Underhill are finely balanced.

The outcome depends on whether Barnet Council can be persuaded that there is a special case for a new stadium to be built within the Green Belt on playing fields at Underhill, close to the site of the original stadium which was demolished to make way for the Ark Pioneer Academy.

Opponents to the project, who are against the loss of Green Belt land and who fear traffic congestion generated by a new stadium, are rallying support around a petition which has attracted over 18,800 signatures.  

A strong case is being made for the new site on the grounds that careful landscaping would reduce the visual impact of the stadium, and that the environment and biodiversity would be greatly improved with extensive tree planting and the creation of a pond between the stadium and the Dollis Valley green walk.

Seen above with an artist’s impression of the site are Sean McGrath (left) of consultants WSP and architect Manuel Nogueira of AndArchitects

Much of the emphasis in the club’s campaign to play again at Underhill is based on the economic impact.

Club chairman Tony Kleanthous has promised to finance the building of the new stadium, at a cost of around £14 million, and the estimate is that it should sustain the equivalent of 78 full-time jobs when taking into account all those working part time on match days.

On some estimates the return of the club could add £6 million a year to the Barnet economy, including £2.1 million from extra business for the town’s traders over a 23-week season.

If the application for a new stadium fails to get approval – and Barnet are denied a chance to rebuild the strong local support which they once enjoyed – there are stark warnings that the club’s long-term future is in grave doubt.

Representatives from community groups including the Barnet Society, Barnet Residents Association and Love Barnet have been advised that attendances at the club’s current base at The Hive Football Centre are not sufficient for long-term financial viability.

What was described as “a considerable financial shortfall” is having to be made up by Mr Kleanthous, the Barnet FC chairman and owner.

The Hive, midway between Edgware and Standmore, which is also owned by Mr Kleanthous, is a separate financial entity.

Its pitch, training facilities and diagnostic centre are used by a range of other clubs as well as Barnet and because of its proximity to Wembley it is often used as a training camp by visiting teams.

Since moving to The Hive in 2013, Barnet have failed to match the attendances at Underhill.

Currently the average gate is around 1,800. A move back to Underhill could increase that to around 3,500 given the strength of local support with the new stadium having a maximum capacity of 7,000 spectators.

Additional revenue from ticket sales could bring in an extra £500,000 a season and that could be matched by an equivalent amount in sponsorship which together would be make up the current shortfall which on some estimates is around £1 million a year.

If the club fails to get approval for a new stadium there are doubts as to whether Mr Kleanthous would be prepared to make a fresh attempt to return to Barnet.

His view is that if the community are against the club’s return and there is not the support which Bring Barnet Back believe there is, then there is little more that he can do.

But without the injection of additional revenue, the fear is that within four to five years’ time Barnet might no longer be sustainable financially.

With help from the distribution of funds from the Premier League, the club says it would establish a new charitable foundation at Barnet which would offer a range of activities with an outreach to local schools and support for local clubs.

Once back in Barnet, the club’s aim would be to establish community initiatives and there any number of possibilities, including, for example, the possibility of providing space for a local foodbank or other projects.

The club would open a new diagnostics and imaging centre at the new stadium in line with the facilities provided at The Hive which a said to be recognised as one of the best screening facilities at a football club.