Back in February 2010 the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) and the Tennis Foundation announced that Christchurch Tennis Facility in Christchurch was to be awarded ‘Beacon’ status as part of the AEGON Parks Tennis programme in recognition of their high quality, affordable community tennis programmes.
The announcement was made following the clubs great efforts to deliver access to free tennis to the whole community and their commitment to do more to engage with new markets making the sport as accessible as possible.
Since the launch of the Beacon the club have seen a sharp increase in pay and play due to the well promoted programme and the high quality of coaching and professionalism of the club. The junior programme has seen an increase as well due to the busy summer programme of the fun and affordable summer programme.
The club have also been awarded over £4000 to help support the development of the sport in the next two years, the funding is going to be pumped in to new activities at the club and across the town including Cardio Tennis and Tots Tennis Roadshows.
Head Coach and Director of Tennis Rachel Cocking commented “With this status CTF has been able to launch new projects to help enhance the Coaching Facility for members of the community. We have been involved in the local tennis leagues, had the highland spring team down for a big Open Day at The Quay in Christchurch and have attracted many more players to the Facility to access our courts for public pay and play. The offer of free tennis session to our new players has brought so many more people to our Facility to try out tennis and members of the community have realised tennis is a sport for all to play."
Andy Trott LTA Tennis Development Officer for the South West commented how well the club have embraced their Beacon status and challenged themselves to deliver a more diverse programme to meet the needs of a broader range of the local population. With the fantastic range of activities on offer and the welcoming atmosphere at the club Rachel and the team are a shining example of running a community focussed club for the benefit of everyone in the town.
For more information on the club, coaching or how to book courts check out the website www.christchurchtennis.net