Emerge Surf Birmingham has received the backing of North Warwickshire Borough Council’s Planning and Development Board.

The £25m wave park will be located seven miles east of Birmingham city centre at Coleshill and will feature a 5.4-acre surf lagoon, an outdoor heated swimming pool, hub building and a perimeter track for Onewheel electric skateboards. It is expected to create 100 full-time equivalent jobs and attract around 250,000 visitors a year.

Steve Price, founder and CEO of Emerge Surf, said: “We’re excited to enter the next phase in our plan to deliver a wave park that will be a huge asset to the region and its already renowned visitor economy. It will provide a world-class experience for surfers of all levels, delivering a positive social impact while supporting mental and physical wellbeing. This is alongside creating new jobs, boosting tourism and elevating the region’s reputation as a sport and leisure destination.

“Our focus now is on finalising our funding structure, progressing on-site groundworks, which we expect to start before the end of this year and working collaboratively with all partners as we prepare to open to the public in early 2022.”

The park will also have a surf school, surf shop, café and restaurant, multi-purpose fitness studio, physio and massage room and children’s play area.

Ben Powis, commercial and operations director at Surfing England, said: “Bringing a world class wave to Birmingham will be a huge milestone in the growth and development of English Surfing and will undoubtedly open up our sport to a whole new generation of surfers.”

Emerge Surf Birmingham will be working in partnership with national governing body Surfing England to deliver certificated surfing tuition and with registered charity Surf Life Saving Great Britain on a wide range of courses for water safety.