Padel Club Layout Design: Courts, Clubhouse and Mezzanines
Most padel club plans start with one question: how many courts will fit? It is the right first question and the wrong place to stop. The court count sets the income ceiling. The layout around the courts decides how close the club gets to it.
This guide covers the decisions that shape a padel club layout, from court footprints and clear heights to mezzanines, viewing and the clubhouse. It draws on the official LTA court guidance and on Zero Gravity Design's own padel club design work.
Start with the court footprint, not the floor area
A padel court is a fixed product. The LTA's 2025 construction guidance sets the playing area at 20m x 10m, inside a 4m high enclosure. Measured to the outside of the enclosure, a single court takes 20.8m x 10.8m.
Courts sit side by side with a 1.5m gap between them, so the footprint grows in one direction. The LTA table gives 20.8m x 45.3m for four courts and 20.8m x 68.3m for six. That 20.8m length is the number to test first. A building that is 20m deep will not take a full court however large it looks on a plan.
Columns matter as much as walls. A column grid that lands inside a court, or between courts where the 1.5m gap is needed, can cost a court. This is why we run a test fit against the actual structure before a lease or purchase is agreed.
Clear height decides whether a building works at all
Height is the constraint that rules out most otherwise good units. For covered courts, the LTA guidance asks for at least 6m clear at the court ends and at least 8m above the net line, and a minimum of 8m over the net for elite competition. Floodlights need at least 6m of clear space above the playing area.
In a portal frame warehouse, the height at the eaves is often lower than at the ridge. Courts usually run with the net under the highest part of the roof, which fixes their orientation in the building before any other design decision is made.
Lighting is set by use. The guidance asks for 300 lux for recreational and regional play and 500 lux for national and international competition. If tournament courts are part of the plan, they need the higher standard and the 8m clearance from the outset.
Use the height you have: mezzanines
A tall industrial shell often has more volume than the courts need around their edges. A mezzanine turns that volume into floor area: a bar or lounge overlooking the courts, a gym, a studio, treatment rooms or a quiet workspace, without taking ground floor space away from courts.
A mezzanine overlooking the courts also solves viewing. Spectators get a clear view of play without standing in the circulation route or behind the glass where players need space.
Mezzanines are not a simple add-on. They need structural design for the loads they carry, fire separation and safe escape routes under the Building Regulations, guarding to the right height along every open edge, and a plan for step-free access. Planning is often not required for an internal mezzanine, but it can be where the use changes, the building is listed or the exterior is altered. Test all of this at feasibility, not after the courts are ordered.
Plan the clubhouse around how players arrive and leave
Players book in fours, arrive at different times and often stay after the match. The clubhouse layout should follow that rhythm: a clear arrival and reception point, changing and toilets on a direct route to the courts, and social space that every player passes on the way out.
On our commissioned concept for Padel Club Manchester, an eight-court venue including tournament courts, the bar and café are positioned to catch players coming off court, with a long bar facing the glass so the game is the view. Retail sits on the route rather than behind reception, and changing, recovery and physio run off the same circulation.
For ECHO Padel Club in London, the concept connects arrival, café, lounge, retail and changing into one member journey, so the time before and after a match has somewhere to go.
Decide what earns beyond court hire
Court hire fills the diary. Ancillary space decides how much each visit is worth. The layout question is which extra uses justify their footprint: food and drink, retail, a gym or studio, recovery, coworking or event space.
Groove Padel's 12-court club in Peterborough, where Zero Gravity Design is credited for the concept design, combines ten doubles courts and two singles courts with a café, workspace, Reformer Pilates, a gym, pickleball and golf simulators. That mix spreads trade across the day instead of relying on evening peaks. Read more in our post on the East of England's largest padel club.
Modular and canopy clubs need a layout too
Not every club sits inside a building. Many use a canopy over the courts and a modular or container clubhouse to control cost and programme. The same principles apply on a smaller scale: arrival you can find from the car park, somewhere to wait and watch, and storage and retail sized for a compact unit.
Our concept for Soul Padel's Stockport club worked within exactly that format, with canopy graphics, arrival cues, a communal table and courtside perch, and a compact retail display designed to repeat from site to site.
Planning and building control
The LTA guidance is clear that padel courts need formal planning consent, and that indoor structures and canopies need planning approval. Fully enclosed indoor structures need building control approval, and canopies may too. Where homes are within 50m, noise and light surveys are likely to be required. On greenfield sites, Biodiversity Net Gain applies.
These checks affect layout directly. A noise survey can move courts away from a boundary. Light spill can change lighting design. Both are cheaper to resolve on a plan than on site.
A layout checklist before you commit to a site
Does the building take the full 20.8m court length, with the column grid clear of courts and gaps?
Is there at least 6m clear at the court ends and 8m over the net, and 8m for any tournament courts?
Can a mezzanine add viewing or revenue space, and can it meet structure, fire and escape requirements?
Do players pass the bar or café on the way out?
Which ancillary uses earn their footprint at this site?
Have planning, building control and any noise or light surveys been scoped?
For budgets, see our guide to padel court and padel club costs. If you are assessing a building or planning a club, Zero Gravity Design can run a test fit before you commit. Explore our padel club design services.
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