Oldham Council and the LTA have today announced a partnership to invest in and refurbish public park tennis courts across the borough.
· Oldham Council and the LTA agree partnership to breathe new life into local park tennis courts across Oldham
· The project will see £240,908 of investment across Oldham’s public parks
· Investment comes from the UK Government and LTA Tennis Foundation’s Park Tennis Project, being delivered by the LTA.
Oldham Council and the LTA have today announced a partnership to invest in and refurbish public park tennis courts across the borough.
In total, 6 park tennis venues will be renovated, with investment of £240,908 helping ensure that quality facilities are available for the local community.
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.
In addition to investment of £240,908 from the UK Government and LTA Tennis Foundation, £11,136 will also be invested by Oldham Council
Alongside the investment, Oldham Council will also work with the LTA to deliver a range of activity across the park sites. This will include weekly organised free park 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.
The park venues being renovated are: Alexandra Park, Chadderton Hall Park, Dunwood Park, Higher Crompton Park, Lower Memorial Park and Werneth Park.
All courts and sessions at all sites will be available to book online via the LTA website https://www.lta.org.uk/play/book-a-tennis-court/
Work on sites is anticipated to start in February and be completed in Spring.
Councillor Peter Dean, Cabinet Member for Communities and Culture, said: “This funding is a real boost for the town and our communities.
“I’d like to thank our officers for securing the money as it will breathe new life into the facilities, some of which are looking a bit tired.
“Our courts are already well used but better and improved facilities will hopefully encourage even more people to visit our parks, have fun playing tennis and be more active.”
Julie Porter, Chief Operating Officer at the LTA, said: “We are delighted to be working with Oldham 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 Oldham 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.”