The £300m YES! entertainment and sports complex in South Yorkshire is one step closer to receiving planning permission.

Oak Holdings, the UK-based developer behind the project, has been notified that Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council (RMBC) has resolved to support the application, subject to the completion of a legal agreement and referral to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM).

The proposed site for the development encroaches on the region’s Green Belt, hence the involvement of the government.

The council’s executive director for Economic and Developmental Services, Adam Wilkinson, said: “This is a major step forward for this ambitious project. Our members have seen its potential for massive regeneration. If YES! gets similar support from the ODPM, the prospect what’s thought to be Europe’s biggest leisure complex becomes very real.”

Steve Lewis, chief executive of Oak Holdings, said: “We are delighted to receive this positive step forward for the Yes! project.

“We are in a number of advanced discussions for large operators to showcase their technology including a Universal Studios-style attraction.”

The scheme has changed from the original plans slightly, to focus more on the sport element. The theatre has been dropped, but the 320-acre scheme will boast more than one million sq ft (93,000sq m) of leisure amenities including a four-star resort hotel and spa, a three-star family oriented hotel, an Olympic-standard canoe slalom, an extreme sports centre, as well as numerous bars and restaurants.

Architects CZWG and Holder Mathias formed a joint venture to design the project.

Venture Xtreme UK will be responsible for the extreme sports facilities and The Baydrive Group will open a golf driving centre. Details: www.oakholdings.co.uk