By Peter Allison
Residents on Tong Road have raised ongoing safety concerns after persistent surface water runoff from Butt Lane Playing Fields has repeatedly flooded the road and pavement – leaving dangerous ice in winter and ongoing damage to the highway.
The issue is also having a serious and ongoing effect on Farnley Falcons Rugby Club, one of West Leeds’ largest grassroots sports clubs with a substantial local membership and following.
During prolonged rainfall, water flows unchecked from the playing fields onto Tong Road, crossing the footway and entering the carriageway.
In freezing conditions, this runoff regularly turns to ice, forcing pedestrians into the road and creating hazards for drivers.
A CCTV drainage survey commissioned by Farnley Falcons identified a suspected collapsed culvert beyond the boundary of the playing fields.
The culvert was originally designed to divert surface water from the pitches into the public drainage network. Since its collapse, water now follows the natural gradient downhill onto Tong Road.
Drainage issues causing problems down Butt Lane, Farnley.
Despite the issue being known for several years and raised with Leeds City Council, it
remains unresolved.
Residents report repeated pothole repairs failing due to constant water flow, with silt and debris washing into gullies and blocking drainage further. They say vehicles have suffered damage, and access to properties becomes difficult during heavy rainfall.
In winter, the problem escalates. During previous cold spells, large sections of pavement became solid ice, leaving no safe pedestrian route and forcing people — including parents
with children — to walk in the carriageway.
Residents say the issue is predictable, recurring, and preventable.
The impact on Farnley Falcons is significant. The club supports a large and growing membership, from junior teams through to their masters, and plays a vital role in health, wellbeing, and community life across Farnley and West Leeds.
Excessive waterlogging caused by the failed drainage has left pitches unusable for extended periods, resulting in cancelled training sessions and matches. This not only affects adult teams but also limits opportunities for children and young people to take part in regular sport.
Frustrated by the lack of progress, the club itself funded professional drainage investigations — a step usually expected of landowners rather than volunteer-run amateur clubs.
Club members say the ongoing drainage failure is now a barrier to further development of the facilities and threatens the long-term sustainability of the pitches.
The drainage issue is not only affecting existing pitches — it is also preventing agreed
improvements from going ahead.
The junction of Butt Lane and Tong Road.
Farnley Falcons had previously reached agreement to extend the lower pitch to improve
capacity and playing conditions.
However, the ongoing failure of drainage from the upper fields means the extension cannot proceed, as additional runoff would further flood and erode the newly extended area.
There are also concerns that silt and debris from the upper fields would wash directly onto the lower pitch, undermining any improvement work and creating further long-term maintenance problems.
Gareth Gilbert, Chair of the Farnley Falcons committee, said: “We want to invest in improving facilities, but without fixing the drainage, it just isn’t viable.”
As a result, development plans intended to benefit players, families, and the wider community are now effectively on hold until the drainage issue is properly resolved.
The playing fields are managed by the council’s Parks & Countryside service, while Tong
Road and its drainage infrastructure fall under Highways. Residents and the club say the issue has become stuck between departments, with neither taking clear ownership of the collapsed culvert and resulting runoff.
Residents and members of Farnley Falcons have now launched a short survey to document
the scale of the problem and its impact on safety, infrastructure, and sport.
The survey is intended to support a request for coordinated action by the council and can be found here.
Those involved stress that the aim is not to apportion blame, but to encourage Leeds City
Council to bring the relevant services together, take ownership of the failed drainage asset,
and provide a clear timetable for a permanent solution — protecting both public safety and
the future of grassroots rugby in West Leeds.
Council ‘aware’ of issues
A Leeds City Council spokesperson said: “The council is aware of flooding issues currently affecting the playing fields on Butt Lane and subsequently, Tong Road.
“We remain committed to finding the source of the issue and have been working collaboratively across various services and the rugby club to try and find a way to resolve the issues as soon as possible.
“Our teams have undertaken some initial clearance work and CCTV surveys of the culverts and watercourses in the area and some further investigation work is still ongoing.
“Incidentally, we are already seeing the impacts of climate change in Leeds, with rainfall records showing more frequent high intensity rainfall events throughout the year and wetter, warmer winter periods, leading to more incidents where the drainage systems and the land itself haven’t got the capacity to cope with this.”
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