Stanton TC in Derbyshire received some fantastic news to start 2012, when the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) confirmed that they would provide a grant towards the refurbishment of the outdoor courts at Rutland Sports Park.
The LTA confirmed that they will provide a grant of £63,083 which will go towards bringing four of the outdoor macadam courts back into playable condition after they have fallen into state of disrepair during recent years. Stanton TC, who currently play much of their tennis at the indoor tennis centre at the sports park, will take up a lease on the outdoor courts and will make the venue their home for the club.
Paul Sheard, LTA Tennis Development Manager for Derbyshire and Leicestershire commented "We are delighted that we have finally got the go ahead to renovate the outdoor courts at Rutland Sports Park. We recognised a number of years ago the huge potential that exists at the site with the Indoor Tennis Centre but we needed to bring the outdoor courts back to good condition to make it a flourishing overall venue".
"I'd like to thank Mark Hancock and Tony Buck for all the hard work they have put into the project. We've had a few setbacks along the way but we can hopefully now provide some quality outdoor tennis courts and a vibrant tennis club for the people of Ilkeston".
Paul continued "The newly renovated courts will help us try and increase participation in tennis in the area. It will also enable the expansion of the coaching programme that currently takes place at the Indoor Tennis Centre".
Work is due to start on the courts in the next two months and they should then be ready for the start of the outdoor tennis season in April.