Adventure Golf in the Green Belt Approved by Runnymede
Planning permission for an adventure golf course within the Green Belt in Surrey, demonstrating the proposal constituted an appropriate outdoor sport facility that would not harm Green Belt openness, supported by ecology and drainage surveys.
PLANNING APPROVALSRUNNYMEDESURREYGREEN BELT APPROVALS
Andrew Ransome
7/1/20262 min read
In 2019, planning permission was secured from a Runnymede for a new adventure golf course on the site of an existing driving range, within a Green Belt golf club.
The key challenge was demonstrating that the proposal would not harm the openness of the Green Belt and constituted appropriate outdoor sport and recreation, resolved by showing the new features would sit comfortably within the existing topography and replace a currently underused part of the site.
Adventure Golf in the Green Belt
Planning permission was obtained for the development of a new adventure golf course within the Green Belt in Runnymede, Surrey.
The existing site comprised a nine-hole golf course with a clubhouse and driving range. The proposed adventure golf course was to be located on the existing driving range — an area of the site that had become underused — and the application also included revisions to the car park to provide additional spaces.
The new course was designed with a range of features including waterfalls, stone circles and ruined castle features, together with associated lighting.
The site lay wholly within the Green Belt and within a designated zone of influence for a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), as well as adjacent to a proposed national pipeline project.
The Green Belt presents a significant policy challenge for any development: the NPPF establishes a strong presumption against inappropriate development, and only specific exceptions are permitted as of right. Outdoor sport and recreation — provided it preserves the openness of the Green Belt — is one of those exceptions.
The planning case demonstrated that the proposed adventure golf course fell squarely within the NPPF's exception for appropriate outdoor sport and recreation.
Critically, the new course features were designed to be low-level structures that would sit comfortably within the existing topography, avoiding any visual intrusion into the wider Green Belt.
The proposal was shown to reuse an already developed and underused part of the site rather than introducing development into open countryside.
The application was also supported by detailed technical reports, including drainage assessments and ecological surveys, establishing that no adverse impacts on the adjacent SSSI or wider environment would result.
The business case for the scheme was compelling: the existing club was used predominantly by adults with prior golf experience, and the adventure golf course would open the facility to a much wider audience — all ages, abilities, and non-club members — improving the long-term financial sustainability of the club.
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Andrew Ransome MRTPI - Email: andrew@andrewransome.co.uk
About me
Andrew Ransome is a Planning Director and a Chartered Member of the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI), with more than two decades of experience in town planning.
He specialises in delivering strategic planning solutions for complex developments across both rural and urban environments, helping clients navigate planning challenges and unlock development opportunities. Connect with Andrew on Linkedin.
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