In November last year, during my term as Sport Officer, I launched a campaign in response to the proposed reform of the statutory planning system: or more specifically, the planned removal of Sport England from said planning system.
I am very pleased to say, now that consultation has finished, the government have elected to keep Sport England as a key statutory consultee in local planning.
This is a huge win for grassroots and community sports, as Sport England will continue to be a key protector of our playing fields!
So, as I close off this campaign, I thought it best to summarise everything we did and how it contributed to national policy change, on behalf of over 900,000 students.
The initial problem:
In March 2025, the Government proposed a reform of the system of statutory consultees in local planning.
In short, the statutory consultee system refers to the national bodies whose role is to review planning applications relating to their specific area of interest. Among these is Sport England, the national body responsible for safeguarding green spaces and playing fields against erosion due to well-meaning development.
The aim of the reform was to streamline the planning process, however the prospect of removing Sport England from these processes caused me deep concern.
Sport England are a key safeguard for playing fields: spaces that are not simply plots of land, but foundations of community wellbeing, grassroots sports development, and student activity. Removing Sport England’s statutory role would have represented a major shift, and one that could have had unintended consequences for generations to come.
Physical activity is so important to children and young adults, therefore the risk of losing key facilities utilised by schools and higher education institutions was too great to overlook. I knew I had to act, so I launched a campaign to protest this decision and protect the future of sport and our right to play.
You can read the full announcement here: Reform of the Statutory Consultee System
You can also read Sport Englands Response here: Chief executive's letter to Select Committee in full
Our response:
In my own words, I outlined the need to maintain robust protections for green spaces and playing fields, and highlighted the severe risk associated with the planned reform. This letter, titled “Protecting the Right to Accessible Sport”, was circulated to student unions and universities across the country.
In total representatives from 35 students’ union and 19 universities co-signed the letter, representing over 900,000 students.
On the 9th of January, the letter was sent to key decision makers:
- Keir Starmer, Prime Minister
- Matthew Pennycook, Minister of State for Housing and Planning
- Paul Morrison, Chief Executive, Planning Inspectorate
- Joanna Key, Director General for Regeneration, Housing and Planning
Following this, we submitted an official consultation response on behalf of the letter on the 13th of January.
Our message was clear: If Sport England’s statutory role is removed, there must be robust and legally enforceable protections in place to safeguard playing fields and community sports facilities.
The Initial Replies
We received our first reply from Baroness Taylor, Undersecretary of State for Housing and Local Government, which gave us several reassurances and wins:
- Securing Continued Engagement of Sport England in Planning Decisions
As a result of the campaign, the Government confirmed that Sport England will remain engaged in the planning system through consultation processes and targeted notifications relating to developments affecting playing fields and sports infrastructure. - Initiating Policy Reform on the Protection of Sports and Recreational Spaces
Our campaign helped initiate national policy discussions on the protection of sports facilities and recreational spaces within the planning system, ensuring their importance was formally recognised within the Government’s consultation process. - Establishing a New Notification Process for Changes to Sports and Recreational Spaces
The Government has proposed introducing a new notification requirement to ensure that relevant authorities are informed when planning applications would result in the substantial loss of playing fields or recreational land, strengthening oversight and protection of these spaces. - Influencing National Planning Policy Framework Reforms
The campaign contributed to wider Government planning reforms, including proposals to strengthen planning policy protections for sport, play, and recreation facilities and to encourage clearer local standards for outdoor recreational land. - Commitment to Updated Planning Guidance for Sports and Recreational Infrastructure
The Government committed to updating planning guidance to ensure that developments properly consider the impact on existing sports facilities and recreational spaces.
A second response came from Matthew Pennycook, but this was a rather unsatisfactory response, that didn’t give us much more than we already knew.
You can read both letters in full here:
Response from Baronness Taylor: MHCLG-Response-03545
Response from Matthew Pennycook: MHCLG-Response-10538
The Outcome
On 17th August 2026, the government released the consultation outcome and it was very positive outcome for us:
Sport England will retain their role as a statutory consultee, which is an even better outcome that what was originally expressed in the earlier response.
This is such an important outcome for grassroots and community sports and will ensure that we continue to have robust protection for playing fields for many years to come.
Tim Hollingsworth, former Cheif Executive of Sport England and Professor in Practise for Sport at the University of Bath, offered me this comment, which I think well summarise the importance of this outcome:
"The Government decision to retain Sport England's statutory consultee role is not just the right one but a matter of huge relief. The initial intention was misguided and misunderstood completely both the purpose of the statutory role and its impact. The protection of our playing fields stock across the country, including those on University and school grounds, is vital not just for sporting competition but the very fabric of our nation. The places people play matter - for their health and wellbeing, but also for their sense of togetherness and community. Sport brings so much more than winning and losing - it is about belonging, feeling part of something that matters and most of all feeling better and more positive about yourself. This is every bit as important for students across our Universities and Colleges as it is for anyone else."
You can read the full consultation release here:
Reforms to the statutory consultee system: government response
Self-reflection & Thanks
I am so proud of what we have achieved here. Despite our campaign not being formally mentioned in the consultation outcome, I am very confident that we made a huge impact as we represented such a huge number of students across the country.
I learnt a lot through this process; coordinating stakeholders; bringing people on a journey; communicating complex legislative process in a digestible way. All of which I aim to continue developing as I tackle new projects this year.
I would like to thank everyone who signed the letter: each voice that joined us made our message ever more impactful.
I would also like to thank our amazing Voice team for all the proofreading and helping me navigate the consultation processes, and Tim Hollingsworth & Ben Jessup for their advice and support in the early stages of this campaign.
With that, I think this campaign can be closed as a resounding success!
"Once you lose a playing field or pitch, it's gone forever”
- Tim Hollingsworth OBE