Sports Courts for Schools

Line Marking Australia builds sports courts for schools across Australia, including multi-sport courts, basketball and netball courts, handball courts, gaga pits, cricket nets and synthetic turf. We schedule work for school holidays where possible, use crews with Working with Children checks and quote every item so business managers can budget or apply for grants.

Principals and business managers usually come to us with the same brief: more play space, surfaces that survive hundreds of students a day, and a build that doesn't get in the way of learning.

Our Victorian crews have built a school multi-sport court on modular tiles with hoops, lined indoor sports halls for basketball, netball, volleyball and badminton, and painted path trails and playground games. Here's what schools ask us most.

Which sports courts suit a school?

The best sports courts for a school are the ones that carry the most students and the most sports on the least space. A multi-sport court with basketball, netball and handball lines is the usual starting point. Gaga pits, cricket nets and synthetic turf areas then add variety for lunchtime play and PE.

• Multi-sport courts: basketball, netball, volleyball and handball on one surface
• Basketball and netball courts: for PE, inter-school sport and community hire
• Handball courts: cheap to mark, hugely popular at primary schools
• Gaga pits: an enclosed pit game for younger students
• Cricket nets: synthetic pitches for training and sport programs
• Synthetic turf: all-weather fields that don't turn to mud

Our multi-sport court construction page covers layouts in more detail.

Can one court fit basketball, netball and handball?

Yes. A school multi-sport court can carry basketball, netball, volleyball and handball lines on one surface, each in its own colour so students can read them. A netball court is 30.5 m by 15.25 m and a full basketball court is 28 m by 15 m, so one netball-sized slab suits both.

Sport	Playing area	School use
Netball	30.5 m × 15.25 m	PE, house and inter-school sport
Basketball (full court, FIBA)	28 m × 15 m	PE, lunchtime, community hire
Volleyball	18 m × 9 m	PE units, senior sport
Handball, four square	Common sizes we build	Primary lunchtime play

What is the most durable court surface for a school?

The most durable school court surface is usually acrylic on a reinforced concrete slab, because it handles heavy daily use, ball sports and maintenance vehicles. Modular tiles are a strong second choice: they go down fast, drain well and damaged tiles can be swapped out. Synthetic turf suits fields and softer play areas.

Surface	Strengths for schools	Good to know
Acrylic on concrete	Very hard-wearing, true bounce, easy to re-line	Recoat roughly every 7 to 10 years
Modular tiles	Fast install, drains through, replace single tiles	Needs a firm, level base
Synthetic turf	All-weather, softer for running games	Needs brushing and infill top-ups

Can you build during school holidays?

We schedule school court builds for the school holidays wherever possible, so noisy work, trucks and machinery are off site when students return. Longer jobs can be staged so the loudest work lands in the holidays and finishing work happens behind a fenced zone during term, away from student paths.

• Plan and approve early in the term before the holidays you're targeting
• Order long-lead items like hoops, posts and fencing in advance
• Keep a fenced, signed work zone with its own access gate
• Agree delivery times that avoid drop-off and pick-up

Do your crews have Working with Children checks?

Yes. Crews working on school sites hold Working with Children checks, and they sign in and follow your school's visitor and site rules. Where work happens during term, the work zone is fenced off from students and our crews stay inside it, with one supervisor as the contact for your business manager.

Are there grants for school sports courts?

Schools often fund courts through state sport and community infrastructure programs, community benefit funds and council partnerships, especially when the court will also be used by local clubs. The Queensland Gambling Community Benefit Fund, for example, offers up to $35,000 for resurfacing, lighting and fencing to eligible community groups. Check eligibility with each fund.

We supply itemised quotes, scopes and site plans so your grant application, school council or parents' association has what it needs.

What size should a gaga pit be for a primary school?

A gaga pit for a primary school is usually an octagon or hexagon with low walls, sized so a class group can play at once without crowding. We build common sizes for junior and senior students, with smooth timber or composite walls and a soft synthetic floor. See our gaga pit construction page.

How we keep every school court build compliant

Every school court build follows compliance steps designed for busy sites with children nearby. We check council requirements, locate underground services, follow Work Health and Safety laws and use licensed, insured builders. On school grounds we also schedule around the timetable and use crews with Working with Children checks.

• Council requirements checked, including lighting, fencing and drainage
• Before You Dig Australia (BYDA) check before excavation
• Safe Work Method Statements for excavation and mobile plant
• Silica dust controls when cutting or grinding concrete
• Sediment and stormwater controls on site
• Working with Children checks for crews on school sites
• Paths to the court designed with AS 1428.1 (access and mobility) in mind
• Sports lighting to AS 2560, with light spill limited under AS/NZS 4282
• Slip-resistant textured finishes on acrylic courts

How do we look after a school court?

A school court lasts longest when it's kept clean, re-lined when lines fade and resurfaced before cracks spread. Tennis Australia's Victorian maintenance guides suggest acrylic resurfacing about every 7 to 10 years and synthetic grass about every 10 to 15 years. We can line mark and resurface when the time comes.

Our school playground line marking service keeps handball, four square and games lines bright between resurfacing.

What do you need from us to quote a school court?

To quote a school sports court, we need to know which sports you want, where the court will go and when you'd like it built. A site plan and a few photos help most. With those, we can give you an itemised quote that works for the school council, the budget and any grant application.

• Court type and sports to mark; new court, resurface or conversion
• Size, location on the grounds and what's there now (asphalt, grass, old court)
• Slope, drainage and machinery access from the street
• Preferred surface: acrylic, tiles or synthetic turf
• Hoops, posts, nets, fencing, lighting and power
• Approvals needed from your education department, sector body or council
• Target holiday period and budget or grant amount