Why UK Squash Clubs Are Adding Padel Courts in 2026

By Gary, founder of RacketRise. Glasgow-based, covering padel and pickleball across the UK.

Last Updated: April 2026.

Quick Summary

• 180–220 UK squash clubs and multi-sport facilities had at least one padel court by Q1 2026, up from under 30 in early 2023.
• 2 squash courts → 1 padel court is the dominant UK conversion model. Cost: £120,000–£180,000. Payback: 18–36 months.
• Padel revenue per sq m is 3–5× higher than squash. That's the core reason conversions are accelerating.
• LTA Padel Court Funding and Sport England Movement Fund both offer £10,000–£100,000 grants for facility build/conversion.
• Squash usage typically stabilises at clubs that add padel rather than collapsing — the dual-sport model works.

The Backdrop: UK Squash in 2026

UK squash participation has been declining since around 2008. Sport England Active Lives data shows monthly active squash players falling from a peak of roughly 480,000 in 2008 to roughly 310,000 by 2024 — a decline of about 35% over 16 years.

The decline isn't catastrophic, but it's meaningful. Many UK squash clubs ended up with court utilisation rates that didn't justify their floor-space costs, particularly in city-centre clubs where rent or rates per square metre are high.

Meanwhile, UK padel grew from under 20,000 players in 2020 to 860,000+ by Q1 2026. Court demand massively exceeds court supply in most UK cities. The two trends collide most obviously at multi-sport clubs that have both squash courts and the option to add padel — and the conversion wave is the result.

This article is the operator-side companion to our Squash to Padel UK player guide. If you run a club, sit on a club committee, or are pitching padel to a club committee, this is the data and the playbook.

The Economics in Detail

Revenue per Court

Average UK figures (Q1 2026, sampled across 40+ clubs):

Revenue per court per year on padel is typically 4–5× higher than on squash. Per square metre (padel courts being roughly 200 sqm vs squash at 60 sqm), the ratio is closer to 3× — still substantial, particularly in city-centre real estate.

Conversion Cost

Typical UK conversion costs (Q1 2026, surveyed from 12 recent projects):

Cost components typically break down roughly:

• Structural work (wall removal, beam reinforcement): 30%
• Glass walls and netting: 25%
• Artificial turf and sub-base: 15%
• Lighting (LED): 10%
• HVAC, drainage, ancillary: 15%
• Planning, fees, contingency: 5%

Payback Period

At average UK utilisation:

• 2 squash → 1 padel at £140,000 cost generates roughly £60,000/year incremental revenue → 2.3-year payback
• 4 squash → 2 padel at £270,000 cost generates roughly £130,000/year incremental → 2.1-year payback

That ignores the indirect benefit of new padel members joining the club (typical 20–40% total membership uplift), which often means dual-sport revenue grows beyond just the court hire.

The Conversion Options

Option A: Single Indoor Padel from 2 Squash Courts

The most common UK pattern. Pros: keeps the building footprint, uses existing structure. Cons: requires structural work to remove a load-bearing wall, often needs ceiling adjustment because squash ceilings are often too low for padel (need 6m+ minimum, ideally 7m+).

Option B: Single Covered/Outdoor Padel via External Build

Where a squash club has unused outdoor space (car park edge, side yard), building a covered or outdoor padel court externally is often cheaper and faster than internal conversion. Pros: no internal disruption, faster planning, often £80–£140k. Cons: outdoor utilisation in UK winter is lower unless covered.

Option C: Multi-Court Renovation

For larger UK squash centres (4+ courts), the highest-return play is converting 4 squash courts into 2 padel courts plus a viewing area. Pros: best per-court economics, creates a tournament-capable venue. Cons: removes most of the squash inventory, requires careful management to preserve the squash community.

Option D: Dual-Sport with Demountable Walls

A small number of UK installs (Vauxhall, one Glasgow club) use removable padel walls so the same court space serves padel during peak hours and other sports during off-peak. Pros: maximum flexibility. Cons: meaningfully higher install cost, mechanical complexity, generally not recommended unless space is genuinely constrained.

Planning, Grants, and Regulatory Reality

Planning Permission

For internal conversions of existing sports court space, planning is often not required — it counts as change of use within Use Class F2(b) or sui generis sports building. Many UK councils now treat squash-to-padel conversions as permitted development.

For external builds, glass facades, or new structures, full planning applies. Most UK councils now have padel-aware planning officers because of the volume since 2023. Typical decision timelines have shortened from 12+ weeks to 6–8 weeks in cities with experience (London, Manchester, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Leeds, Birmingham).

Common planning blockers: noise (covered courts produce ~65 dB measured at boundary), light spill (LED lighting needs proper directional shielding), traffic (clubs adding 60–80 padel sessions/week generate measurable parking demand).

Grants

Two main UK funding streams:

LTA Padel Court Funding Programme — grants of £10,000–£100,000 for affiliated clubs adding padel. Eligibility: LTA affiliation, minimum community-access hours, capital project for court build or conversion. This has been the largest single funder of UK padel court growth since 2023. England Squash clubs are eligible if they affiliate or partner.

Sport England Movement Fund — grants from £300 to £100,000+ for projects that increase activity levels. Padel falls within scope. More flexible than LTA scheme but generally smaller awards for facility work.

England Squash Club Investment — limited but existing fund for clubs preserving squash while diversifying. Small awards typically £2,000–£20,000.

Combining LTA grant + Sport England grant + club self-funding is the standard UK financing pattern for £150–£250k conversion projects. Most clubs we've spoken to fund roughly 40–60% via grant, 20–30% via member loan or share issue, and the remainder via bank finance or operator capital.

Operator Partnerships

For squash clubs that don't want capital risk, partnering with a dedicated operator is increasingly common. Game4Padel, Padel4All, PadelStars, Soul Padel and several regional players will fund conversion in return for a long-term lease (typically 10–20 years) and revenue share.

Pros: zero capital outlay for the squash club, immediate padel revenue, professional operations. Cons: lower long-run margin than self-build, lease commitment, less control over pricing and access policy.

Which UK Clubs Have Already Done This

Selected examples of UK squash clubs and multi-sport facilities that have added padel by Q1 2026:

London: Vauxhall Sport, Putney LTC, Hammersmith Squash Centre, Wimbledon Park, Will to Win sites, several Virgin Active and David Lloyd clubs.

Manchester: Northern LTC, several David Lloyd sites, multiple converted independent squash centres in Greater Manchester.

Glasgow: Western Squash, several David Lloyd and Pure Gym Premium sites, conversions in southside Glasgow squash venues.

Edinburgh: Edinburgh Sports Club, Grange Club, Murrayfield-area conversions.

Leeds, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff: Multiple conversions across David Lloyd, Hilton, and independent multi-sport clubs.

For the player-side directory of clubs offering both, browse our court finder and filter by city.

What the Squash Community is Saying

Honest summary of England Squash and squash-coach perspective in 2026:

The dual-sport model is broadly accepted as the realistic path forward. England Squash has explicitly endorsed clubs adding padel as a route to sustainable club economics rather than as a threat to squash. The clubs that have lost squash usage are clubs that closed all squash courts — those where 50%+ of squash inventory was preserved typically saw stable or modestly improving squash usage post-conversion.

The friction point is communication. Squash players who feel a conversion was decided without consultation tend to leave. Clubs that ran 6–12 month consultation processes, kept squash players informed, and offered transition pathways (free padel taster sessions, ladder credits) generally retain 80%+ of their squash community.

For our player-side companion to this article, see Squash to Padel UK: 7 Skills Head-Start which is what most squash players actually need to read.

If You're on a Club Committee Considering This

Practical 8-step playbook:

1. Scope the space. Two adjacent squash courts plus service area = potential padel court. Get a feasibility survey (£2–5k) before committing.
2. Run a member survey. Padel demand among existing members + willingness to pay + willingness to share court time with new members. This often surprises committees positively.
3. Talk to two operators. Even if you plan to self-build, getting commercial proposals from Game4Padel and similar gives you a realistic revenue baseline.
4. Engage planning early. A 30-minute pre-application chat with your local planning officer saves months later.
5. Apply for LTA grant. Even if you're not LTA-affiliated yet, affiliation + grant application is straightforward.
6. Consult the squash community in writing. Town hall meeting, written FAQ, transition offer for squash players who want to try padel.
7. Plan for membership growth. Most clubs underestimate how much new demand padel brings — get changing rooms, parking, and bookings infrastructure ready for 30–50% more footfall.
8. Don't kill all your squash. Keep at least one squash court, ideally two. The dual-sport model is what actually works in 2026 UK.

Related Reading

• Squash to Padel UK: 7 Skills That Give You a Head-Start
• Why British Tennis Players Are Switching to Padel
• UK Padel Data 2026
• Find a Padel Court Near You