Case Study: Sport England achieves smarter national and local sports facility planning with Ordnance Survey geospatial data

Geospatial data powers national and local provision of sport

Sport England needed a single national facilities database to implement the Government’s 2002 Game Plan and to plan sport provision strategically at national and local levels. Using geospatial data supplied by Ordnance Survey under the Public Sector Mapping Agreement (PSMA) — including OS MasterMap Topography and ITN layers — Sport England built the Active Places database and sought an interactive analytical website to make that data usable for local authorities, national governing bodies and partners.

Ordnance Survey’s mapping products power the Active Places Power site, enabling an Esri-based interactive map, detailed visualisation from national to street level and a first‑of‑its‑kind dynamic catchment-area analysis (driving and walking). The service supports strategic decisions across 30,000 sites and 64,000 facilities (about 80% coverage of formal sport locations), helping local authorities and NGBs plan provision, reduce duplicated investment and target Sport England funding more effectively — tangible outcomes enabled by Ordnance Survey’s data.

Sport England

Mark Critchley

GIS Manager