Five covered padel courts and a clubhouse can be built at the former driving test centre on Island Road, Hersden. Play is allowed from 7am to 10pm every day.
A covered padel centre with five courts and a clubhouse can be built in Hersden. Canterbury City Council granted planning permission on Wednesday 4 November.
The site is the empty former driving and vehicle test centre on Island Road, beside the Lakesview Business Park. The application, CA/26/00138, was made by REWD Padel Limited.
What has been approved
The applicant’s planning statement sets out the scheme:
- five padel courts under a single canopy with retractable lower walls
- a two-storey clubhouse with a cafe and bar, seating and changing rooms
- a self-storage yard of 189 shipping containers, each 20 feet long, on the southern part of the site
- landscaping, with trees and hedges between the courts and the storage yard
The old test centre building will be demolished. Part of the permission is retrospective, because containers are already on the site, the officer’s report says.
The canopy is about 12.4m at its highest, the report says, with eaves of around 6.5m. The applicant says the height is needed for the lobbed shots that are a big part of padel.
Opening hours and parking
The decision notice sets the hours by condition:
| Part of the site | Allowed hours, every day including bank holidays |
|---|---|
| Padel courts and clubhouse | 7am to 10pm |
| Self-storage yard | 7.30am to 8pm |
The padel centre gets 34 parking spaces and four disabled spaces, and the storage yard 15 spaces and one disabled space. Kent County Council’s highways team did not object, after the applicant supplied a transport statement and a technical note. It said the expected trips would not have a significant impact on local roads.
Any outdoor lights need a lighting scheme approved first, designed to limit light spill for bats.
What residents said
Nobody wrote in. The report records that no comments came from neighbours after letters went out and a site notice went up. Hersden Parish Council neither objected nor supported it, but asked for more detail about the clubhouse’s hours and any alcohol licence.
The nearest homes are at Riverview, about 10m from the courts. The officer judged the curved roof and the distance would avoid overbearing, overshadowing or overlooking.
What it means for you
- If you play padel or want to try it, the courts would be covered, so play would not depend on the weather. The site is on the A28 Island Road between Sturry and Upstreet.
- No opening date has been given. The permission lasts three years. A construction plan must be approved before work starts, and an archaeology programme must be agreed.
- A bar needs a separate licence. That application would go to the council’s licensing team and be open for comment.
Other decisions near you are on our Canterbury planning applications page.
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