12 April 2019

Net gains... court improvements heading your way

As our survey on the state of Britain's public courts revealed, much needs to be done to give us the courts our great sport deserves. But that doesn't mean nothing is happening. Here's our round up of new and refurbished courts coming your way. And if you know of more, please get in touch

BATH
This autumn, the timetable of work will be announced for the complete refurbishment of the courts in Sydney Gardens. There will be four new courts, in two blocks of two, opening in 2021. Once a favourite spot of Jane Austen’s, the park is likely to be just as popular with players in the Bath Tennis League. Next chance to play is 27 June.

Crawley Tennis ClubBRISTOL
Get yourself a great value annual pass for just £35 to play at the newly refurbished courts in Canford, St George or Eastville Parks and make the most of it by playing matches in the Bristol Tennis League. The next round starts on 16 May.

CRAWLEY
The 3 indoor courts and 6 outdoor courts at Crawley Tennis Club (right) were all refurbished last year, and the club is generously making them available to Crawley Tennis League players at the same price members pay, plus £5 guest fee. Full details here under Courts and Bookings and the next round starts on 18 April.

CROYDON
We have a brand new league in Croydon based on the brand new courts at Addiscombe Recreation Ground (4 courts) and Ashburton Park (2 courts). Round 1 starts on 18 April.

DUNDEE
Adding to the already great refurbished tennis courts in the city, Dundee is due to get  two more sets of park courts renovated. They will be in Baxter Park and Dudhope Park. Exact timings to be announced. The next round in Dundee will start on 13 June.

LONDON

AELTC Community Sports Ground
If you can’t play at Wimbledon itself, this is definitely the next best thing. Owned by the All England Club and 3.5 miles from Centre Court, it is an outstanding community facility with 6 grass and 6 acrylic courts (3 under a pressurised dome) used by the public, junior players and sometimes, the pros (for practice) before Wimbledon. In a few months, work will start on an additional three indoor acrylic courts and 16 championship standard grass courts (available to the public, post-Wimbledon) and due to open next summer. The final stage of the development includes a new clubhouse with showers and a café to bring more of a ‘club’ feel to the site. Want to play here? Join Round 2 of the AELTC-CSG day time league starting 18 April.

Finsbury Park, Haringey
A key venue for the Haringey Tennis League, the courts here will be refurbished this year.  When completed, 6 out of 8 courts will be floodlit and the mini courtsturned into an adult court. The Haringey league will continue as usual during the 12 week closure as there are many other venues available. The next round starts on 18 April.

Gunnersbury ParkGunnersbury Park
A brilliant newly opened and floodlit 8-court facility in one of London's most majestic and best-loved parks, this makes a fantastic additoinal venue for matches in the Acton & Gunnersbury Tennis league. The next round starts on 18 April.

Highbury Fields, Islington
Work on the final three courts which need refurbishing will be done this year. The courts will be re-aligned to increase run back, and make them compliant with LTA standards. Cables for new LED floodlighting will also be laid and installed when funds are available, providing 11 floodlit and fully refurbished courts in this incredibly popular site, which is also home to our flagship league. The next singles starts on 9 May and the next doubles on 23 May.

Islington Tennis Centre (ITC), Islington
The whole tennis hall at the ITC will refurbished in the summer of 2019, with new courts, new nets, new dividers and centre itself will also be re-decorated. Three courts will always be open during the work, which will take place from mid-late July until mid to late August, and the two outdoor courts will be fully operational. But there will be huge pressure on bookings on this already busy centre! There will be another round of the league before the works starts.    

Kingston Road Rec, Kingston
The third and final set of courts which have been re-surfaced as part of the Parks Tennis in Kingston Project, and home of the Kingston Parks Tennis League should be ready at the end of this month, when the Clubspark booking system is installed. The courts at Alexandra Rec and Beverley Park are all complete. The next round of the league starts on 18 April.

New Barnet Leisure Centre, Barnet
Two new outdoor tennis courts will be part of the New Barnet Leisure Centre which is due to open later this year. They will offer an additional venue for matches in the Victoria Park Tennis League. The next round starts on 25 April.

Ravenscourt Park, Hammersmith
One of several venues for the Hammersmith & Fulham Tennis League, this accessible park has four brand new courts which opened this year.  The next round of the H&F league starts on 25 April.

Wandsworth Park and Furzedown Rec, Wandsworth
Wandsworth All Star Tennis is continuing its hugely impressive programme of refurbishment with new courts planned this year at Wandsworth Park and, after Easter, at Furzdown Rec. It already has 8 floodlit courts in Kings Georges Park, and a total of 25 newly resurfaced courts in the borough. Home to the Wandsworth All Star Tennis League, this is a great place to play tennis. The next Womens League starts on 18 April, the next mixed singles starts 2 May, and next doubles 20 June.

Wimbledon Park, Merton
There are long term plans to make this lovely facility a flagship park for tennis, as befits a venue directly opposite the All England Club. Meanwhile it is holding a residents evening on Monday 29 April at 7pm at the pavilion to answer any questions about the new online booking system it is introducing in mid-May. All players are welcome to attend. The next singles begins on 23 May and the next doubles on 20 June.

LUTON
New nets and posts were installed last week on two of the fully reburbished courts in Wardown Park, Luton’s flagship park. There are now four new courts in total. The hedges have been cut back to improve the airflow around the courts and prevent the build up of moss. Coaching from the National Tennis Assocation, which operates in Norwich, Newham, Newbury and Swindon among other places and  a Tennis for Free programme will begin this summer. The Luton Tennis League will be re-launched on 18 July.

MALLORCA
Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar
Our home from home in sunny Mallorca! Like everyone else, the Rafa Nadal Academy has to deal with the planers but once all the paper work is finalised, building will begin on a substantial number of new indoor and outdoor courts, making this fantastic venue even better. Try its highly recommended coaching weeks or weekend breaks or join us on the next ITF tournament in October. Don't forgot to use our discount codes: LTL12 for 12% off general bookings; LTLITF5 for 5% off the ITF tournament.

WEST LOTHIAN
Following the uprgrade of Bathgate's four floodlit Kirkton Park Community courts (right) in 2016  and those at the Ladywell Community Tennis Club in Livingstone in 2017, we are starting a new West Lothian Tennis League.  Round one of the brand new league will start on 27 June. There is a third venue, the James Young Tennis Club in Livingston, where the courts are free

WOKING
Woking Park, home to the Woking Tennis League, now has 5 fully refurbished courts, all ready for use. The next round starts on 18 April

WORTHING
Opened in January, Homefield Park is Worthing’s newest tennis venue with 6 courts. The next round in Adur & Worthing starts on 27 June