Houghton Stadium

Location	Houghton-le-Spring, County Durham
Coordinates	54°50′15″N 1°27′44″W / 54.83750°N 1.46222°W / 54.83750; -1.46222
Opened	1938
Closed	1971

Houghton Stadium was a greyhound racing stadium in Houghton-le-Spring, County Durham.

The track was constructed on the east side of Hall Lane and north of Gillas Lane and was initially used for horse racing and whippet racing.^[1] The Hetton Race Company Ltd brought greyhounds to the Houghton Le Spring Racecourse in County Durham in 1938.

Greyhound racing started on Thursday 3 November 1938 serving as entertainment for the mining community from the nearby colliery.^[2]

The racing was independent (not affiliated to the National Greyhound Racing Club) and racing was held on Tuesday nights and Saturday afternoons on a grass track 390 yards in circumference. Race distances were 290, 480 and 675 yards with an inside Sumner hare system. Facilities included a licensed club and free car park with the principal race being the Houghton Feast handicap. There were on course bookmakers and a totalisator in operation.^[3]

The stadium continued to trade until 1971 before being turned into the Racecourse housing estate.^[2] That same estate came to prominence in the 1990s after being named as a problem area in Britain. A report found that 80% of people with nothing to occupy their time had contributed to the problems.^[4]