Planning Applications for Major Developments ( e.g. 300+ homes)

The occupiers of any new development, especially residential, will generate additional demand for sporting provision. The existing provision within an area may not be able to accommodate this increased demand without exacerbating existing and/or predicted future deficiencies. Therefore, Sport England considers that new developments should be required to contribute towards meeting the demand they generate through the provision of on-site facilities and/or providing additional capacity off-site.

In addition, the master planning and design of major housing and mixed use developments is vital to ensuring environments that provide opportunities for people to participate in sport and physical activity, thereby enabling them to lead active and healthy lifestyles.

The government’s Planning Policy Guidance Note 17 (paragraphs 23 and 33) state that:

‘Local authorities should ensure that provision is made for local sports and recreational facilities (either through an increase in the number of facilities or through improvements to existing facilities) where planning permission is granted for new developments (especially housing). Planning obligations should be used where appropriate to seek increased provision of open spaces and local sports and recreational facilities, and the enhancement of existing facilities’.

‘Local authorities will be justified in seeking planning obligations where the quantity or quality of provision is inadequate or under threat, or where new development increases local needs’.

When assessing planning applications for major residential development Sport England is guided by:

• its planning policy objectives (see appendix 2 to our Development Control Guidance Note)
• its Active Design guidance (see below)
• the relevant government guidance (e.g. Planning Policy Guidance Note 17: ‘Planning for Open Space, Sport and Recreation’);
• appropriate up to date and robust local standards of provision adopted by the relevant local authority;
• any robust and up-to-date evidence base for sport that is in place within the local area (e.g. PPG17 assessment or Playing Pitch and/or Sports Facility Strategy).

Sport England is also likely to take into account:

• Information available from Sport England’s planning tools and guidance (e.g. Sports Facility Calculator, Facilities Planning Model and Active Places Power)
• Sport England’s design and cost guidance: to ensure any new on or off site provision is fit for purpose.

The following links provide guidance and tools to assist in the preparation and assessment of applications for major developments, especially residential:

• Planning Contributions Kitbag

A one stop on-line resource to help ensure that new developments contribute to meeting the demand they will generate for sporting provision.

• Sports Facility Calculator ( SFC)

The SFC can help to estimate the amount of additional demand for key community sports facilities that is likely to be generated by a given population increase.

• Active Design Guidance

Guidance, developed with support from the Department of Health and the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, which provides an innovative set of design guidelines to promote opportunities for sport and physical activity in the design and layout of development.

The Government has introduced the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) which allows local authorities to set financial charges which developers must pay when bringing forward new development in order to contribute to new infrastructure. The introduction of the CIL will lead to restrictions in the use of planning obligations and from April 2014 it will limit the local use of pooling contributions from a number of individual developments towards specific infrastructure. Sport England’s Planning Contributions Kitbag provides further guidance and updates on the use and implications of CIL for sporting infrastructure.