From now on local education authorities will only be allowed to sell off playing fields for redevelopment if the sports and curriculum needs of schools and their neighbouring schools continue to be met. The local community's use of school playing fields will also have to be considered in any decisions, and any sale proceeds will have to be re-invested in sports education facilities.
An advisory panel on school playing fields is also to be set up with the National Playing Fields Association, the Central Council of Physical Recreation and Learning through Landscapes, and representatives of headteachers and local authorities.
The measures were revealed last week by schools minister Catherine Ashton, whose portfolio includes the closure and protection of school playing fields. She said that the disposal of sports and playing fields would only be allowed 'when they are genuinely surplus to school requirements and when the remaining facilities still meet the needs of the community'.
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