OXFORD Stadium will remain a conservation area, a High Court judge has said.

In a decision announced this morning, Mr Justice (Duncan) Ouseley ruled in favour of Oxford City Council and refused stadium owner Greyhound Racing Association (GRA) the right to appeal against the decision on one count. 

The city council last year made the site a conservation area, which imposed stricter planning rules there and helped protect it from development.

But GRA appealed against the move at the High Court. It had previously said it wanted to sell the stadium to a developer.

The court battle came after the city council refused developer Galliard permission to build 220 homes at the site in January 2014.

Galliard initially appealed against the council’s refusal, but withdrew its bid when the authority designated the site a conservation area.