Nailsea United Football Club’s temporary changing rooms could stay at The Grove Sports Centre until 2016.

NAILSEA United Football Club has been given permission to keep its temporary changing rooms at The Grove Sports Centre for another five years.

North Somerset Council’s central area committee approved the controversial planning application to retain the three changing rooms at the sports centre at its meeting on Wednesday.

Permission was granted despite Nailsea Town Council’s planning and environmental committee refusing the application in April.

Committee members called the units an ‘eyesore’ and said that the application had initially been granted five years ago for a temporary period.

Speaking at the April meeting, councillor Mary Ponsonby said: “Temporary should be temporary. It’s an eyesore for everybody who walks around the Grove.”

The football club installed the changing rooms so it could apply to compete in the Toolstation Western League and improve conditions for the club’s players.

Bosses have since found out they would be unable to add floodlights where they are currently based so they are unable to apply to compete in the higher league.

The permission for the changing rooms was granted by North Somerset Council with an advisory note that the club seeks a more permanent structure before 2016.

Although the application has been granted, the proposal must go before the landlord Nailsea Town Council, which can still refuse the plans.

The council is planning to call a special meeting to discuss the matter in late July.