Rapporteurship: Enabling community use of school sports facilities to support exercise and reduce health inequalities for young people

Key information

Publication type: Current investigation

Publication status: Adopted

Publication date: Wednesday 17 December 2025

2 sections

This investigation aims to:

Assess current levels of community access to school sports facilities in London
Identify the barriers that affect the ability of state funded and private schools to open their sports facilities to youth and community groups outside of school hours
Investigate how these barriers can be overcome to promote young people’s access to school sports facilities, especially for those experiencing health inequalities
Explore how community access schemes should be designed and delivered to support the physical health and wellbeing of young Londoners.

Physical inactivity is associated with 1 in 6 deaths in the UK and is estimated to cost the UK £7.4 billion annually, including £0.9 billion to the NHS.
In 2023-24, 47.3 per cent of children and young people in London met the recommended guidelines for physical activity. These activity levels varied significantly between boroughs, ranging from 35.3 per cent in Barnet to 62.1 per cent in Richmond-upon-Thames.
Those experiencing the most pronounced health inequalities, including Londoners with disabilities and long-term health conditions, are most likely to be among the least active. Sport England’s 2023-24 Active Lives Children and Young People survey found that children and young people from Black and Asian ethnic groups, those from less affluent families, and girls were all likely to have lower activity levels.
ONS data shows that 12 of the 15 local authorities in England with the lowest number of publicly accessible sports facilities per 10,000 people are London boroughs. Anecdotally, youth sports clubs in London have reported difficulties finding affordable venues and spaces to host their activities.
According to grassroots sports charity Sported, education sites operate or own 39 per cent of all available sports facilities in England, and are home to 77 per cent of sports halls and 61 per cent of artificial grass pitches.