For the Government to ensure strong safeguards for playing fields, pitches and community sports facilities by maintaining Sport England’s status as a statutory consultee for planning applications involving playing fields.
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We think removing Sport England as a statutory consultee would remove vital safeguards which protect playing fields and pitches from development, reduce its' capability to advise/support local authorities, and secure adequate provision of essential community sports facilities. Research from the Sport and Recreation Alliance shows that playing fields and pitches deliver nearly £2bn in improved wellbeing every year and help nearly 4 million people to be active, of which at least 1 million are children.
Thursday 8th January 2026
The government is consulting on reforms to the statutory consultee system. No decision will be made on Sport England’s role until feedback on the proposals has been fully reviewed.
The government is committed to ensuring that our playing field capacity is protected and extended. Playing fields and community sports facilities are crucial to our ambitions to increase physical activity levels across the nation and build a healthy society.
The government is clear that the planning system should promote the creation of healthy and inclusive places. We are currently consulting on changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), including policies relating to playing fields.
The consultation proposes to retain strong policy safeguards against the loss of community facilities, including open space, sport and recreation facilities, and also seeks views on whether these protections should be extended to other formal and informal play space and allotments.
The consultation on changes to the NPPF is available here (https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/national-planning-policy-framework-proposed-reforms-and-other-changes-to-the-planning-system) and will remain open for responses until 10 March 2026.
The government recognise that Sport England play an important role in the planning application process and provide expert advice on sport and physical activity and supporting grassroot sport in communities.
The government is currently consulting on reforms to the statutory consultee system. This consultation relates specifically to those statutory consultees that are governed by the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. The consultation asks for views on the impacts of removing the statutory consultee status of Sport England.
No decision will be made until we have fully considered feedback to the consultation. Regardless of the outcome of that process, Sport England will continue to engage through public consultation and targeted notifications in the planning process.
Our consultation also proposes a new notification requirement, where local planning authorities would be required to notify Sport England where an application would result in the wholesale or substantial loss of playing fields.
It further outlines that the government will work with Sport England to develop updates to Planning Practice Guidance on Consultation and Pre-Decision matters to ensure ‘agent of change’ issues are considered where relevant. These occur when new development may impact negatively on the existing use of playing fields. We also consider that there is a role for Sport England in developing guidance for local planning authorities, to support their consideration of planning applications and playing fields.
The consultation on reforms to the statutory consultee system is available here (https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/reforms-to-the-statutory-consultee-system) and will remain open for comments until 13 January 2026.
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government