Sport England are a statutory consultee on all planning applications affecting playing fields, including those which affect any land that has been used as a playing field in the last five years and any replacement of a grass pitch with a synthetic surface.

Therefore, landowners, including councils, are required to consult Sport England on any proposed development that would affect or lead to the loss of a sports playing field.

Sport England objects to all applications unless the developer can prove it will improve or safeguard sports provision and the new figures show that 1,542 out of 1,631 (94.5 per cent) concluded planning applications affecting playing fields in 2009/10 resulted in improved or safeguarded sports provision, which is 361 more than in the previous year.

In 53 per cent of the cases where Sport England originally objected to an application, further negotiations led to an overall improvement in sports provision and of the 218 applications where the organisation sustained their objection, 105 were either withdrawn by the applicants or refused planning permission.

In addition, despite formal objections from Sport England, the number of applications which led to a detrimental impact on sport was 89, just 5.5 per cent of the total.

These figures include a change in the law, which came into force in April 2009, that gave Sport England more power to protect playing fields by including mini pitches, often found at many primary schools.

These were previously too small to qualify for protection.


"Playing fields are often where many people have their first sporting experience and protecting them is vital," said Sport England chairman Richard Lewis.

"I'm pleased the latest figures again show that the safeguards that have been put in place are working.

"As well as our statutory consultee role on playing fields, we are also ensuring people will continue to have places to play sport through our Protecting Playing Fields fund."

"As part of our Olympic legacy programme, Places People Play, this fund is protecting and improving hundreds of playing fields across the country, making sure people have high-quality spaces to play sport and ensuring a lasting legacy beyond London 2012."

Sport England's Protecting Playing Fields ( PPF ) programme is part of the £135 million ($212 million/€158 million) Places People Play scheme, which aims to create a mass participation programme the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The figures are a timely boost to Sport England who last week revealed "very disappointing" results which showed a decline in the number of teenagers and women playing sport despite the 2012 Games coming to the English capital.

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