Last updated October 2026
Berkshire has six unitary councils, and each runs its own planning and its own pot of developer money. As a guide before VAT, wetpour under play equipment is listed at £40 to £140 per m2, and three council quotes to resurface a MUGA averaged about £36 per m2. Send photos and the address, and the team books the survey and tells you which council you are dealing with.
Which Berkshire council do we deal with?
The unitary council for your address: Reading, Slough, Bracknell Forest, Windsor and Maidenhead, Wokingham or West Berkshire. There has been no county council since 1998, so a court in Maidenhead and one in Thatcham go to different planning teams with different local plans and different pots of developer money.
Can developer contributions pay for a play area?
In Reading they have. In 2019 the borough allocated £603,000 of Community Infrastructure Levy to six park projects, including £100,000 each for the Avon Place and Ivydene play areas, alongside £786,700 of section 106 money across 20 smaller schemes. A residents’ group, school or parish in any of the six councils should ask what CIL or section 106 funding is held for its ward before assuming a project waits for a budget.
How long is a MUGA closed for resurfacing?
Allow about five weeks for a full job, on Reading’s example. When Reading resurfaced the Cintra Park MUGA in 2018, with a new court surface and perimeter fencing, and swapped the play area’s bark for rubber, the council planned around five weeks on site for the £70,000 job. A school should therefore book a full resurface for the summer holiday, while a reline fits a half term. Our MUGA page covers the options.
| Berkshire job | Typical price, ex VAT | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Wetpour under equipment in a Reading or Slough park | about £40 to £140 per m2 | Supplier list, 2026 |
| MUGA resurface, porous multisport | about £36 per m2 | Three council quotes, 2025 |
| MUGA relining | £600 per sport, or £1,250 | Contractor quotes, 2025 |
Is a new court near Windsor or Maidenhead likely to be Green Belt?
Very likely. Windsor and Maidenhead’s Borough Local Plan to 2033, adopted in 2022, released only about 1% of its Green Belt and keeps the rest protected. National policy still allows outdoor sport there if it preserves openness, so a club court is possible, but floodlights and high fencing get the closest look; our planning guide for courts and pitches explains how to approach it.
Is there a shortage of 3G pitches in east Berkshire?
The borough’s own strategy says so. Windsor and Maidenhead’s playing pitch strategy for 2016 to 2026 recommends at least five full-size 3G pitches against four in use, with gaps in Ascot and the Sunnings, Maidenhead and Windsor. It also asks schools to formalise community use. With the strategy period ending in 2026, a club or school planning a pitch should ask whether a refresh is under way before writing its bid.
Sources
- Reading Borough Council, investment in parks and play areas, July 2019
- Reading Borough Council, Cintra Park MUGA works, May 2018
- Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, Borough Local Plan foreword, adopted Feb 2022
- Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, playing pitch strategy, Apr 2016
- Redlynch Leisure, wet pour prices, Sept 2026
- Wickham Parish Council, MUGA resurfacing and relining quotes, Feb 2025
How it works
- 01Send a plan and photosThe site, the surface and the date it must reopen.
- 02We check the groundLevels and where the water drains.
- 03Written quoteBuilt around your reopening date.
Which surface suits a Berkshire school or estate play area?
For a primary yard in Slough or Reading, wetpour under the frames for wear and level access, with painted games on the remaining tarmac. On a developer’s new estate where the landscape scheme wants green, shock-padded artificial grass can sit alongside it, each tested to the equipment’s fall height.
What should a Berkshire enquiry include?
The address, so we can name the council; photos of the site and the route in; and, if CIL or section 106 money is involved, the date by which it must be spent. Parish CIL that is not used within five years may have to be repaid, so a dated quote early on protects the funding.
Who runs a Berkshire job?
For a Berkshire job we arrange a vetted local surfacing contractor, and we confirm who within 2 working days, or tell you if we can’t. Alex Winser stays your single contact from the first call to handover, and the written quote names who does the work before anything is booked.