For many students, sport is a huge part of university life. Whether it's competing for a club, staying active with friends, or simply having access to affordable places to exercise, sports facilities help create healthier and more connected communities.
In 2025, the Government announced plans to reform the planning system, including a proposal to remove Sport England as a statutory consultee in local planning. This proposal raised concerns about the future protection of playing fields and sports spaces across the country.
Recognising the potential impact on students and community sport, then Sport Officer Angus Gueterbock worked with The SU's Voice team to ensure those concerns were heard.
The campaign went on to attract support from students' unions and universities across the country, showing how student voices can help shape conversations far beyond campus.
Why this mattered
While the proposal centred on a technical change to the planning system, the potential impact was much easier to understand.
For students, communities and grassroots sports clubs, playing fields and sports facilities are far more than pieces of land. They provide opportunities for physical activity, social connection, personal development and wellbeing. Once these spaces are lost, they can be incredibly difficult to replace.
The concern was simple: without strong protections in place, access to affordable and accessible sport could become increasingly limited for future generations.
As the campaign highlighted, protecting sports spaces is not just about preserving facilities. It is about safeguarding opportunities for people to stay active, participate in community sport and enjoy the physical and mental health benefits that sport provides.
Turning concern into action
Recognising the potential impact of the proposal, Angus Gueterbock worked with The SU’s Voice team to launch a national campaign to protect the right to accessible sport.
The campaign argued that if Sport England's statutory role was removed, there needed to be equally robust protections in place to safeguard playing fields and community sports facilities.
At the heart of the campaign was an open letter, Protecting the Right to Accessible Sport, which highlighted the importance of protecting green spaces and playing fields used by grassroots sports clubs, schools, universities and local communities.
The letter emphasised that access to sport is not only important for participation and enjoyment, but also for improving public health, supporting wellbeing and ensuring that affordable opportunities to stay active remain available to everyone.
The campaign quickly gained support from across the higher education sector.
Representatives from 35 Students' Unions and 19 universities signed the letter, collectively representing over 900,000 students. Support also came from university sports leaders and national organisations from across the higher education sport sector.
On 9 January 2026, the letter was sent to key decision-makers including the Prime Minister, the Minister of State for Housing and Planning, the Chief Executive of the Planning Inspectorate and senior officials within Government. This was followed by a formal consultation response on 13 January 2026.
The campaign also encouraged students to take action individually by supporting wider efforts to protect Sport England's statutory role. A parliamentary petition opposing the proposal ultimately received 34,281 signatures, highlighting the scale of public concern about the future protection of playing fields and sports spaces.
The issue resonated far beyond Bath, becoming a topic of discussion across students' unions, universities and sporting organisations nationwide.
The Outcome
In August 2026, the Government’s final response to the consultation was published.
The most significant outcome was the Government's decision to retain Sport England as a statutory consultee, retaining a formal role in planning decisions involving the most significant developments affecting playing fields and sporting infrastructure. The Government stated that it had considered the strong opposition to the proposal before reaching its decision.
The Government also confirmed stronger protections for recreational land within planning policy and moved away from proposals that many respondents felt could weaken existing safeguards for playing fields.
While reforms to the planning system will still go ahead, retaining Sport England's statutory role means expert oversight will continue where it matters most. For students, universities and local communities, this represents an important safeguard for the future of accessible sport.
Tim Hollingsworth, the former Chief Executive of Sport England and now Professor in Practice for Sport at the University of Bath said:
"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.
"Once a playing field has gone, it is gone forever. So the sector-wide campaign to retain the vital role Sport England plays has been a real public service in my view. And the work that Angus as Sport Officer and the SU Voice team at the University of Bath did as part of that should both be recognised and celebrated for its impact."
What this says about student voice
Beyond the outcome itself, this campaign highlights the impact student representation can have.
Led by Angus Gueterbock and supported by The SU's Voice team, this campaign took an issue affecting students and communities and raised it at a national level. By bringing together students' unions, universities and sporting organisations from across the country, it helped ensure student perspectives were part of the conversation.
As well as helping to protect sports spaces, the campaign is a reminder that student voices can have an impact far beyond their own campus.
"I'm absolutely delighted that Sport England will remain a statutory consultee. This is such an important outcome for grassroots, community and school sport, helping to protect the spaces that so many people rely on to stay active and connected. What makes this achievement even more special is that it demonstrates the power of student voice. What started as a concern raised by students grew into a national campaign involving representatives from over 50 institutions and more than 900,000 students. It's a reminder that when students come together and speak up about an issue that matters, they can help shape decisions that have a lasting impact for future generations."
Angus Gueterbock, current SU President and 2025-2026 Sport Officer