Debate over cricket ball speeds could delay flats conversion

In 2021, a planning application to turn Aire Valley House, a vacant office building in Crossflatts, into 139 flats was approved by Bradford Council.

However, the location of the building – next to Crossflatts Cricket Club, led to concerns that future residents of the flats, and their cars, would be at risk of being hit by balls.

Because of this concern, planners imposed a condition that before the development began a “cricket ball risk assessment” would have to be submitted to and approved by the Council.

This Summer, developer Aire Valley House Ltd submitted its cricket ball assessment. But Sport England has argued this document is not good enough – and underestimates the power of some of the players’ shots.

An application to discharge the condition includes the risk assessment, and says work on the residential conversion of the site began late last year.

The cricket ball assessment says: “Typically for a professional international cricketer, the basis of a shot velocity is 50m/s.

“Then for a community cricket player assumption of 40m/s is a suitable speed for the skill level.”

These calculations are used to suggest that a 3m tall fence along a stretch of the club boundary would be enough to stop balls from landing in the new development.

It adds: “This along with the existing tree line would be expected to stop the majority of balls been hit into the development site.”

But Sport England has objected to the report, saying: “The ball strike assessment doesn’t appear to have been undertaken via a specialist qualified consultant.

“It also contains flaws in that cricket shots can be played 360 degrees of the crease with only shots from the furthest crease being measured on this report.

“The report does quote professional and recreational shot speed, but for clarity only the professional level should be measured, as Crossflatts Cricket Club play in an ECB Premier League which allows tier 5 professionals.

“The report should be done via a specialist qualified consultant and be done on the basis of professional cricket.”

The developer’s report uses a red line drawn on an aerial photo of the site to show where the proposed fence would be.

But the Sport England response says there is too little information on the proposed fence – saying: “Sport England notes that the red edge appears to have been free hand drawn as it contains slight wobbles.

The map of the proposed fence - included in the Ball Strike Report (Image: Aire Valley House LTD)

“Sport England does not consider that the information submitted in respect of condition 3 is adequate to discharge the condition.

“As such, residents, visitors and property at the application site could be at risk of both injury and damage from cricket balls.

“This results in a serious health and safety issue if cricket ball strike is not adequately addressed and mitigated.”

Bradford Council planners will have the final say on whether the report is enough to discharge the condition – which would allow the residential conversion to go ahead.