WARLINGHAM SPORTS CLUB - PADEL DEVELOPMENT PLANS
We are developing exciting plans to bring padel to Warlingham Sports Club - view the detail and see how you can provide feedback
September 2025
Warlingham Sports Club is considering providing new padel facilities, which we believe will bring significant health and social benefits to the community. We are in the early stages of developing our proposals and have produced some initial ideas of what this might look like in the attached plan. We are seeking feedback from local residents and potential users of the new facilities, to ensure your views are taken into account and to help us assess the viability of our proposals.
WHAT ARE WE PROPOSING
We are considering the viability of constructing three outdoor padel courts within our existing grounds off Church Lane, Church Rd, Warlingham, CR6 9PR. These would be located behind the existing squash courts building and so would be set back well away from the road and nearby houses. As part of this we would also hope to provide a new area where people could sit and watch padel, or watch the existing pétanque, cricket or football pitches, which would all be retained. You can see our initial proposed layout in the plan above.
WHAT HAVE WE CONSIDERED
Noise: We do not consider padel to be a particularly noisy sport. However, we take potential disturbance to our neighbours extremely seriously, which is why we have proposed a location behind the squash court building. We have produced the above impact assessment sketch which shows that due to the position of the squash courts, main clubhouse and the nearby garages, as well as the orientation of the houses in Church Lane, there is a complete continuous physical barrier of buildings between the padel courts and the nearest back gardens. We therefore do not expect noise to be an issue.
Light: The courts would require lighting to enable play during the darker months. This would use up-to-date LED technology to ensure only the courts are illuminated, with minimal overspill. On the same impact assessment plan, we have shown the predicted spread of light, which is very localised and should not affect nearby properties.
Visual impact: The majority of the upright structure is made of glass walls and, coupled with the proposed location within our grounds, means visual impacts would be minimal. These glass walls would generally be 4-5m in height, although we are still considering whether we should provide covers over the courts to allow all-weather play, or whether we should leave them uncovered like most tennis courts. We would like your feedback on this.
Security: We would operate a booking system, which we currently plan would be available only to paid members of the newly formed Padel Club or their guests. All bookings would therefore be controlled and fully traceable, and we would ensure that courts are not bookable during overnight hours.
Environment: We take environmental impacts seriously and will ensure that the proposals do not affect our precious wildlife. For instance, we have commissioned a tree survey to ensure that tree roots are not affected by foundations. Similarly, we will liaise with the local council to ensure all environmental considerations are considered as we develop the proposals.
Public Right of Way: The existing public right of way will not be affected by the proposals, and we will ensure that this route is maintained.
Parking: The existing club is under-subscribed, meaning we have spare capacity. However, we will also cap the number of new members we will enrol into the Padel club. Most use of the padel courts will be in the summer period which coincides with lower use of the car park and so parking should therefore not be an issue.
HOW FAR DEVELOPED ARE OUR PLANS
At this stage the club has brought together a small group of members to oversee and control the project as it develops. We are still progressing the designs, as well as determining what funding opportunities we may have. At this stage, our proposals are very much a work in progress.
HOW CAN YOU PROVIDE FEEDBACK?
We are keen to hear feedback from the local community to help us plan for the future. If you would like to provide feedback, either supporting our proposals or highlighting potential issues, please go to https://forms.cloud.microsoft/r/ftagu47qdnand fill in the online questionnaire by 19th October 2025.
In addition, members of the existing squash club will be attending Warlingham Community Library, Shelton Avenue, CR6 9NF on Friday 19thSeptember 2025 between 1530-1700hrs, and Saturday 20th September 2025 between 1000-1200hrs should you wish to discuss the proposals in person or fill in a paper questionnaire.
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