Hundreds of school playing fields sold off by last government
The UK government has authorised sales of school playing fields on at least 279 occasions between 2010 and 2023 - according to recently published data analysed by The Pitch Inspection.
Growing up in a city, access to green space and more specifically the local football pitch was an absolute necessity, whether your chosen home pitch was down at the local council park, a nearby green or your school's playing field, those places became your second home. It was where you socialised with your mates and at the same time got some fresh air and exercise whilst failing miserably to replicate Tony Yeboah's latest wonder goal for Leeds or Roy Keane's latest two-footer for United.
Come rain, wind or snow that parcel of land was always there growing up, it may have been covered in dog shit or the odd shredded can of Coke, but nonetheless it was your theatre of dreams and it was bloody important.
However, things are changing - access to vital green spaces in urban areas is reducing year on year and remarkably the UK government has authorised sales of school playing fields on at least 279 occasions between 2010 and 2023 - according to data recently published by the government and analysed by the Pitch Inspection.
Up and down the country schools are selling land to fund much needed school maintenance and upgrades in the face of endless budgetary pressures. Many parcels of land are sold to housing developers - some to polluting water firms. In 2023, Wokingham Borough Council sold a playing field to Thames Water (under threat of a compulsory purchase application) - Thames Water wanted the land for a sewage pumping station! (not content with filling our Rivers with raw sewage they now also want to snap up our green spaces).
Back in 2022, an Oldham based academy also sold off an “unused” playing field to a water utilities company - again so the firm could improve the sewage network - the school spent the money on “new fencing and drainage improvement”. There are also examples of playing fields being sold to various local authority highways departments to enable the expansion of road networks and a host of other developments.
The government claims there are strict guidelines that councils and schools must follow in order to sell off playing fields, but in the past 13 years at least 279 applications have been approved, whilst only seven have been refused during the same period.
Prior to Conservative party led government, things didn’t fair any better under the previous Labour premiership who authorised 246 sell-off’s between 2001 and 2010 - Remarkably 525 applications have been accepted since the turn of the century.
How is this country supposed to keep finding its next Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden or Bobby Zamora if it continues down the path of flogging much needed green spaces, it is true many of the schools and local authorities re-invest the funds back into the school, often building multi-purpose sports pitches or 3G pitches. There is of course a place in our communities for all-weather pitches, but a tarmacked slab, a fraction of the size of a full sized pitch and surrounded by a 10 foot high metal fence and a padlocked gate will never provide the same experience, atmosphere and health benefits as your classic, grass pitch and accompanying full-sized goals (even with the nets missing and the occasional puddle).
A recent report published in the Guardian found that the “brutal” loss of green spaces including playing fields could have “serious implications for children’s wellbeing and mental health”. Furthermore, GMB, the union representing amateur and semi-professional footballers warned in 2019, the continued sell off of football pitches could put “England’s footballing future at risk”.
GMB said “At a time when the nation is celebrating the success of both the Men’s and Women’s national teams it’s a disgrace that less and less school children will have anywhere to play. This short-sighted sell off the family silver is going to have serious health implications for generations to come”.
Another pattern that has become apparent in recent years is that only kids from state schools are losing access to sports pitches and outdoor spaces. Wealthy private schools are actually expanding and acquiring more land. A recent Guardian investigation revealed “that children at the top 250 English private schools have more than 10 times as much outdoor space as those who go to state schools” - a gap that continues to widen.
The Department for Education were approached for comment.
So much of our nations footballing heritage begins on a public playing field. Green spaces are crucial for our children's health. It’s a no brainer - stop selling off the playing fields!
You can read the full list of “disposals” here:
