Wokingham sports and recreational space strategy

Wokingham Borough Council’s decision-making executive approved a strategy on November 28 aimed at ensuring there are plenty of parks, play areas, sports pitches, allotments, leisure centres, places for people to walk their dogs and enjoy fresh air in the Wokingham Borough.

The council’s Open Space, Sports and Recreation Strategy has been developed to ensure the borough secures the right types of green and recreational space and was completed after a six-week formal consultation. Following the consultation a number of minor changes were made to the draft strategy, covering:

Access for all to new children’s play facilities
Inclusion of an outline strategy for cemetery facilities
The role of town and parish councils
Acknowledgement of the growth and consequent infrastructure needs of Woodley

The strategy mainly focusses on the areas of the borough that are expanding with the new homes coming over the next few years; these are the four Strategic Development Locations (SDLs) as well as Woodley where new homes will also be built. The strategy clarifies what level of new sports and recreational facilities will be required as the SDLs are developed.

This will include:

48 hectares of parks and gardens (the equivalent of about 70 football pitches)
Six hectares of play areas and other facilities for children and young people
40 hectares of outdoor sports facilities
12.5 hectares of allotments