Inside the fight to save iconic 150-year-old racecourse at risk of being lost forever as Harry Redknapp wades in

These occasions have, however, been put at risk by recent planning proposals to build over 2,000 homes on the racetrack, made possible under Labour's housing plans.

With the racetrack situated next to Kempton Park station, the Government announced in November 2025 that a "default yes" will be given to developments next to "well-connected train stations" with at least a couple of departures an hour.

GB News understands that housing developer Barratt Redrow is submitting planning proposals before the end of the calendar year, having retained the option to build on the racecourse at the back end of 2025, exercisable until 2028.

Local MP for the area, Lincoln Jopp, has hit out at the plans, describing them as "dire" for the community and racing fans.

He told the People's Channel: "I love Kempton Park. It is absolutely iconic. It's been there for years and years, and the proposals do not work in practice. Although Kempton Park station does have two departures an hour, it's the first station just outside the travel card zone, so everyone will walk to Hampton anyway. It would clog up the road, being simply squeezed in.

"I'm not anti-building, I'm anti-building in inappropriate places. Also, the impact on the community. We'll have to do a traffic survey, where are the dentists and the NHS centres going to go? Where are the diagnostics, because infrastructure is way more than just building the houses?"

As well as the community, racing fans and people involved in the sport will be impacted by the closure of another racecourse.

Legendary football manager Harry Redknapp, whose horse won the King George VI Chase at Kempton last year, spoke about his sadness if the racecourse were to go.

He told GB News: "I'd be very sad to see Kempton Park go, I mean, it was a special day for me last year there, winning the King George.

"It's always been a very iconic racetrack. It is sad, you know, that we lose another great race track.

"It's always damaging to lose an iconic venue, and it's an attraction that I've always enjoyed going to. It's a real shame."

Some racegoers echoed Redknapp's views, with dozens of races potentially being missed each year.

Tony, a black cab driver who enjoys his racing, said: "It's a shame they would have to put houses on an open space. I think they should leave it alone, I think it's criminal."

Heather Warner, who attended Kempton with her work colleagues, added: "I'm all for green space. We used to go to Wimbledon [Stadium], and that is all gone now. Pubs disappearing too, it would be a shame to lose the racecourse."

The knock-on effect will also see staff bear the brunt of losing income from their employment at the racecourse.

With over 70 racedays each year, stewards, bar staff, security and others will have to find work elsewhere.

One woman, who prefers to remain anonymous, works as bar staff at racing venues and explained to GB News the impact it would have on her.

She said: "I would have much less work during Christmas. There are always shifts at Kempton during Christmas time, and with these plans, it would mean I would lose those.

"Those shifts are really good, we have long hours and lots of people are hired.

"Whilst it would be nice to have extra houses in the area, it would lose loads of people's jobs, and I would have an extremely hard winter time with hardly any shifts."

Despite these concerns, the plans could create more development opportunities in the area if they were given the green light.

The new housing would benefit those looking to get on the property ladder, in a district where house prices are well above the average at over half a million pounds.

Campaign Manager of Animal Aid, Isobel McNally, explained how she believes the proposals are an excellent idea.

She told the People's Channel: "I mean, almost anything that closes the race course, we're happy about.

"Three horses died in separate incidents at Kempton on January 10. Eight horses, including those three, have died so far just this year, and the average age of those horses was just over five years old, when horses should be able to live into the late 30s.

"To be perfectly honest, housing is something people actually really desperately need."

When asked about the impact of losing the green space the racetrack provides, McNally said: "I mean, the green space that's provided by a race course isn't really green space that's good for biodiversity.

"It's maintained to be a race course, not a public space."

Other racecourses have had to compromise on building plans going near their tracks in the past, still keeping them open while the developments go ahead.

In 2010, David Wilson Homes was given permission to build 1,500 homes at Newbury Racecourse, which would encircle part of the perimeter of the track.

This was updated in 2014 to a total of 1,384 homes, which the developer said at the time was for "more sustainable timber-framed building".

Some people at Kempton Park believe a situation like this could work with the racecourse.

Bookmaker Martin Chapman told GB News: "To me, there is enough space to do both. Newbury made it work; why can't they here? The crowd has been better there since they announced it."

Another regular racegoer, who preferred to remain anonymous, said: "If anyone wants to build here, they need to address the infrastructure - all [Barratt] Redrow are interested in doing is building houses.

"You could do a similar set-up to Newbury, but it would be big hurdles to overcome."

Over 1,000 people have currently signed a petition calling for the racecourse not to be built on, but the development proposals remain in the pipeline.

A spokesman for Barratt Redrow said: "We have an agreement with the Jockey Club giving us the right to promote Kempton Park for development, and since this agreement was made, we have been reviewing whether the site, or parts of it, could assist with the delivery of much-needed new housing in Surrey. We will share further updates in due course."

GB News has contacted The Jockey Club for comment.

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