Sport England Shifts Stance on Oasis Sports Hall Amid Redevelopment Views

Seven Capital wants to change the closed center. They filed a formal proposal for planning permission. The plan keeps the listed pool and dome. It removes the sports hall and music venue. The company wants two outdoor football pitches there, and they would be all-weather.

Sport England initially objected to the plan. They want to keep sports facilities open. They said there was no justification for the loss, which included the squash and sports hall. They offered to work with the council and wanted to replace the indoor sports facilities.

Sport England would reconsider their position, wanting justification for the loss. A replacement could be on or off-site. Later, Sport England changed their position. They reviewed over 200 comments and no longer object to the application.

Seven Capital will give money to the council. This money will support new sports facilities. The new development will increase the demand for sports, and existing facilities might not meet the demand. New developments should help meet this as the existing school sites have limited access.

They said the Community Infrastructure Levy will support this, and it will go towards new sports. No final decision exists on the application yet.