Safety at Sports Grounds Act 1975

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The Building Standards section is responsible for inspecting stadia and issuing Safety Certificates under the Safety of Sports Grounds Act 1975 and The Fire Safety and Safety of Places of Sports Act 1987. A safety certificate is required for all stadia with a capacity of 10,000 or more spectators and for grounds which have covered stands with a capacity of 500 or more.

There are four separate applications under this legislation:

• Application for a Safety Certificate for a Sports Ground
• Application to change a Safety Certificate for a Sports Ground
• Application for a Safety Certificate for a Regulated Stand
• Application to change a Safety Certificate for a Regulated Stand

These applications can be made electronically on the Businesslink website; however, you should be aware that before you can access these forms you must register through the government gateway site.

The current fee structure for these applications is £1400 for a new safety certificate; £808 to amend, revise, replace or transfer a safety certificate which requires an inspection; and £269 to amend, revise, replace or transfer a safety certificate which does not require an inspection.

The general safety certificate covers the use of the stadia and regulated stands for certain specified sporting activities, use for other spectator activities such as a pop concert, will require the issue of a special safety certificate.

Overall, the process from submission to approval will be dependant on the quality of the submission in respect of the detailed information and supporting documents that accompany the submission. This will also have a direct impact on the length of time taken for the grant of any of the associated permissions.

If you require any further information on how to apply for a Safety Certificate or Special Safety Certificate under the above Acts please contact Mr A MacCalman on 0300 300 0144

Should you wish to lodge a formal complaint under the Council's formal complaints procedure you can do so by following the instructions and guidance given on our complaints page.

A manual register currently holds details of issued Safety Certificates and can be accessed by appointment, please contact the above named persons or write to:

Building Standards
Planning and Transport
Renfrewshire Council
Renfrewshire House
Cotton Street
Paisley
PA1 1LL

Should the local authority refuse to issue a certificate for a regulated stand or have the ground closed due to safety infringements, there is a right of appeal. Appeals should be made by way of a summary application to the Sheriff Court, and any appeals should be addressed to the Sheriff Clerk's Office, Sheriff Court House, St James Street, Paisley PA3 2AW.

Appeals made in respect of a general safety certificate for a regulated stand should be submitted no later than 28 days, and in respect of a special safety certificate not later than 7 days, after the relevant notification date.

Should the Local Authority refuse to issue a certificate for a sports ground, an appeal should be made to the Scottish Government.

For more information:

• email: bc@renfrewshire.gov.uk
• call or write to :
  Planning and Transport
  Renfrewshire House
  Cotton Street
  Paisley
  PA1 1LL