The past twelve months have marked a momentous year in the history of Stratford on Avon Tennis Club (SOATC). In July last year, the club commissioned two indoor courts, affectionately known as “The Domes,” and resurfaced three out of its seven courts with state of the art artificial clay surfaces. In recognition of this ambitious programme of improvement and its thriving coaching programme, SOATC was awarded the prestigious ‘Club of the Year 2015,’ by Warwickshire LTA.
Following Great Britain’s historic win to become World Champions, SOATC was informed that it had been selected to be a host venue on the Davis Cup Trophy Tour, which aims to thank the tennis community including players, coaches, venues and volunteers who have supported the Davis Cup Team on its incredible journey and to inspire a new generation to pick up a racket and get involved in tennis. To join a very exclusive list of Davis Cup host clubs has been the icing on the cake for what is surely the most exciting year in the Club’s history.
For the past three years the Tennis Committee at SOATC, has been working extremely hard to retain existing members and attract new members to the club. The heart of its strategy has been the provision of indoor facilities during the winter months. The committee firmly believed that if SOATC was able to provide indoor court facilities, it would allow SOATC to increase court usage significantly during the winter months and provide much needed coaching continuity.
It has been SOATC's desire, to be seen as a friendly, welcoming club, where both new and existing members are welcome, regardless of their ability. Clean, well-maintained outdoor courts and club-house facilities complete the picture of a club perfectly placed to keep existing members and to encourage others to take up the beloved game.
In his role as Chairman of the Stratford on Avon Tennis Club, John Dixon has worked to ensure that SOATC meets its undoubted potential. SOATC is a town-centre club, in a fabulous location, with easy access and convenient parking facilities. The launch of the two new indoor courts gives the club an opportunity to become a well-respected club at the heart of our growing local community. The backing of local, National and Governing Body financial support, will allow the club not only to consolidate its membership numbers, but grow them significantly too.
The Domes project was the brain-child of Graeme Adams, SOATC Tennis Manager (British Over 55 Clay Court Champion, British Over 55 Indoor Champion and GB Veterans Team Player as well as former Coach of Davis Cup player & World Top 60 player Dan Evans.) Graeme got the project rolling by successfully obtaining planning permission for two single-skin dome structures for two out of our 7 courts.
SOATC was then thrilled to receive a confirmed £50,000 grant from the Stratford Town Trust and a further £50,000 from Sport England. Both the Trust and Sport England felt that SOATC's Indoor Courts Project met their stringent assessment criteria to both help increase participation in sport and benefit the local community from a health and social perspective.
“We are very proud to support the outstanding facilities the community can now access, enjoy and benefit from at Stratford Tennis Club. The ability to play indoors all-year round makes a huge difference to the future stars of the sport – and we look forward to cheering on some home-grown champions,” Justin Williams, CEO of Stratford Town Trust.
Sport England Property Director, Charles Johnston, said: “The Inspired Facilities Fund has had a huge impact on grassroots sport across the country. Since 2011, we’ve invested £102 million into more than 1,920 projects to improve and refurbish sports clubs and transform non-sporting venues into vibrant community sports clubs.
“It’s great to see Stratford-upon-Avon Tennis Club join the long list of successful clubs to benefit from this fund.”
The LTA joined our existing funding partners in providing an additional £50,000 grant and a £50,000 loan to help finance our Indoor Courts project.
SOATC’s local Warwickshire LTA also supported the venture with a £20,000 interest-free loan.
The Domes project has shown that SOATC is an example of how a committed and enthusiastic committee has used a variety of different funding partners to bring forward an innovative, sustainable and achievable strategy to' grow the game'.
The Domes are now up and running and will be officially opened by Andrew Castle this weekend during the Davis Cup Trophy Tour. Andrew Castle is a
former British No1 tennis player, and one of Britain’s most experienced live presenters in British Broadcasting, having occupied the famous GMTV sofa as an anchor for ten years.
In addition to the two new domes, SOATC has also invested in three new court surface upgrades (two of which are for the courts covered by the domes,) which were undertaken at the same time as the dome installation. This significant investment by the club will ensure that the Indoor Courts offer a state of the art playing experience and are the icing on the cake for the domes. SOATC believes that this combination of weather-proof tennis on an artificial clay surface that will provide the best tennis experience for young and old.
Chairman John Dixon said “This weekend’s events are not just about the Davis Cup or the unveiling of our new facilities but it is also a story about how clubs and funding partners can work together for mutual benefit. We hope that this project could offer other clubs inspiration and the motivation to develop their own 'Growing the Game' strategies.”