Community and Environment Division

Date of Meeting: 14/05/2025

ITEM 5

QWN1/25 - Synthetic Sports Fields

Responses to the Questions with Notice asked by COUNCILLOR ball to the Director, Community and Environment - QWN1/25, are provided below:

1. Please itemise the location and age of any existing synthetic turf sports fields in the Hornsby LGA.

Location	Installation date
Pennant Hills Hockey No.1	2012
Pennant Hills Hockey No.2	2013
Pennant Hills Oval No.3	2016

Other synthetic surfaces throughout the LGA include:

Type	Area (m2)	Comment
Cricket Wickets	1,560	26 wickets
Practice Wickets	2,840	13 sites
Tennis	31,500	50 courts
Pennant Hills No 3	7,800	1 football pitch
Pennant Hills Hockey	11,600	2 hockey fields
Dog Parks	1,250	2 sites
Playgrounds	1,000	Multiple sites
Brickpit golf driving range	14,000
Hornsby Mall	750
Mark Taylor Oval Indoor Centre	700
TOTAL	73,000

2. Please advise of any strategies or plans to replace existing synthetic turf sports fields; or develop additional synthetic sports fields in the Hornsby LGA.

Council’s adopted Sportsground Strategy (2018) provides an assessment of the current and future demands for sportsgrounds and provides recommendations to meet these demands.

The Strategy identifies that in 2018 there was a 12.6Ha shortfall of playing surface area, rising to 19.9Ha by 2026. Allowing for ancillary space needs (amenities, parking, circulation etc), the total additional land area required by 2026 was projected to be approximately 33.8Ha.

The Strategy identifies a range of options for Council to consider in addressing these shortfalls including:

· Improving the carrying capacity of existing sportsgrounds

· Installing or upgrading lighting

· Reconfiguring playing fields to improve functionality

· Upgrading drainage and/or surface quality

· Installing additional multi-purpose synthetic surfaces or special purpose surfaces

· Ensuring provision of active open space land in new residential developments

· Converting existing open space to sportsground use

· Acquiring or securing other land for sportsgrounds

· Partnering with schools and/or other institutions to use existing or develop new facilities

· Consideration of new technology

· Ensuring the sportsground allocation process effectively balances maximising use with equity of access.

· Continuing to improve field maintenance and management practices.

With respect to the renewal of existing synthetic sports fields, the synthetic sportsfield at Pennant Hills Park was installed in 2016 and financial modelling included in Council’s Long Term Financial Plan provides for its surface renewal within the period of the LTFP.

The two hockey fields at Pennant Hills Park were paid for an installed by Hockey and timing of their renewal would primarily be a matter for the sport.

Regarding additional sportsfields, Council’s adopted Masterplan and Development Consent for Westleigh Park provides for a synthetic sportsfield as part of Stage 2 of the development. The Hornsby Park Masterplan also identifies that the Old Man’s Valley Sportsfield could be developed as either a natural turf or synthetic sportsfield. In this regard it is noted that Council’s successful Old Man’s Valley Field of Play Grant provides for a natural turf sportsfield.

Other locations identified in the Sportsground Strategy for possible synthetic surfaces include Campbell Park, Pennant Hills; Warrina Street Oval (small), Berowra; John Purchase Oval, Cherrybrook and Cheltenham Oval, Cheltenham. These are all in the Strategy however none are currently

It should however be noted, that none of the above sites are under active consideration and prior to the progression of any of these sites, detailed analysis would be required to determine viability and community support, funding secured, and specific project endorsement by Council.

3. Is Martin Sheppard, Smart Connection Consultancy and/or SportEng undertaking any consulting for Hornsby Council regarding synthetic sports fields? If so, what is the contract value of this consulting work?

Council has no active contracts with any of the above entities. Notwithstanding it is understood SportEng has been a subconsultant for the designs of both Hornsby Park and Westleigh Park projects. This includes completion of the DA Package for Westleigh Park.

4. How much money has Hornsby Council paid these companies over the last 5 years?

Smart Connection Consultancy	$7,219.00
SportEng	$15,669.50

5. What training days and/or workshops regarding synthetic sports fields have Hornsby Council staff and Hornsby Councillors attended in the past 5 years? And at what cost?

Year	Workshop	Organiser/Presenter	Cost	Attendance
2020	Nil		$0
2021	Advisory Group for Synthetic Surfaces in Public Open Space Guideline	Department of Planning, Industry and Environment	$0	Senior Departmental Staff and Council Officers
2022	Advisory Group for Synthetic Surfaces in Public Open Space Guideline	Department of Planning, Industry and Environment	$0	Senior Departmental Staff and Council Officers
2022	National Sports & Physical Activity Convention	Smart Connection Consultancy	$1,694	Council Officers
2022	Local Sporting Needs Council Informal Workshop	Council Officers	$3,575	Workshop with Councillors and staff about Councils Sportsground Strategy and local sporting needs. Included a session providing and overview of the role of synthetic sports surfaces from Smart Connections Consultancy
2023	National Sports & Physical Activity Convention	Smart Connection Consultancy	$1,725	Council Officers
2023	Westleigh DA Package	Council Officers	$1,320	Workshop with Councillors and staff.
2024	The Big Squeeze Forum – Meeting the Critical Need for Local/District Sport Facilities	Parks and Leisure Australia – NSW/ACT Branch	$250	Council Officers presenting on work undertaken by NSROC
2024	Synthetic Turf in Public Open Space guideline	Department of Planning, Industry and Environment	$0	Senior Departmental Staff and Council Officers

Stephen Fedorow

Director - Community and Environment

Community and Environment Division

Attachments:

There are no attachments for this report.

File Reference: F2016/00360

Document Number: D09128242

Mayoral Minute No. MM4/25

Date of Meeting: 14/05/2025

8 SEEKING COMMUNITY ACCESS TO SCHOOL GROUNDS

For the past several years, the NSW Government has been opening public schools to local communities during the school holidays as part of its Share Our Space program. This program is commended and has seen many Hornsby based primary schools made available and their accessibility by our community is strongly supported.

More recently the government announced a trial which allowed families and communities greater access to schools’ outdoor facilities outside of school hours every day of the week Share our space.

As Sydney is facing rising population densities within established suburbs such as Hornsby, access to adequate public open space is essential for the wellbeing of our communities and liveability of our suburbs.

Our recent Review of Supply and Demand for Sports Facilities in the NSROC region found there is a crucial need to increase the current supply capacity of NSROC sports facilities. In particular, the Hornsby LGA is projected to have a shortfall of 61 Ha of sportsground area. The Review is available here website. It is highlighted that our Westleigh Park project is required to help address this shortfall and the NSW Government has sought to reclaim funding otherwise required for Council to help address this shortfall.

Therefore, with our rising population and little or no means for expanding meaningful open space in high density suburbs, we specifically request this school program be expanded to include Hornsby based schools with a particular focus on Asquith Boys and Asquith Girls, Cherrybrook Technical, Galston, Pennant Hills, Hornsby Girls and Normanhurst Boys.

These schools are ideally located adjacent to the residential centres that are faced with population increases, and they retain sportsgrounds and sport court facilities that are in demand from our community. For many of these schools they rely upon and extensively use Council funded and managed sports facilities. In nearly all cases, this use occurs free of any cost to these schools.

These existing schools will also need to grow to accommodate additional students and classrooms, thereby placing more pressure for use of Council provided open space.

Therefore, it is equally appropriate that these publicly funded school facilities be made available for their local communities after school hours every day of the week.

RECOMMENDATION

THAT Council:

1. Write to The Premier, Chris Minns MP, The Hon Prue Carr MP, Deputy Premier, Minister for Education and Early Learning, and Minister for Western Sydney, The Hon Steve Kamper MP, Minister for Sport, and local MP’s, requesting permanent community access to the open space and sports facilities within Hornsby’s schools.

2. Work with NSROC to collectively advocate for access to schools across the region in direct response to the planned population increases and the need to maintain and improve the liveability and amenity of our communities.

Cr WARREN WADDELL

Mayor

Attachments:

There are no attachments for this report.

File Reference: F2004/07826-004

Document Number: D09123550