Versa Studios’ Leeds campus may soon be home to a very different kind of racket. A planning application has been filed to convert part of the Holbeck film and TV complex into a dedicated indoor padel facility, underscoring how UK studios are diversifying their offerings beyond soundstages.
According to the application, submitted by Quantum Padel Leeds Ltd., the transformation would see Unit 3B on Whitehall Road — currently used for film studio space, make-up and costume rooms, and shared facilities — repurposed into a modern Padel Tennis Centre. The project would house eight padel courts (six doubles and two singles), including two competition-standard doubles courts, plus a mezzanine café/bar and tiered viewing platforms.
Additional amenities would include two movement/therapy studios, a shop selling padel gear and apparel, changing rooms, flexible meeting spaces, staff facilities, and back-of-house operations. Parking would be expanded to accommodate visitors, with a total of 26–32 spaces planned.
For U.S. readers, padel may sound like a European cousin to pickleball — and in many ways, it is. The fast-growing racquet sport, which fuses elements of tennis and squash, is celebrated for being social, accessible, and less physically demanding than traditional racquet sports. It has exploded across Spain, Scandinavia, and the UK in recent years, with developers now eyeing crossover opportunities at nontraditional venues like film studios.
Quantum Padel says the project would create around 15 new jobs and “deliver important social and health benefits, encouraging more people to participate in sport and promoting an active lifestyle within an inclusive and accessible setting.” The developers also argue the facility would provide “spin-off benefits” for the city center fringe and bring a currently underused unit back into active service.
The proposal comes as Holbeck, once an industrial district just outside Leeds city center, has reinvented itself as a creative hub anchored by Versa Studios, which also operates facilities in Manchester and London. While the move into padel might raise eyebrows in Hollywood, it reflects a broader industry trend: studio campuses evolving into multipurpose destinations designed not only for productions but also for community engagement and year-round revenue.
The plan is currently under review by Leeds City Council, with public comments open.
