'Serious' safety concerns have been raised after a fence restricting access to turnstiles at St James' Park was recently installed by a private landowner.

The two-foot fence, built for the purposes of 'storage', appeared recently outside the East Stand of Newcastle United's stadium and is located in a usual queueing spot for two entrance turnstiles.

Newcastle City Council are investigating whether the installation is in breach of planning laws and are liaising with Northumbria Police to ensure safety measures are in place if the fence is still up when Newcastle host Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday in the Premier League

The fence's presence has caused concern for the safety of supporters coming into and out of St James' Park, but the council say the stadium remains compliant with safety provisions.

A spokesperson from Newcastle United Supporters Trust told The Northern Echo: "We have raised the concerns of our board and our members with the club directly in order to ensure fan safety is not compromised and disruption to supporters is at an absolute minimum.
 
"Naturally we are concerned about the serious health and safety concerns that the structure poses, given the impact this would have on queues when accessing and departing the East Stand."

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(Image: Google Maps)

The area outside the East Stand is particularly busy on matchdays as fans filter into the arena.

The club have contacted season ticket holders and are understood to have offered an alternative site to the landowner "in the interests of continuing to provide uninterrupted access for our fans and others using St James’ Park".

A Newcastle United spokesperson said: "We are aware that one of our neighbouring landowners, St James Terrace Land Ltd, has chosen to erect a timber fence on land which abuts the exterior of the East Stand of St James’ Park.

"The landowner is not associated with or affiliated to the club in any way whatsoever.

"We will monitor the situation and will work closely with our partners to find a sensible way forward.

"The club has this week reached out to its season ticket holders to understand their views on how the recent usage of the land by St James Terrace Land Ltd has impacted them."

The landowner of the patch by the stadium is St James Terrace Land Limited, a company incorporated six months ago. It has one active director registered with Companies House.

(Image: Mike Egerton / PA)

A Newcastle City Council spokesperson said: “We are aware of the fence that that has been erected outside the East Stand at St James’ Park. This is subject to an ongoing civil dispute, but we understand concerns from fans about it being a health and safety risk ahead of this weekend’s match.

“We would encourage fans to liaise with safety stewards on match day and would offer reassurance that additional measures will be in place to mitigate concerns to public safety, if an obstruction does indeed remain in place on Sunday.”

The landowner has been contacted for comment.