Q. What sports facilities are included on Active Places Power?

A. The sports facilities are,
  • Sports halls
  • Swimming pools
  • Synthetic turf pitches
  • Indoor bowls
  • Indoor tennis
  • Athletics tracks
  • Health and fitness
  • Golf courses
  • Ice rinks
  • Ski slopes
    • We have begun to add information on grass playing pitches to the system, with the aim of completing this data set by the Summer of 2006.
    Q. Why were these types of facilities chosen?

    A. These facilities were chosen because:
  • They are where 70-80% of formal sport takes place
  • They are the facilities which are most invested in by the National Lottery and Department for Education and Skills
  • They tend to be large land users.
    • Q. Are there plans for other types of facilities to be added to the register?

    A. Yes,  in 2006 we will be adding
  • Indoor athletics tracks
  • Squash courts
  • Rowing
  • Studios

    • We are also considering:

  • Skateboard parks
  • Climbing walls
  • Other Water sports
  • Velodromes & cycle tracks
  • Gymnastics centres
  • Equestrian centers
  • Martial arts dojos
  • Boxing gyms
  • Long distance cycleways
  • Long distance footpaths
  • Multi-use games areas
  • Outdoor tennis courts
    • Q. Why are sports not listed - only facilities?

    A. Active Places  was developed as a register of sports places, rather than sports themselves. We intend, however, to provide links to other sites that give information about activities available at each facility (ie Sportshub, www.sportshub.co.uk).
    Q. Why can I not find a facility I know should be there?

    A. This could be for a number of reasons:

    1.  Maybe it is there. To find a single facility use the facility finder in the main map screen. Here you can search on a partial name of a facility using % as a wild card, or search on a town name to bring up a list of all facilities within that town

    2.  It could be because your definition of a facility differs to ours. For our facility definitions click on the facility name in the list on the right hand side of the map window.

    3.  If these two steps indicate that the facility should be added to the database please contact us using the feedback link on the bottom of this page.
    Q. What definitions does Sport England use for each facility type?

    A. To find this information click on the appropriate facility name in the list (interactive legend) on the right-hand side of the map window.
    Q. What are the criteria for facility inclusion?

    A. Those that fit the types of facility and fall into these categories:
  • Public sector, including local authority (including parish councils)
  • Education (including further and higher education), Ministry of Defence and Health
  • Sports clubs, including: local sports clubs and Civil Service Sports & Social Club
  • Private/commercial, including: hotels, leisure clubs and private sector chain providers
    • Q. How many facilities are included?

    A. Over 75,000 facilities in England.
    Q. How do I submit information for a facility that is not on the Active Places database, or let you know that details are inaccurate?

    A. Go to our feedback section.
    Q. What is a ?Power user??

    A. ?Power users' are those individuals or organisations that will need to use the data on Active Places Power in bulk (for example, local authorities and government departments).
    Q. What is the relationship between the Audit Commission?s CPA indicator, within the Cultural Block on access to sports facilities, and Active Places Power?

    A. The data within Active Places will be used to run the CPA indicator, on behalf of the Audit Commission, once a year. This will not be done using Active Places Power reporting and there are no plans, currently, to add this functionality to the system.