Poole Park celebrated the unveiling of their new tennis facilities last week.
The Worshipful Mayor of Poole, Councillor Philip Eades, officially opened the tennis courts with some help from Hamworthy Middle School pupils.
Thanks to a £70,000 grant from the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) and match funding from the local authority, all six courts have been resurfaced with new fencing and two new junior red mini-courts, which allows junior development and play to take place at the site.
The opening saw the Mayor of Poole, Councillor Judy Butt, Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Public Engagement and Participation, and the school pupils participate in some tennis drills and sessions with the new coach on site Brett Townsend.
The site will be run using the successful key fob system already in place at Shelley Park in Bournemouth. This allows families to use the online booking system to access the courts and at a cost of £24 per annum for a family to play year round tennis is extremely good value.
Councillor Philip Eades, Mayor of Poole, said: “These improvements will enable more tennis to take place at people’s convenience. It shows good partnership working with a national governing body that are as keen as the council to see an Olympic Legacy to improve sport and recreation opportunities and inspire people to lead fit and healthy lifestyles.
“Borough of Poole hopes the new courts will once again engage the community in our flagship park and enable more people to get involved in the sport of tennis at an affordable price.”
James Deem, the LTA’s Tennis Development Manager for Dorset and Somerset, said: “After the success of Shelley Park, it’s wonderful to see more park sites being managed and opened at the affordable price of £24 a year for the whole family. It is a great offer to the people of Poole to access the sport with fantastic local facilities.”
The good news doesn’t stop there for tennis enthusiasts with Winton Park in Bournemouth, another park site using the fob system, opening up this weekend.
Locals are being encouraged to come down and enjoy a free tennis session on Saturday 22nd June which will be taking place between 9am and 11am.
All six courts will be open to the public and equipment will be provided.
To book courts at Poole Park visit www.boroughofpoole.com/tennis
