Sport England objects to Bransbury Park Leisure Centre plans over the loss of sports pitches

As a planning statutory consultee, Sport England has raised concerns over the new scheme which, if approved, would remove five outdoor tennis/netball courts. Currently, the site has three natural turf football pitches, a multi-sport artificial grass pitch and six hard surface netball/tennis courts.

FOR MORE READ: Bransbury Park Leisure Centre plans unveiled

Sport England considers the removal of six existing courts, with one court being re-provided, would impact residents who use the courts on a casual basis. It was noted that England Netball and the Lawn Tennis Association aren’t opposed to the loss of courts as long as they are re-provided elsewhere. To mitigate the loss, the council has suggested investing in the Mountbatten Centre by providing four more courts for tennis and netball – in addition, the existing tarmac tennis court in Baffins Pond would be resurfaced.

However, Sport England said: “There are no specific planning proposals for either the enhancement of existing court provision or for new provision at any of these identified sites. Sport England is also concerned that there is no planning mechanism which can provide certainty that these mitigation proposals will be delivered and that they will be provided to appropriate standards. Furthermore, Sport England notes that both the Mountbatten Centre and Baffins Pond are not in the catchment of Bransbury Park and are unlikely to serve the local community affected by the loss.”

ALSO READ: Plea to reopen Eastney Swimming Pool and ditch Bransbury Park plans

It then asked the council to re-consider reducing the number of outdoor courts, by retaining or relocating them, or by investing in more local sites. England Netball acknowledged the reduction of outdoor netball courts but highlighted the council’s offer to offset this with four floodlit courts at the Mountbatten Centre.

Its main concern is the lack of sports hall space in the proposed indoor leisure centre, especially considering activities like walking netball at Wimbledon Park. It suggests covering the remaining outdoor courts with a canopy or dome if indoor space isn’t feasible and express openness to collaboration with the council’s design team.

The news comes as opposition continues from a number of local residents who are calling for the Bransbury Park project to be ditched.

As previously reported by The News, supporters of Eastney Swimming Pool, used to train the World War Two 'Cockleshell Heroes', are trying to convince Portsmouth City Council to rethink its plans to create a new leisure centre at Bransbury Park to replace the new-closed pool in Eastney as well as the dated facilities at Wimbledon Park.

More than 1,000 people have signed a petition in favouring the option of renovating both sites. They are appalled that the possibility of revamping them appears to have been completely taken off the table despite, they argue, being a far cheaper, saving more than £4million, and be a better option for Portsmouth.

The planning application will go before the city council’s planning committee for a decision on the design and planning aspects of the proposals.

* Note from the editor: since the publication of this article Portsmouth City Council has said it is making changes to its plans to address Sport England’s concerns. For the full story read: Changes to be made to controversial Bransbury Park Leisure Centre plans after Sport England objections