St James' Park 'fun slide' plans vetoed by council Published duration 21 November 2013

image caption The slides would have been near the club car park

Plans to "inject some fun" at Newcastle United's stadium by installing slides nearby have been scrapped.

Business development company NE1 announced a proposal in February for a "pocket park" including two "travel accelerators" near the club's ground.

Newcastle City Council asked for the plans to be resubmitted without the slides.

NE1 said the project was later shelved entirely after the club told them the land was "no longer available".

The club said the scheme was not going ahead because "it was an idea that didn't get any further".

It was part of the "pocket park programme", designed to breath new life into areas of the city centre which were "neglected or underused".

The plans were submitted to the council's planning committee in May and it asked for the slides to be removed on planning and safety grounds.

The slides would have been similar in design to ones used by commuters at Overvecht railway station in Utrecht, Netherlands.

Newcastle United lie ninth in the Premier League but the season has been overshadowed by some fans' unhappiness with the club's owners.

In October, hundreds marched through the city to protest against the way owner Mike Ashley has been running the club.