Renfrewshire Council

The significant investment will see more than £320,000 committed to three sites in Renfrewshire to create modern, inviting tennis courts for the local community and clubs.

Robertson Park in Renfrew and Park Road in Johnstone will be fully renewed to upgrade the existing courts from red ash to tarmac surfaces, while the existing tarmac courts at Brodie Park in Paisley will be refurbished.

In support of the Park Road application, Renfrewshire Council will commit £17,000 to the project, as well as agreeing to repair a retaining wall.

Councillor Michelle Campbell, Convener of Renfrewshire Council's Infrastructure, Land and Environment Policy Board, said: "I'm delighted to see this huge investment in our local tennis courts that would bring them up to a standard that would benefit our communities for years to come.

"We know how important sport and exercise is to people of all ages and these upgraded facilities would give people the chance to play the game they love in our parks - and who knows, the next Andy Murray might be from Renfrewshire."

To ensure communities benefit from the new courts, it is proposed that free tennis would be provided by OneRen between 9am and 4pm Monday to Friday, and free coaching would be provided to local school children through the Active Schools programme - with the operating model regularly reviewed to ensure it is working successfully.

Dr Victoria Hollows, Chief Executive of OneRen, said: "Our mission is to improve the health and wellbeing of communities across Renfrewshire and this investment in tennis courts will help even more people to get active. We're delighted to be part of the partnership delivering on this investment and our Active Schools teams will work with children and young people to develop their skills, inspiring the next generation and maybe even a future Wimbledon champion."

The remaining funds come as part of £30million nationwide investment by the government and LTA Tennis Foundation, delivered by the LTA, to refurbish thousands of public tennis courts in poor or unplayable condition and open up the sport to more people across Britain - identifying that park tennis courts are vital in providing opportunities for children and adults to get active and deliver significant physical and mental health and wellbeing benefits to participants.

Julie Porter, Chief Operating Officer at the LTA, said:"We are delighted to have the chance to work with Renfrewshire 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 Renfrewshire to ensure that the local community has a range of accessible opportunities to get on court and open up our sport to many more people."

Once the works are complete, courts will be available to book via the LTA website, players will be able to buy adult and junior memberships using the free ClubSpark app, and all courts will be made available for local tennis leagues to use.

For more information on sport and leisure activities in Renfrewshire, visit www.oneren.org.

Published 15 June 2023.