Turner insists becoming a Category Two academy remains the target for Luton Town

Luton Town are continuing to strive for their much-needed Category Two academy status according to returning head of academy development Wayne Turner.

The former player, assistant manager, coach and head of academy football made his way back to Kenilworth Road recently for another stint working with the club’s youngsters, as he joined newly-appointed academy manager Paul Benson in overseeing the Hatters' next generation.

The challenge that Town continue to face is that despite the first team winning promotion to the Premier League, the youngsters coming through don’t have a games programme that is befitting of a club with top flight status.

Most of this is due to the difficulties in being able to build a new academy dome, which is required for Luton to move up from Category Three to Two.

They saw their plans to do so on a site at Cutenhoe Road rejected by Luton Borough Council back in January 2021, a decision that left CEO Gary Sweet 'dumbfounded’ and ‘deeply concerned’ at the time.

Although no further proposals have come to light since for the venue, the club won’t stop trying, as in a month that saw fellow top flight club AFC Bournemouth granted Category Two status, Turner said: “We’ve always been brilliant geographically, Luton’s always been a nice place to get to.

“For parents it’s not a disaster to get to Luton, you’re going against the traffic normally, you're trying to get into Luton rather than get into London, so that’s been good.

“The Premier League’s been good, but we still are Cat Three at the moment.

“We’re striving now and getting into the Premier League, our target is to get to Cat Two, which takes time and money, and a lot of planning, as you can’t just plonk a dome anywhere.

“You’ve got to get a dome somewhere, so that's what we've got to do.

"We’ve got a lot of planning to do for Category Two, but Cat Three where we are at the minute, isn't as attractive as Cat Two, because of the games programme, as you don’t play the games that Cat Two play.

"Obviously being in the Premier League is going to help us, and with the staff we've got here, the recruitment we’ve got here, it’s in a positive place.

"We've just got to try and get that Category Two as quickly as we can.”

With well over £100m coming into the club following promotion to the top flight last season, speaking to BBC Three Counties, Sweet revealed that after £25m would be put towards securing the finance for a new ground at Power Court, funds will also be allocated to ‘elevate’ the academy as well.

Turner is looking forward for the plans to be put into place, but is well aware it will also take time, as adding: “The grass pitches we need, we need the dome and we need a few other bits and pieces, which is not impossible.

"But we speak, Gary and I, and it’s stuff like that, especially with my developing background, I know you don't get things overnight.

"You have to get the site, you have to get the planning, you have to get it all signed off, then you go and get it built.

"It's trying to find the premises and then the planning and then the construction of it, so it is something that does need a lot of graft, a lot of work, but we’re on it, Gary’s on it.

"He’s committed to it as well as the rest of the board members and they’re unbelievable, how supportive they are.

"David Wilkinson is always at the games, it’s incredible the support we do get.

"We’re patient in as much as we know the most important people and the most important situation is the first team of course.

"Rob (Edwards) and his staff are the most important by a long way, but behind them, we are going to push when we can, to get what we need to keep the youth team improving and going up in level.

"It’s a balance between making sure the first team have everything they want and then we get what we can get thereafter.”