Taxonomy term

Coastal communities are some of the most beautiful places in England and many of the country’s wealthiest spots are on the coast.

But it is also true in England that a disproportionate number of the places suffering the most deprivation, worst physical and mental health outcomes and lowest healthy life expectancy are on the coast too.

All this may read contradictory, but coastal communities haven’t ended up in this position by accident.

Many were once thriving seaside economies, built on tourism and seasonal work, but as those patterns changed, they left behind communities with deep roots but with fewer opportunities than those in urban and rural communities.

This deteriorating state of coastal living standards is driven by deprivation and the complex and challenging issues around housing, transport and employment, which together lead to disproportionate lower levels of physical activity.

As Sport England highlight with their sustainability strategy, Every Move, adding to these challenges is that those facing the greatest inequalities are often the least active and the most affected by climate change.

Plus, coastal communities are facing significant climate effects through coastal erosion, flooding and the fact that industries on the coast are the ones producing the majority of the UK’s carbon emissions.

So how can we turn the tide on physical inactivity on the coast?

Can you define ‘coast’?

It is amazing that whilst we are an island, there is no agreed government definition for the term ‘coast’, unlike clear definitions for urban and rural areas.

This leads to the coast often being lost in talks around deprivation as the debate revolves around those in urban and rural areas.

The Coastal Navigators Network, which tackles health inequalities on the coast, has identified that whilst coastal communities are often small individual places, when considered together, they are as large and significant as a national population group (19%) and the near equivalent of the entire North West and North East regions combined.

So with this in mind, what inequalities do people living in coastal areas face in terms of access to sport and physical activity?

The most obvious one is that for coastal communities half their catchment area is in the sea!

Away games are often long car journeys to the far away urban areas for at least half of their season and let's not forget about those extra carbon emissions!

However, it is the opposite for their urban colleagues, who consider their fixture in the season on the coast as going to the seaside for the day!

Sport and physical activity has come late to the policy work across England about improving opportunities for coastal communities, but is now beginning to build the partnerships with organisations like the Coastal Communities Alliance, OneCoast, the Coastal Navigators Network, and the Coastal Cultural Network.

In fact, in February 2026, the APPG Coastal Communities have scheduled a briefing session on the Culture, Creative & Sport Sector in coastal communities. (Please note that while no final information is available yet, the Coastal Community Alliance is currently organising this with the APPG, so check their sites and socials for more information.)

Where is the good work happening?

Five years on from its launch, Active Withernsea is making a real difference in creating physical activity opportunities and lifestyles and transforming its local community.

Local data by Sport England-funded Active Withernsea highlights that while in 2018, 44% of people in Withernsea were inactive (that is doing under 30 minutes of exercise a week), this number has gone down to 15 % of residents being inactive in 2024.

Further, the percentage of residents who are now active increased from 44% to 62% over this time period.

Happiness and satisfaction with life have also improved and anxiety amongst Withernsea residents has decreased, while activity for those with a disability has seen the biggest increase.

A Physical Activity and Community Engagement (PACE) network has been established to lead physical activity projects going forward and ensure that the work continues with more than 100 residents, groups and partners now directing the next steps to continue to deliver physical activity for the people of Withernsea.

What Active Withernsea has shown is that when national policy makers do focus on coastal communities, significant change can help increase physical activity levels. 

What is also clear is that Sport England place-based funding has begun to turn the tide for coastal communities and that, together, we will keep working to improve the lives of those living by the sea.

Decisions about where new homes are built, how streets are laid out and whether parks, pavements and public transport are prioritised, all play a role in shaping how active people can be in their daily lives.

Yet too often, physical activity is seen as a leisure issue, rather than a systemic one rooted in spatial planning, social justice and public health.

To effectively embed physical activity into our environments and daily routines must be a shared ambition across sectors and professions – from planning and transport, to health and housing, as well as for leisure and open-space management.

Want to go out to play?

For example, it is no use creating miles of cycle paths if we are creating homes and town centres without space for secure cycle storage, not providing opportunities for our children to learn to ride bikes through programmes like Bikeability, or addressing poor attitudes towards cycling and reducing traffic speeds so that people (especially parents and caregivers) feel it is safe to ride even short distances.

Equally, we cannot expect our children to play out, like many of us used to do back in the day, if their neighbourhood streets and doorstep places are full of parked cars (too often on pavements) and moving traffic.

Research shows that basic, free outdoor play has fallen to its lowest level ever, with now only one in four children playing outside regularly compared to their grandparents’ generation, where almost three-quarters played outside on a regular basis.

Too often when we think about play in neighbourhoods, we default to thinking about structured activity and providing spaces that are designated and equipped.

Whilst play parks are important assets for all neighbourhoods, the doorstep and immediate street is also critical, and importantly, a space for children to play on a daily basis.

Accessible, safe street space is the most inclusive step we could take to make places more active and friendly for children, meaning we need to grapple with car and parking-centric design.

All of this is why a systems approach is needed – one that listens to communities, addresses inequalities and prioritises long-term health outcomes in decisions about land usage and investment.

Active environments cannot be a ‘nice to have’; they must be seen as essential infrastructure for a healthier, more equitable future.

The Town and Country Planning Association works to make homes, places and communities in which everyone can thrive.

We work to influence and shape the planning system at the national and local level, but we recognise the multi-dimensional nature of place-making and how places and spaces are shaped by communities and can be ‘activated’ for activity.

For the last six years, in a partnership with Sport England, we have worked to create healthier, more active communities, building knowledge and capacity with partners and local authorities and advocating for health and activity to be embedded in planning policy.

Tackling climate change and maintaining the health benefits of sport are two sides of the same coin, not mutually exclusive.

And don’t let anyone tell you it’s pointless doing anything in England as ultimately it’s all about China and India.

Our investment does make a direct difference, whether it’s simple adaptation – like planting trees around sport pitches to reduce the impact of flooding and getting people back playing more quickly – or reducing energy costs of councils, which can be reinvested in sports, by upgrading swimming pools through new technologies.

Secondly, our royal charter explicitly sets out Sport England’s duty to promote the ethical practice of sport and physical activity.

It’s a core part of our remit and environmental sustainability and net zero are at the heart of most ethical organisational frameworks, including the UN’s sustainable development goals.

Thirdly and finally, sport has a unique global megaphone to reach, mobilise and galvanise people.

With an estimated three billion fans worldwide – roughly a third of the global population – the sports sector is a direct and practical mouthpiece to communicate climate and energy issues to large and diverse audiences.

And Sport England has the power to be the nation’s biggest convener – from the more than 130 system partners, including the national governing bodies of sport to our precious grassroots community system, where 17.2m or more than 35% of the population are members. Why wouldn’t we use this voice and network to tackle the biggest challenge facing the planet?

We still have a lot of work to do, but it was a proud moment to beat such strong competition in the likes of Formula E, the International Olympic Committee, Sail GP, the MCC and Wembley Stadium.

Thanks to the Sport Industry Awards for their recognition that we are on the right track and thanks to so many of you who have made a difference at Sport England.

Thanks to Tim Hollingsworth, our CEO, for championing this work and speaking eloquently at the ceremony. Invariably we are doing this on the side of the desk on top of our wider work, because we believe it matters.

Winning awards shouldn’t be why we do this work, but it can give us confidence, pride and energy to help us go faster.

Now for accelerating our work on the journey.

Rising costs, slow wage growth and job insecurity mean people have less disposable income for things like gym memberships, fitness classes and sports participation.

Families are making tough choices about where to spend and for many, paid-for physical activity is slipping down the priority list.

At the same time, local authority budgets remain stretched, making it harder to provide affordable sport and leisure facilities.

Some communities are feeling the impact more than others, deepening inequalities in access to physical activity.

This shift means organisations may need to rethink pricing models to keep participation affordable, local authorities will have to balance economic constraints with long-term health benefits and the rise of low-cost and community-driven physical activity – like parkrun or outdoor group workouts – could accelerate.

As a result, we can see that affordability and accessibility are becoming even bigger factors in how people stay active.

Climate change is already changing the way we move

Three years ago, we identified sustainability and climate change as an important but emerging trend. Now, it’s clear: it’s not just emerging. It’s here.

Heatwaves are affecting summer participation in outdoor sports, floodings are making pitches and playing fields unusable, and government sustainability targets are reshaping sports infrastructure and travel habits.

But there’s a tension emerging: economic pressures could slow down sustainability efforts in sport and leisure because when people are struggling to make ends meet, will eco-friendly sports initiatives remain a priority, or will financial concerns push them down the agenda?

Facility managers will need to balance sustainability investments with budget realities, outdoor sports may need to adapt to new weather patterns – from changing competition calendars to investing in weather-resistant facilities – and we can see that the push for active travel, such as walking and cycling, is growing but whether it will be supported at a local level is something that remains uncertain.

Climate change isn’t a future issue – it’s a right now issue, and sport and physical activity will have to adapt.

Ok, so what’s next?

This is just a snapshot.

As we mentioned, the full Horizon Scan explores 16 key trends across six broad themes, from demographic changes to the role of digital technology in sport.

For those working in the sector, this isn’t just about awareness – it’s about action, so we encourage you to read the report and to ask yourself questions like:

• what challenges or opportunities do these trends present for my organisation?
• how can we ensure sport and physical activity remain inclusive, accessible and resilient in the face of change?
• what can we do now to prepare for the next wave of shifts?

English music legend David Bowie once said: “Tomorrow belongs to those who can hear it coming.”

Let's listen.

All of us here have a vital role in making our sector sustainable.

We know it’s not an easy task, and sadly 2025 has seen our headwinds strengthen. This year brings a raft of new reports and research highlighting the growing threat, and of course sport is being impacted along with everyone else.

Last month was the world’s warmest January on record.  

UK insurers confirmed that flooding is getting worse, with record claims in 2024 totalling over half a billion. And part of that is ever-more waterlogged pitches and stadia.

A report by the Scientists for Global Responsibility and the New Weather Institute – entitled Dirty Tackle – found that, without action, a quarter of the UK’s football pitches could be partially or totally flooded by 2050.

At the same time as football is bearing the sporting brunt, the report also claims that the global football industry is responsible for between 64 and 66 million tonnes of CO2 each year. 

That’s as much as the entire nation of Austria, a country with a population of over nine million.

However, I don’t want to linger on constantly reiterating and quantifying the problem – we know what it is. I want to talk to you proactively and positively about sustainable facilities, and about our sector, including football, moving to be part of the solution.

Every Move and the circular economy

Sport England’s mission is to get more people active and we can’t do that if pitches are unusable, you can’t reach them because of flooding or events are too hot to hold. So this is personal for us and to our stakeholders for very pragmatic reasons. 

People who are active are much more likely to be happy and healthy. And healthy people is what the health care system desperately needs. Active people already relieve some of the NHS burden, preventing 1.3 million cases of depression, 600,000 of diabetes and 57,000 of the UK’s leading cause of death – dementia – saving billions a year.  

We can also be the link here. Which is what led Sport England to publish our first-ever environmental sustainability strategy, Every Move, last year. 

In developing the strategy, we talked to the sector – many of you – and participants. 

We found three in five adults had at some point been prevented from taking part in a sport or being active by extreme weather.  

Four in 10 sports organisations had experienced weather-related disruptions to their activities.  

The FA alone estimated that 120,000 football matches are being lost annually due to adverse weather conditions. That’s the equivalent of seven million minutes of community football lost in one year alone.

A big focus of our strategy is promoting the move to a circular economy, and I am delighted to be joined today by so many pioneers in that area. 

Launching a strategy is not difficult… but delivering one is. 

What we’re doing

So, let me tell you a little about the work we are actually doing to make it a reality.

Firstly, Sport England owns three big national sports centres: Bisham Abbey, Lilleshall and Plas Y Brenin in Wales. 

We are working alongside their operators to insulate buildings and invest in new heating technologies, to make them energy efficient and ultimately, sustainable.

We are being deliberate about the equipment and food we buy, favouring sustainable suppliers, and we are actively increasing our understanding of biodiversity to maximise our ‘ecosystem service’, such as creating places to hold excess rainfall. 

Secondly, we’re using Sport England’s spending power to help create circular economies. 

Alongside this, we will promote and enable the recycling and redistribution of sports clothing and equipment to benefit grassroots clubs and participants most in need. 

Thirdly, we, in partnership with the government, are investing £80 million to improve the energy efficiency of public leisure facilities with pools.

In fact, as I speak, there are already 570 interventions – from solar power installation to the fitting of air handling units –  under way.  

Each and every one is improving the energy efficiency of a facility and, crucially right now, reducing running costs.

Our partners are stepping up too. I applaud the FA for their Greener Game programme in partnership with E.ON, supporting grassroots clubs to decarbonise, reduce their energy needs, and cut their bills and environmental impact. 

And one of the ways the Premier League supports clubs to develop their infrastructure sustainably is through the LED Floodlight Fund, which provides grants to clubs throughout the National League System and Women’s Football Pyramid to install energy-efficient floodlights, helping to reduce their energy costs and carbon footprint.

But lastly, and this is a tough one, we have committed to tackling the issue of plastics.

Plastic does not biodegrade and can take up to 1,000 years to break down. And even when it does, it simply breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces.

Micro-plastics leaching into soil and water causing what we are now realising is huge damage to the environment and our health.  

And while the majority of plastic does not come from the sport and physical activity sector, we must acknowledge the part we play in this problem.

So how do we want history to judge us?  

Kicking single-use plastics out of sport

It was certainly heartening to see both athletes and organisations starting to act – such as a cohort of over 100 athletes calling on Coca Cola and Pepsi to increase their use of reusable packaging ahead of the 2024 Olympics.

That leadership makes a difference, and it needs to: in 2021 the Environment Agency found major sporting events each generate up to 750,000 plastic bottles.

Putting a spotlight on action – or inaction – is needed for change. Not just castigating but applauding those who are acting strongly. 

And we are seeing change all around us. For example, The Oval cricket ground has become completely plastic-free. The venue has banned the use of plastic straws, introduced compostable coffee cups, and has phased out the use of plastic bags in the club shop. 

The Wimbledon Championships has reduced the number of single-use plastic water bottles by more than half a million over the last six years. 

They’ve proved it’s doable and, in doing so, created a positive pressure on others to follow suit. 

We are not trying to sell something unpopular here either.60% of British adults saying they will try and cut down the amount of plastic they use over the next 12 months; they just need to be given a way to join in.

And people are prepared to do their bit. More than 2,500 paddlers joined in last year’s Big Paddle Clean Up, removing more than 1,800 sacks full of plastic from British waterways. It’s inspiring stuff.

3G pitches, microplastics and rubber infill 

If we are going to be authentic in talking about plastics, we do have to discuss artificial grass pitches, a topic that is one of the most difficult in Sport England’s in-tray. 

Do you ever wonder why we stopped calling them ‘plastic pitches?’ Is it because it makes us feel more comfortable about them? 

From a sporting point of view, artificial grass pitches, or AGPs, have become an integral part of community sport because as far as activity is concerned, they’re brilliant.

They provide a reliable, year-round playing surface, regardless of the weather. A properly maintained artificial grass pitch can sustain up to 80 hours of use a week, or 1,400 playing opportunities. 

Compared to a natural grass pitch, which can sustain just six hours a week and around 100 playing opportunities… that kind of difference is hard to ignore.

Almost half of these pitches are based at schools or in education settings and have become integral to the PE curriculum. 

This reliability of service and availability, often in areas of greater need, is incredibly attractive, especially as we’re now much more aware of what the burden of inactivity costs us.

People who are already active save our country £540 million on reduced GP visits and £780 million every year on reduced mental health service use. 

Artificial pitches play a significant part in realising those benefits. In fact, our current stock of 3G pitches across England is estimated to be worth almost £500 million per year in social value.

But we can’t shy away from the fact that these wonderful health benefits are producing negative costs downstream.

The breakdown of plastic grass, and the roughly 50 tonnes of rubber infill each pitch currently requires, are producing microplastics.

If we are to continue using them, we must:

• In the short term, get very good at containment.
• And at the same time, vastly improve end-of-life recycling.

Up to 500 pitches reach the end of their life every year – two to three times the current UK capacity for recycling at the single venue capable of doing it.

If we don’t change, history will judge us and rightly so. I and Sport England are determined to be on the right side it. 

Today, we are committing to work together with Government and our partners to tackle these two issues, and kick more plastic out of sport. 

It feels uncomfortable, focusing on football so much. We know there are other sports and activities that use artificial pitches but, as our nation’s most popular sport, change here would have a ripple effect across our sector.  

There are steps we can take now.

In September 2023, the European Commission adopted the EU REACH Regulation (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals) on the sale of intentionally added microplastics onto the European market. This includes rubber infill for artificial pitches.

Pragmatically, the Commission confirmed an eight-year transition period before the new restriction becomes effective. From October 2031, you'll no longer be able to purchase rubber infill within the EU. 

The ruling does not prevent the continued use of this material for 3G pitches, nor does it prevent the construction of new pitches with rubber infill before 2031.

But it will make the maintenance of these pitches after this time difficult, incentivising us all to commit to moving away from its use and giving time to make that change. 

However, that clear leadership and a fixed date mean that change is now guaranteed. 

Following the UK’s exit from the EU, we are not bound into this: the regulatory framework for these matters now sits at a UK level.

The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) recently commissioned an evidence project to review emissions of intentionally added microplastics in the UK, including rubber infill. 

That project is expected to report in the spring. It will shine a light on this issue and inform any potential future regulatory action in Great Britain.

We are already working with the Football Foundation to explore a potential transition away from rubber infill, looking at what infill has the least impact on the environment and finding more recycling capacity for 3G pitches when they come to the end of their useful life. 

Indeed, the Foundation are currently testing six alternative infill systems and the effectiveness of containment measures to reduce the level of infill leaving the pitches.

I’d like to acknowledge this important groundwork, but I also want us to do more as a sector. 

Today, I would like to set out how Sport England is committed to working in partnership with three key audiences.

Firstly, working with the government, we must do three important things.

1. End uncertainty and decide whether or not we will follow the EU’s directive. If so, then let’s set a deadline for the transition away from rubber infill as our neighbours have.
    
2. Secondly, alongside this, increase the capacity for end-of-life recycling. Over the next five years, it is estimated that the total amount of carpet in England reaching the end of life, and that could be recycled, is equivalent to an area larger than Truro in Cornwall.  
    
3. Finally, we will work with Defra to prioritise these issues and work with the sporting sector in its work to promote a circular economy.

To the sporting system, including partners like the Football Foundation, I say let’s prove the cynics and the sceptics wrong, who say the current pilots are a way of – if you excuse the pun – kicking the issue into the long grass. 

Let’s redouble efforts and increase investment to find the sustainable solutions needed.

Nobody is pretending it’s easy but, from what I have seen this year, I am now fully convinced it is doable. 

And finally, to participants and users of 3G pitches, as well as those in charge of sites: do everything you can to keep plastics on the pitch. 

Banging your boots before you leave the pitch seems incredibly simplistic advice to give against a far bigger issue, but it’s certainly a start. Let’s make it cultural. 

For our part, Sport England will continue to step up. We are actively looking at how we can deliver a coordinated information and guidance campaign for artificial pitches. 

We will work with partners including SAPCA, the Football Foundation and the Grounds Management Association to influence consumer behaviour.

We must coordinate guidance to minimise the loss of rubber infill into the environment, whilst we also find alternative solutions, at pace.

Users, operators pitch designers, consultants, manufacturers and installers: we must all work together to succeed.

Sport England will use its convening power to help, but it will require a multi-agency approach, so I call on SAPCA, its members, NGBs and other partners in the room to play your part too. 

Conclusion

From wireless gears in cycling, super shoes and faster Mondo tracks in athletics, to the widespread use of wearable tech across all levels of sport, the sector has long been at the very forefront of innovation.

Let’s harness that thirst for improvement and commitment to innovation in the service of something even bigger. 

Let’s take action we can be proud of.