Queenwood School for Girls, whose campus overlooks Balmoral Beach in Mosman, is pursuing approval for a $45 million sports precinct at Oxford Falls that would give its 900 students their first dedicated sporting facilities — but the application has drawn a formal objection from Northern Beaches authorities on visual impact and planning grounds.
The proposal is before NSW Planning as a State Significant Development under application SSD-73688210, currently in the Response to Submissions stage.
A new home for school sport
The school bought a 2.1-hectare former residential property at 1100 Oxford Falls Road for $10.7 million in 2024 and has since submitted plans for a multi-use outdoor sports field with synthetic turf for soccer and hockey combined with eight tennis courts, a full indoor sports hall for basketball and netball, and an underground carpark.
The hall would also serve as an exam venue and host PDHPE classes.
Queenwood charges annual tuition fees of up to $48,105, which surpasses $51,000 for specialized curriculum tracks, but the school lacks on-site sporting facilities at its Mosman campus.
Director of Sport Hayden Danks described the Oxford Falls site as “an exciting new chapter” representing “a significant investment in our facilities and a forward-thinking commitment to preparing our students for the future.”
Planning concerns take centre stage
Northern Beaches authorities raised concerns about significant visual impact, insufficient integration with the natural landscape and non-compliance with Warringah Local Environmental Plan requirements.
The plans do not include the required 20-metre front setback with dense landscaping, and the proposed building height is one storey above the maximum permitted under local planning rules.
The submission also raised concerns about increased traffic at an already congested corridor shared with Oxford Falls Grammar School and a nearby St Pius X College sports complex, and the risk of microplastic and chemical pollution to a nearby creek from the synthetic turf field.
Supporters and neighbours weigh in
Of the 42 submissions recorded on the NSW Planning Portal, the overwhelming majority support the application. Mosman Hockey Club, based in Greenwich, has formally submitted in favour, as have Manly Hockey Club, Manly Warringah Men’s Hockey Club, Manly Women’s Hockey Club and Manly Junior Hockey Club.
Their case rests on a simple gap: there is not a single full-sized synthetic hockey pitch anywhere on the Northern Beaches, forcing players to travel up to an hour each way to Ryde, Ku-ring-gai or Sydney Olympic Park to train and compete.
The school has indicated it will look at sharing the facilities with local community sports clubs on weekends and outside school hours, which has broadened the project’s appeal beyond the Queenwood community.
Objections from directly adjacent residents raise concerns about building height, lighting into neighbouring properties, noise from evening and weekend use, traffic on Oxford Falls Road, and the environmental impact on local wildlife and a riparian corridor.
The decision now rests with NSW Planning
Because the project has been declared State Significant, the planning decision rests with NSW Planning. The current stage is Response to Submissions, after which the application moves to Assessment and then Determination. The NSW Planning contact for the project is Teresa Gizzi at 02 8275 1124.
The full submission record is publicly available here.
Published 10-July-2026
