FRUSTRATION is growing among campaigners hoping to save Oxford Stadium as it was revealed seizing back the site could take at least two years.

Since January, lawyers at Oxford City Council have been exploring the possibility of a compulsory purchase order (CPO) to haul back ownership of the site in Blackbird Leys.

But leader Bob Price said yesterday a number of legal and financial issues still stood in the way, including the need to compensate current owners GRA Acquisition.

He said: "We sought the opinion of a QC, who has given us a clear legal opinion as our lawyers aren't experts in this particular area.

"No-one can tell how long it will take because the preconditions are quite taxing.

"It involves both funding an operator for the future leisure facility, to sign a contract to say that they can do it, and thinking about the compensation for the current owner. We have no idea how much it will cost."

The former greyhound and Speedway racetrack was closed in 2012 after owners argued it was no longer "viable", despite making a gross profit of £2.5m that year.

In 2014, an application by GRA Acquisition's co-parent company Galliard Homes to build 220 homes on the land was turned down.

It was later listed as a conservation area but has fallen into a dilapidated state. No fresh plans for the site have come from the owners and Oxfordshire residents' attempts to buy the land have so far not responded yielded a response.

Steventon farmer Bob Tyrrell, who entered three separate bids for the site, said he was happy to enter into a contract with the council for the CPO but not if it took forever.

He said: "I was at a big meeting with Bob Price and some others last week and people are hopeful, but they said it could take another two years.

"There's a load of conditions that have to be met beforehand, then it's got to go to the Secretary of State, and if they say no we've done all this work for nothing.

"Everybody is trying but it's just not going anywhere. I would still be on board but it depends on the price, and not if it's going to take another two years."

Ian Sawyer, chairman of the Save Our Stadium campaign, insisted there was still movement but said nerves were beginning to fray.

He said: "There is a lot of frustration, but when you're involving lawyers and solicitors it's a long-winded process. Things are progressing but not as quickly as we would like.

"We have agreed to plan what we need to do now to drive things forward. We will be making sure the maintenance plan is in place, and keeping the group going."