Centre for Outdoor Sport Update
We're pleased to share that the Centre for Outdoor Sport at Brookleigh was granted planning permission by Mid Sussex District Council on 14th March 2024. Works are expected to start on site on 28th May 2024.
At Brookleigh, Homes England will provide over 80 hectares of new green space – that's almost half the total area of the development. Nine hectares of this space is specifically allocated for the new Centre for Outdoor Sport. This new facility will form an outdoor extension to the Triangle Leisure Centre, and provide high quality, publicly owned sports pitches for the Burgess Hill community. It is proposed that the Centre for Outdoor Sport will be run by Places Leisure. As current operators of the Council's leisure facilities, Places Leisure will use a co-ordinated management approach to ensure the Triangle and this new facility work harmoniously together. Homes England has donated the land for the Centre to Mid Sussex District Council, with the transfer of land to the council taking place last week on 3rd May. Homes England will also support through payments towards building and maintaining the centre.
The layout includes features such as a floodlit 3G football pitch, an artificial grass rugby pitch, three junior natural turf football pitches, a full-sized natural turf football pitch, and an artificial cricket wicket with a turf outfield. The site will also include a Clubhouse with changing rooms, car parking and cycle storage, as well as a fully equipped play area. These features aim to keep the needs of the community in mind and prioritise inclusivity and accessibility.
The new access road, car park, and two floodlit artificial pitches are expected to open in early 2025. The natural turf pitches take nearly a year from being levelled and seeded to being playable so they won't open at the same time as the 3G pitches, but we'll make sure they are well looked after as they grow and establish.
Although a small number of trees have been removed in order to build level pitches for the Centre for Outdoor Sport, the Council is committed to maintaining and enhancing biodiversity with a thorough planting plan and ensuring all trees are replaced by their native counterpart. This guarantees no net loss of trees, and all wood from the felled trees will be repurposed on-site for ecological benefits and waste reduction.
The Centre for Outdoor Sport is part of the wider Brookleigh development, where Homes England is committed to protecting, enhancing, and creating habitat for native British wildlife and increasing biodiversity. An estimated 200,000 new trees and shrubs will be planted across Brookleigh, and Homes England is predicted to deliver a 23% overall biodiversity net gain across the development.
We're continuing to work with Mid Sussex District Council to provide the right infrastructure at the right time for Brookleigh, creating a sustainable new community for Burgess Hill.
