OXFORD United will remain at the training ground in Roman Way for another 18 months despite buildings on the site due to be knocked down.

The site has been earmarked for expansion by BMW for the Mini plant which borders the pitches on two sides.

Of the former occupants, Oxford Cricket Club have moved to Jordan Hill, while the Oxford Bowls Club and Oxford Sports & Social Club have closed.

But United have a verbal agreement to secure an extension on the site until replacement facilities, secured under BMW’s £4.9m deal with Oxford City Council, are built on adjacent fields closer to Horspath.

The first team are unable to continue using the social club buildings, so extra temporary structures are due to be put in place this summer.

While it is not ideal, chairman Darryl Eales feels it is the best short-term solution.

He said: “It’s a case of doing the best we can.

“We will be where we are for the next 18 months.

“The plan is to put in another large Portakabin and the first team will move to the top end with the academy.

“That should work really well.”

Finding a permanent training base is one of Eales’s priorities in the medium-term.

The U’s would ideally like to establish themselves on land opposite the Kassam Stadium, although the investment required may mean the council site at Horspath is the more realistic option.

In the interim period, the main issue is ensuring there are enough facilities to handle the demands of the club’s various youth teams, rather than Michael Appleton’s set-up.

Eales said: “I’m less worried about the first team because there’s not a shortage of playing facilities in Oxford, particularly because of the colleges.

“If you were just focused on the first team you’re absolutely fine.

“It’s more that we want to develop the academy and that does need properly-resourced buildings, changing rooms, pitches, etc.

He added: “It’s not an issue for the next 18 months.

“From my perspective, I’d like it to be permanent – it is conceivable the new site could be a permanent training ground.

“We’re talking to the council and they have their constraints about needing it to be a community asset.

“I 100 per cent agree with that, so there might be a win-win solution there.

“Then depending on other circumstances longer term we might think about going over the road (from the Kassam).

“There’s always a lot of moving parts and that part revolves around the future of the ground.”