Last updated October 2026
LED floodlights for a padel court to LTA standard typically cost £6,000 to £12,000 per court, according to the UK Padel Guide (October 2026), and the LTA puts running costs at about £1 an hour per court. Club play needs 300 lux and national competition 500 lux. Most councils treat floodlights as needing consent, so our lighting consultants design the lights and the lighting impact assessment, our planning consultants handle the padel court planning permission, and our installers fit them with your court or as a retrofit.
Most of a lighting budget goes on the fittings, but an old single-phase supply can cost more than the lights.
| Item | Typical cost | Source |
|---|---|---|
| LED lighting to LTA spec, all in | £6,000 to £12,000 per court | UK Padel Guide |
| Floodlights | £3,500 to £5,000 | UK Padel Guide |
| Columns and cabling | £1,500 to £3,000 | UK Padel Guide |
| Commissioning and photometric report | £1,000 to £2,000 | UK Padel Guide |
| Electrical supply upgrade from single-phase | £4,000 to £15,000 per site | UK Padel Guide |
| Running cost, LED | about £1 an hour per court | LTA 2025 |
| Sinking fund for surface, lamps and columns | £1,500 per court per year | LTA 2025 |
These are typical figures; the source does not say whether VAT is included. The power supply on site can change the total. We confirm your lighting price after a site survey.
How bright do padel court lights need to be?
For club, school and recreational play, the LTA asks for 300 lux on average with a uniformity of 0.5. National and international competition needs 500 lux with a uniformity of 0.7.
The other LTA lighting rules:
- fittings at least 6 metres above the playing area
- a maintenance factor of 0.9, so the lights still meet the level as they age
- designs that show the tilt angles of every fitting, so glare towards neighbours can be assessed
The design is set to the level your court will be used at. Most clubs, schools and homes need 300 lux; a venue planning to host competitions should build to 500 lux from the start.
What should a padel lighting quote include?
The fittings, the columns and cabling, and commissioning with a photometric report, which together typically come to £6,000 to £12,000 per court for LED lighting to LTA spec (UK Padel Guide). The LTA’s 2025 figures include lights in the court price: about £36,000 for one court with lights, before the base.
You will see lower figures online. MyBuilder’s guide lists lighting at £3,000 to £6,000, which is closer to the cost of the fittings alone. Ask any quote whether columns, cabling, commissioning and the photometric report are in the price.
How it works
- 01Tell us where you are up toSite, drawings and any council letters.
- 02Planning routePre-app, the reports and the application.
- 03BuildBase, courts and lights to the approved layout.
Do floodlights need planning permission?
In most cases, yes. Planning lawyers Nexa Law say floodlighting needs permission “regardless of height in most circumstances”, and Freeths lists floodlights among the works that typically need consent. Adding lights to an existing court is a new application, not a free upgrade.
Lights also bring conditions. Horsham District Council’s permission at Henfield required the lighting design to be approved and the lights used only when the courts are in play. At Kings Hill, Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council discharged a lighting condition in April 2026 before the courts could be lit. Ask us about handling that step after approval.
What is a lighting impact assessment, and when is it needed?
It is a report that shows where the light goes, how bright it is at nearby windows and when the lights will be on. Councils ask for one whenever sports floodlights are proposed near homes, and the LTA says light surveys are likely if a home is within 50 metres.
Belfast City Council’s validation checklist is a good model of what any council expects. It asks for:
- the beam layout and the fittings proposed
- the hours the lights will be used
- a light overspill diagram showing vertical lux at nearby windows
- the environmental zone under ILP Guidance Note GN01/21, The Reduction of Obtrusive Light
- reference to Sport England’s outdoor sports lighting briefing note
Our lighting consultants produce this with the court design, and it goes in alongside the noise impact assessment.
How do we stop light spill and glare?
By aiming the light down onto the court and keeping it off windows and the sky. That comes from mounting height, tilt angle and the choice of fitting, which the LTA wants shown on the design so a council can check glare.
In practice that means:
- fittings at 6 metres or more, as the LTA sets out and as Henfield’s approved scheme used
- tilt angles kept low and shown on the drawings
- a spill plan with lux values at the nearest windows
- lights switched off when the court is empty, which councils often make a condition
What will the lights cost to run?
About £1 an hour per court on LED, the LTA says. A court lit for three hours every evening uses roughly £1,100 of electricity over a year at that rate, which is our arithmetic, not an LTA figure. The LTA also asks venues to put £1,500 per court per year into a sinking fund that covers lamps and columns as well as the surface.
How late can padel floodlights stay on?
As late as your council allows, and that depends on how close the homes are and how dark the area is. Guildford refused two padel schemes in June 2024 partly because floodlights would run to 10pm near a darker skies area. Henfield was approved with play to 21:30 on weekdays and 17:00 at weekends. Portsmouth City Council asked for no play between 10pm and 7am on a 2026 car park scheme.
Where neighbours are close, we propose a switch-off time in the application. It is better to win permission with sensible hours than to lose it asking for late ones.
Can lights go on a covered or indoor court?
Yes. Henfield’s approved covered courts have 8 LED floodlights at about 6 metres under an open-sided canopy. Indoors, the clear height of the building matters: the LTA asks for 6 metres minimum and recommends 8 metres for new build, so fittings sit above the ball’s flight.
What’s included
- Lighting design to the LTA level for your use: 300 or 500 lux
- Lighting impact assessment with a spill plan and tilt angles for the planning application, by our lighting consultants
- Supply and installation of LED floodlights, columns and cabling
- Commissioning and a photometric report at handover
- Ask us about discharge of lighting conditions after approval
What’s not included
- An upgrade to your electricity supply, quoted separately where a survey shows one is needed
- Electricity running costs
- The court and base, which are quoted in your build price
Illustrative example
Built only from the lighting costs above. It describes no real customer.
A school adds lights to two existing courts for evening lettings. At £6,000 to £12,000 per court for LED lighting to LTA spec, the lights come to £12,000 to £24,000. If the site has only a single-phase supply, the upgrade adds £4,000 to £15,000. Running both courts for three hours an evening costs about £6 a night at the LTA’s £1 an hour per court. Because homes are within 50 metres, the lighting impact assessment goes in with a new planning application.
Who does the work
Padel Court Build is a SustainPlan Ltd service. Specialist lighting designers prepare the scheme and the impact assessment, our planning consultants secure consent, and our installers fit and commission the lights.
Often needed alongside
- Padel court planning permission: the application the lighting assessment supports
- Padel court noise assessment: usually needed on the same sites
- Padel court installation: courts supplied and installed with lights
- Padel court cost: every build price compared
FAQs
Is 300 lux enough for a club?
For club and recreational play and regional competition, yes, under the LTA guidance. Build to 500 lux if you plan to host national events.
Can I add lights to a court I already have?
Yes, with planning permission in most cases. We check the existing court, the supply and the site, then prepare the application.
How high are padel floodlights?
At least 6 metres above the playing area, under the LTA guidance.
Why do some quotes look so cheap?
They often price the fittings only. Columns, cabling, commissioning and a photometric report add to it, and a supply upgrade can add more.
Do lights need to be on a timer?
Councils often require lights to be on only when the courts are in use, as Horsham did at Henfield. Timers and booking-linked controls are a simple way to meet that.
Will LED lights save money against older lamps?
The LTA’s £1 an hour figure is for LED fittings, so ask for LED in any quote, ours included.
Sources
- LTA Padel Court Construction Guidance Note 2025 and LTA Padel Court Data Sheet: lux, uniformity, mounting height, tilt angles, running cost, sinking fund, clear height (checked 17 Oct 2026)
- UK Padel Guide (13 Oct 2026): lighting line items and supply upgrade
- MyBuilder price guide (21 Aug 2026): lighting line
- Nexa Law, 1 May 2026; Freeths LLP, 26 May 2026
- Belfast City Council planning application validation checklist, lighting impact assessment
- Horsham DC report DC/23/1177; Plota record for Tonbridge and Malling ref 26/00324/RD; Woking News and Mail, 19 June 2024; The News Portsmouth, 22 Sept 2026