The Department for Culture, Media and Sport said its Planning Policy Guidance (PPG 17) for open space, sport and recreation would provide local planning authorities with 'robust guidelines' on the need to protect open spaces and playing fields. It has also introduced legislation to protect smaller playing fields by lowering the size threshold from 0.4 hectares to 0.2 hectares - full to half a football pitch - upon which Sport England must be consulted when a planning application for development is submitted.
John Prescott, deputy prime minister, said the policies in PPG17 would help to 'ensure that everyone has access to well-managed open spaces, playing fields and sports and recreational facilities'. Estelle Morris, education secretary, added that the Government was 'investing more money into school sport than ever before', namely 750m for school sports facilities through the New Opportunities Fund and 130m for sports halls, changing facilities and all-weather pitches.
Trevor Brooking, Sport England's chair, said the guidance would 'go a long way to raising the profile of recreation'.
Elsa Davies, director of the National Playing Fields Association (NPFA), said, 'We are delighted the size threshold has been put in place as we have been campaigning for this for ages. As for the 750m, this is the same money re-announced for the seventh or eighth time.'
The Government said 92 per cent of playing field planning applications submitted to Sport England over the past two years 'were not detrimental to sport or did not proceed'. But Mrs Davies said, 'We are losing green spaces despite what the Government says.'
Last month the NPFA wrote to the Cabinet Office calling for an 'urgent' formal review of Government policy on playing fields. It said in 1999-2000 there were 625 applications to build on playing fields, then 875 applications in 2000-01, a 40 per cent increase in a year.
