Councillors refused four covered padel courts on The Clearings, Draycott Avenue, after 84 objections and noise fears for Marlborough Primary School opposite.

Plans for four covered padel courts on the empty Clearings site in Chelsea have been refused. Council planning officers had recommended approval.

The Planning Applications Committee turned the scheme down on Tuesday 20 October. When the chair asked who wanted to grant it, no hands went up. A motion to refuse was then proposed, seconded and carried. (council recording of the meeting)

What was proposed

The application, PP/26/04162, came from KX Gym UK Ltd. The courts would have been run by the KX private members’ club at 151 Draycott Avenue, directly across the road.

It was a temporary use for 12 months on the Draycott Avenue end of the site. The officers’ report lists:

  • four padel courts under a lightweight roof with acoustic treatment
  • court lighting for year-round play
  • a small cafĂ©, toilets and seating
  • new hoarding around the site
  • opening from 7am to 10pm, seven days a week
  • four permanent and two part-time staff

KX members and their guests would have used the courts. The applicant also offered:

  • “Padel for Beginners” sessions for pupils at Marlborough Primary School each term
  • one court bookable by local residents on two days a week
  • a discounted booking fee for residents, with no membership needed

Prices had not been set. (officers’ report, section 4)

Why it was refused

The site is the former council depot and Leverett Street land, bounded by Draycott Avenue, Mossop Street and Denyer Street. Every building on it has been demolished. Marlborough Primary School is opposite, and the nearest homes are the flats of the Wiltshire Close Estate.

The council received 84 objections, 4 letters of support and one comment.

Officers said the scheme would bring a derelict site into use and could be controlled by conditions on hours, noise and lighting. They accepted the structures “would appear somewhat out of character”, but gave weight to the fact that they were temporary.

A ward councillor told the committee residents were not against sport. The question, the councillor said, was whether this use would improve the neighbourhood, and asked the committee to refuse.

Councillors were not convinced. Before the vote, officers read back the grounds members had raised:

  • not enough information to judge noise for the school and for residents
  • not enough detail on what the community offer would actually be
  • not enough detail on the operating plan, including how many people would use the courts and how they would arrive and leave

The council’s legal adviser cautioned that a vague community offer might not be a reason for refusal on its own. The exact wording will be in the decision notice, which has not yet been published.

A separate application for gym branding on the existing hoarding, CA/26/04163, was approved the same evening.

What happens to the site

The land already has planning permission for a much bigger scheme. That consent covers 78 homes in blocks of up to nine storeys and was last varied in 2019. It is still live, according to the officers’ report. No date has been given for building it.

What it means for you

  • Nothing changes on Draycott Avenue for now. The site stays behind its hoarding.
  • KX can try again or appeal. The chair said councillors needed answers on noise, users and the community offer, which suggests a fuller application could come back. The applicant can also appeal to the Planning Inspectorate.
  • To follow the case, search for PP/26/04162 on the council’s planning register. Our Kensington planning news page tracks the borough’s other big applications.

We will update this story when the decision notice is published.