Ashfield tennis courts set for investment
Ashfield District Council and the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) have today announced a partnership to invest in and refurbish public park tennis courts at Sutton Lawn and Huthwaite Welfare Park.
In total, an investment of £214,620.55 will be made across the two tennis venues, for renovations to ensure that high quality facilities are available for the local community. Both tennis courts will receive new fencing, access gates, and court resurfacing and colouring.
Ashfield District Council will be investing £55,000, as part of the Green Ashfield initiative, funded by the £62.6million Towns Fund programme to provide new floodlighting at Sutton Lawn. This is on top of the investment of £159,620.55 from the UK Government and LTA Tennis Foundation. The Council is working with Sutton in Ashfield Lawn Tennis Club to upgrade facilities at the park, including the pavilion, to support the club to attract new members.
Councillor Jason Zadrozny, Leader of Ashfield District Council, said:
“We know how much residents value access to modern sports pitches, courts, and buildings, so this work will allow more people to enjoy tennis. If we can encourage more people to take up the sport with these upgraded facilities then it’s fantastic. Working with the LTA is bringing much-needed investment, and will support the Council’s ongoing commitment to providing quality facilities in our award-winning parks and green spaces.”
Work on sites is expected to start mid-November and are due to be completed in January.
Ashfield District Council will also work with an operator and the LTA to deliver a range of activities across the park sites. This will include weekly organised free tennis sessions for all ages, playing levels and experience, where equipment is provided, meaning that people will not need someone to play with or their own racket. Local Tennis Leagues will also provide friendly, sociable, opportunities to get active through local competition.
All courts and sessions at Sutton Lawn and Huthwaite Welfare Park will be available to book online via the Lawn Tennis Association's website. Sessions at Kingsway Park, Kirkby, will also be bookable on the LTA website.
Julie Porter, Chief Operating Officer at the LTA, said:
“We are delighted to be working with Ashfield District Council to improve their park tennis facilities and provide more opportunities for anyone to pick up a racket and get active. This investment is part of the UK Government and LTA’s Parks Tennis Project and will mean that courts will be available for people to use for years to come. We will also be working closely with the Council to ensure that the local community have a range of accessible opportunities to get on court, and open up our sport to many more people.”
The project is part of a nationwide investment by the UK Government and LTA Tennis Foundation, delivered by the LTA, to refurbish public tennis courts across Great Britain, and open up the sport to many more people. This investment will see thousands of existing park tennis courts in poor or unplayable condition brought back to life for the benefit of communities across the country through renovation works, and improved court accessibility with new gate-access technology and booking systems.
Park tennis courts are vital in providing opportunities for children and adults to get active, delivering significant physical and mental health and wellbeing benefits to participants. Accessible facilities in parks are particularly critical to opening up the sport to those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds and women and girls.
