5. Provision for additional outdoor recreational space within the relevant typologies will only be required to the extent that the needs arising from the development cannot be met by pre-existing sufficientencies in provision. This will be considered within the Area Committee area for open space and play space, and across the borough as a whole for outdoor sports. It will be evidenced by the Open Space Assessment, Playing Pitch Strategy or other robust, up-to-date evidence, including monitoring of change in provision arising as a consequence of development. This does not negate the need for larger developments (with an indicative population of 100 or more people) to ensure that there is at least 100m2 of play and social interaction space suitable for toddlers that might be accessed within 100m walking distance of every home.
6. The sports pitches requirement, within the outdoor sports headline typology, may alternatively be calculated using the Sport England Playing Pitch Calculator. In doing this the Playing Pitch Strategy’s high priority actions should be used to establish a specific scheme to which contributions for off-site provision might be made. Regard must be had, however, to any more up-to-date prioritisation or technical work undertaken by the council subsequent to the Playing Pitch Strategy. As neither the Sport England Playing Pitch Calculator nor the Playing Pitch Strategy have regard to all types of sports pitch that could be provided under this policy, prioritisation or technical work which is more recent than the Playing Pitch Strategy might identify that this approach is not the most suitable way of delivering strategic priorities for outdoor sports in any given part of the borough.
7. Provision should be in line with the following sequential approach, with as much need for each typology of outdoor recreational space being met at each sequentially preferable level before the remainder is met at the next level down.
8. Open space: 1) On-site then 2) financial contribution towards provision within the Area Committee area and then 3) financial contribution towards provision elsewhere in the borough.
9. Outdoor sports: 1) On-site and then 2) financial contribution towards provision elsewhere in the borough.
10. Play space: 1) On-site then 2) financial contribution towards provision within the Area Committee area and then 3) financial contribution towards provision elsewhere in the borough.
8. Notwithstanding this sequential approach to provision, there may be circumstances in which the council considers that off-site provision is preferable because it would help deliver strategic scale facilities to meet the collective needs of a number of different developments. This is most likely to be the case in relation to outdoor sports provision, where the majority of developments are not likely to have either the land available or significant enough a population to make the provision of complete facilities possible.