Former Wycombe District Sports Facility Strategy 2015 to 2020

Ploszajski Lynch Consulting Ltd. (PLC) was appointed in 2014 by the former Wycombe District Council to produce a playing pitch and outdoor sports facilities analysis which assessed current provision and identified future requirements in the former district, in the context of national policy and local sports development criteria.

The analysis covered the following pitches and facilities in the former Wycombe district:

• football (mini, youth, adult)
• cricket
• rugby Union (mini, junior, adult)
• artificial turf pitches (hockey and football)
• bowling greens
• tennis courts
• Multi-use Games Areas (MUGAs)

The results of the analysis are given below.

Adult football pitches - There are 50 adult football pitches in the former Wycombe District, 91% of which have public access. The use of 4 pitches was recently discontinued and 10 pitches are on school sites with no community access. Per capita levels of provision are the second lowest for all the neighbouring local authorities (former Chiltern, South Bucks, Aylesbury Vale etc.) but are relatively even across the former district apart from the Stokenchurch sub-area, which has lower per capita rates. The quality of 20% of pitches is rated as ‘good’ and a further 71% are of ‘standard’ quality. No parts of the former Wycombe District are beyond a 15 minute drive time of the nearest pitch.

Youth football pitches - There are 40 youth football pitches in the former Wycombe District, 72% of which have public access, which leaves 28% of sites where access could theoretically be rescinded. The use of three pitches was recently discontinued and 32 pitches on school sites have no community access. Per capita levels of provision are below the average for all the neighbouring local authorities but are relatively even across the district apart from Stokenchurch, which has lower per capita rates. The quality of 10% of pitches is rated as ‘good’ and a further 76% are of ‘standard’ quality. No parts of the former Wycombe District are beyond a 15 minute drive time of the nearest pitch.

Mini-soccer pitches - There are 31 mini-soccer pitches in the former Wycombe District, 87% of which have public access. There are 12 further pitches on school sites with no community access. The per capita levels of provision are the second lowest for all the neighbouring local authorities but are relatively even across the district. The quality of 18% of pitches is rated as ‘good’ and a further 73% are of ‘standard’ quality. No parts of the former Wycombe District are beyond a 15 minute drive time of the nearest pitch.

Cricket pitches - There are 30 cricket pitches in the former Wycombe District (collectively comprising 254 wickets) all of which have public access. The use of a further 3 pitches was recently discontinued and there are also 13 pitches on school sites with no community access. The per capita levels of provision are the second lowest for all the neighbouring local authorities and are relatively even across the district apart from the High Wycombe sub-area, which has lower per capita rates. The quality of 30% of pitches is rated as ‘poor’, which compromises their usage capacity. No parts of the former Wycombe District are beyond a 15 minute drive time of the nearest pitch.

Rugby pitches - There are 12 rugby pitches in the former Wycombe District, 82% of which have public access. There are also 13 pitches on school sites with no community access. The per capita levels of provision are the lowest for all the neighbouring local authorities and there are pitches in only three of the sub-areas. The quality of 50% of pitches is rated as ‘good’ and 50% are ‘standard’. No parts of the former Wycombe District are beyond a 20 minute drive time of the nearest pitch.

Synthetic turf pitches - There are 6 full-sized STPs in the former Wycombe District, 5 of which have public access. These are supplemented by 6 small-sided synthetic turf pitches, capable of accommodating youth/mini matches and training for all age groups. The per capita levels of provision are the lowest for all the neighbouring local authorities. The quality of all pitches is rated as ‘good’. No parts of the former Wycombe District are beyond a 20 minute drive time of the nearest pitch.

Bowling greens - There are 9 bowls greens in the former Wycombe District. Per capita rates are around the average for the comparator authorities. The quality of greens and changing facilities is generally above ‘average’, but there are some disabled access issues at some sites. No parts of the former Wycombe District are beyond a 15 minute drive time of the nearest green.

Tennis courts - There are 74 tennis courts in the former Wycombe District. Per capita rates are around the average for the neighbouring local authorities and provision is relatively even across the 6 sub-areas in Wycombe. The quality of court surfaces and fencing is in most cases above ‘average’, but there is a lack of changing facilities at some sites and some disabled access issues. No parts of the former Wycombe District are beyond a 15 minute drive time of the nearest court.

Multi Use Games Areas (MUGAs) - There are 15 MUGAs in the former Wycombe District. Not all MUGAs in the district conform to the strict definition of ‘a rectangular flat surface, usually of tarmac, with the court measuring a minimum of 30m x 15m with fencing around the perimeter, regulation markings for a range of sports (typically 5-aside football, basketball, netball and tennis) and goals/hoops at each end of the court’. The per capita levels of provision show the Marlow sub area is well below the district average and that there is no provision in the Flackwell Heath, Bourne End and Wooburn Green sub area.

The current balance between supply and demand was assessed using Sport England’s 2013 site-specific playing pitch methodology, details of which can be found on Sport England. The audit covered assessing all the local facilities and sports clubs including amongst other things the number of teams playing at venues.

The future balance between supply and demand of pitches was assessed by evaluating the factors below and then modelling Team Generation Rates to project the position in 2026:

• projected population change in the study area
• how participation aims, current trends and predicted changes in the way that pitch sports are played and pitches used may affect the demand for provision
• any particular sports clubs or sites where demand is likely to increase in the future
• any forthcoming changes in the supply of provision and how this will affect the adequacy of provision to meet demand

The results of the assessment were as follows:

The maps below show the current pitches with catchment areas.

The maps above and the results of the audit and future needs analysis show the following:

Youth Football Pitches – there are deficiencies across the former district with the exception of Stokenchurch. The strategy seeks to address these deficiencies through the provision of youth football pitches throughout the district with the exception of Stokenchurch.

Mini Football Pitches – the main areas of deficiency are in Flackwell Heath, Bourne End, Wooburn Green and Marlow. The strategy seeks to address these deficiencies through the provision of mini football pitches throughout the former district with particular emphasis on Flackwell Heath, Bourne End, Wooburn Green and Marlow.

Cricket pitches – there are deficiencies across the former district with the exception of Marlow which has an over provision. The strategy seeks to address these deficiencies through the provision of cricket pitches throughout the district with the exception of Marlow.

STPs – Princes Risborough and Stokenchurch are covered by the outer catchment areas but currently have no facilities. The strategy seeks to address these deficiencies through the provision of STPs throughout the district with particular emphasis on Princes Risborough and Stokenchurch.

For outdoor sports facilities, a locally-derived, evidence-based standard of provision as described in each section was developed for each facility, to assess current and future deficiencies based on the Sport England guidance and taking current data, participation rates, and feedback from sports clubs and governing bodies.

The locally-derived, evidence-based standards of provision were applied for each facility to assess future deficiencies and generally this is based on current population to facility ratios.

The results of the assessment were as follows:

The results of the assessment were as follows:

The maps below show the current outdoor sports facilities with catchment areas.

The maps above and the results of the audit and future needs analysis show the following:

Bowls – Stokenchurch is the only area with no provision currently. The strategy seeks to address this shortfall.

Tennis – no major gaps but all areas are deficient in tennis courts. The strategy seeks to provide tennis courts across the district.

MUGAs – there is no provision in the Flackwell Heath, Bourne End and Wooburn Green sub area. The strategy seeks to address these deficiencies in future developments in these areas.

The Sport England methodology includes an onsite assessment against set criteria on the quality of current sites. The quality assessment has no impact on the quantity as all facilities remain in use and have been included in the sections above as current provision. The information below outlines the quality improvements currently highlighted and if completed will improve the playing experience.