A school has been given permission to replace their sports field with an all-weather 3G pitch, to help improve children’s access to sporting facilities.

Brent Council’s planning committee unanimously approved the proposals for the pitch at Byron Court Primary School, Wembley.

Those behind the scheme pointed out that it will help tackle inactivity among young people – noting that Brent has “some of the worst levels” of childhood obesity in the country.

“The introduction of an all-weather surface, which can be used in all seasons, represents a significant improvement,” said Andrew Lloyd, technical advisor to Brent Council.

Cllr Robert Johnson, chairing the committee, expressed neighbours’ concerns over increased traffic and noise disturbances, and suggested that the removal of a grass pitch would damage the area’s ecology.

But officers assured the committee that, while a grass pitch does have a greater ecological value than a 3G pitch, the benefits are “negligible”.

They added that the advantages – particularly the increased access to the facility – outweigh any loss of grass there.

And in terms of increased traffic and noise, they predicted that around 50 people would be using the space at any one time, which is far fewer than the number of people being dropped off and picked up during school hours.

The pitch will not make use of floodlights and will be closed off at 8pm during the summer months, to avoid unnecessary disturbance to neighbouring properties.