Multi-Sport Court Academy
Shared-use court planning workbook
How to use this workbook
Work through only the modules relevant to the project. Record confirmed decisions, unresolved questions and information still needed. The live Academy can save the same decisions into Your Facility Plan and My Apollo Project.
This is a planning workbook, not a construction drawing, professional design, accreditation or approval document.
Define the sport mix and programme hierarchy
Start with the activities the court must support, then decide which are primary, secondary and occasional so the layout does not become visually or operationally confused.
□ Which sports must the court support every week?
□ Which sport should control the primary line hierarchy?
□ Is the court for PE, club use, public recreation or mixed programming?
Establish the full court and circulation footprint
Plan the usable site around playing areas, run-off, entries, waiting space, equipment movement and future changes rather than only the painted court lines.
□ What is the clear site after boundaries, buildings and obstacles?
□ Where will users enter, wait and change activities?
□ Is there enough surrounding space for safe circulation and future adaptation?
Check the base and drainage first
Confirm substrate stability, levels, cracking, moisture and water management before choosing the shared-use surface.
□ Is the base concrete, asphalt or another hard substrate?
□ Are ponding, movement or failed repairs present?
□ Where will water go after it reaches the court?
Choose the surface around the sport mix
Compare modular tile, resilient indoor systems and other surface families around the combined needs of the sports rather than one activity in isolation.
□ Indoor, outdoor or covered?
□ Which sports place the strongest demands on traction, cushioning and ball response?
□ How important are modular repair, drainage and later reconfiguration?
Design a clear line-marking hierarchy
Use line colour, prominence and court overlays so the shared surface remains understandable when several sports occupy the same footprint.
□ Which court markings must be easiest to read?
□ Can secondary lines be visually quieter without becoming confusing?
□ Will portable markings or temporary overlays be needed for occasional sports?
Coordinate hoops, posts, nets and removable equipment
Resolve fixed, socketed, wall-mounted, portable and removable equipment around shared use and storage before the surface plan is frozen.
□ Which equipment must stay in place permanently?
□ What can be removable to protect flexibility?
□ Where will portable or seasonal equipment be stored?
Plan lighting for the whole shared-use court
Coordinate pole positions, aiming, glare, uniformity and operating hours around all sports and the wider site.
□ Which sports and user levels drive the lighting brief?
□ Do poles or luminaires conflict with run-off, fencing or spectators?
□ Are nearby homes, roads or boundaries sensitive to spill light?
Plan perimeter, containment and access
Coordinate fencing, gates, ball containment and court separation around the most demanding ball trajectories and the movement of different user groups.
□ Which sports require the most containment?
□ Where should gates sit without cutting through active run-off?
□ Does the court need internal dividers for simultaneous activities?
Design for schools, clubs and community use
Match the court layout to supervision, timetable changes, public access, age groups and the way the site will actually be operated.
□ Who uses the court during school, club and public hours?
□ How will equipment changeovers be managed?
□ What supervision, storage and access arrangements are needed?
Include spectators, accessibility and support spaces
Plan inclusive access, benches, waiting areas, service routes and spectator positions as part of the shared recreation environment.
□ Can users reach the court without crossing active play?
□ Where will accessible users and spectators be accommodated?
□ Are seating, shade, drinking water or storage required nearby?
Plan maintenance, resurfacing and future change
Choose a facility pathway that can be cleaned, repaired, re-marked and adapted as sports programmes change over time.
□ Who maintains the surface and equipment?
□ Can damaged areas or components be replaced locally?
□ How easy will it be to change markings or sport priorities later?
Build the multi-sport project brief
Bring sport mix, site, base, surface, markings, equipment, lighting, containment and supporting infrastructure into one coordinated project brief.
□ Which sports and priorities are confirmed?
□ Are dimensions, base condition and site constraints documented?
□ What local civil, electrical, installation and approval responsibilities remain outside supply?
Facility Plan summary
Use this page to consolidate the project before moving into the Sports Project Brief.