WEALDSTONE'S new £9.5 million stadium development at the Prince Edward Playing Fields in Canons Park is progressing well.

Work on the site, which will have a capacity of 4,000, will be completed in July and the aim is that it will be open in time for the new season.

As well as the main stand, which is already in place, the site will boast a bar, restaurant, function rooms, two astroturf pitches, a car park and ten other pitches for use by the reserve team, age group sides and local schools.

Club director Howard Krais said: "It's a whole new era for us. We haven't had a stadium since 1991. No club can have a future without a home, and this has come about through a lot of hard work by a lot of people.

"We hope that the other facilities will make it a focus for the community too, and a real inspiration for sport in Harrow."

The opening of the stadium will mark a reversal of fortune for the Stones, who have suffered chronic upheaval in the 13 years since the sale of their Lower Mead ground in Station Road, Harrow, which is now a supermarket.

They have moved three times, to Watford, Yeading and Edgware, and also endured a spell in administration. But things are looking up, and Howard thinks that the fans will respond positively to the move.

"No disrespect to Harrow Borough, but we are the biggest club in the borough in terms of support," he said.

"Even in our current position, we've been getting gates of 300 plus for our home matches and taking up to 150 to away games.

"The supporters have been very committed and deserve this."

The 44-acre site, close to Canons Park Tube station, had been disused for over five years and became overgrown. Wealdstone's development has been backed by £1.8 million of public funds, one of the largest ever investments in grass-roots sport in the country.