Sports facility funding follows new housing as planning rules open a central route

Bridgwater Mercury reported that Bridgwater’s YMCA George Williams Centre has opened a refurbished games area for football, tennis, netball and community sport [1]. Tewkesbury Borough Council said sports clubs and community groups in Brockworth are being invited to apply for funding to improve local sports and fitness facilities, with the opportunity linked to new homes built in the area [3]. The Planning Inspectorate has set out how Section 62A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 allows planning applications to be made directly to the Secretary of State where a local planning authority has been designated [2]. Weston Mercury reported that a three-bedroom flat in a converted Victorian villa in Weston-super-Mare is on the market for £285,000, close to the seafront, station and local amenities [4].