Major revamp puts North Wales centre among the best

A £500,000 development of facilities at the North Wales Regional Tennis Centre will be officially opened on Friday 23rd October by Derek Howorth, President of the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA).
The major revamp at the Wrexham centre includes a new indoor court, two new mini-tennis courts and a new outdoor court, as well as a new ground floor viewing area. 

The improvements make the centre the biggest in Wales, and the only centre in the UK with permanent mini tennis courts. All the courts will be available to the public on a pay and play basis, as well as for use by the centre’s thriving academy.

“This development confirms the centre’s position as a thriving hub of tennis activity, both for recreational players of all ages and for elite-level players,” said Deborah King, director of the centre and chair of Tennis Wales.

“The support we have had from the LTA, the Sports Council for Wales and Wrexham County Borough Council has been invaluable.  It’s the kind of investment which will help Tennis Wales to achieve the objectives in our new four-year plan, which specifically focuses on encouraging more people to play tennis, and on supporting the development of our world-ranked junior players.”
 
The four-year plan, which outlines priorities for Tennis Wales until September 2013, includes a range of measures for success: the number of Welsh juniors among the best in Britain; the number of regularly competing juniors; the number of clubs with Clubmark status; the number of British Tennis Members in Wales; and participation and community development.  Specific programmes within the plan include the Welsh player pathway to help develop promising players, and the training of competition organisers to maintain and develop the high level of competitions throughout Wales.

“The four-year plan presents an exciting vision for tennis in Wales,” said Ms King. “The fabulous improvements here in Wrexham are a great way to get the process moving.”

“We predict that the new mini tennis courts alone could potentially attract more than 460 extra junior players to the sport each week, including six additional schools.”
Joining LTA President Derek Howorth and Tennis Wales chair Deborah King at the opening will be Wrexham County Borough Councillors, representatives of Tennis Wales, Sports Council for Wales, Read Construction and other sponsors of the centre and the extension project. Local MPs and representatives from North Wales tennis clubs have also been invited.

The Sports Council for Wales contributed £25,000 to the latest improvements, bringing its investment in tennis in North East Wales to almost £340,000 in the last 10 years.
Sports Council for Wales chairman, Philip Carling said: “Wrexham Tennis Centre is a key sporting facility in North Wales. We are genuinely excited by the huge potential for increased junior participation that this development represents. The scope of the projects’ ambitions, which encompasses huge increases in junior involvement, greater coaching resources and a strengthened competition structure, mark a hugely positive step towards realising a significant sporting legacy in Wales.”

Journalists, photographers and camera crews are welcome to attend the official opening on Friday 23rd October.   From 1pm, guests will arrive and be invited to a full buffet and refreshments before witnessing the offical opening of the courts at 2pm.

The main contact on the day will be Deborah King, Director of North Wales Regional Tennis Centre and Chair of Tennis Wales.

If planning to attend this great event, please advise in advance:
Kayleigh Jones
North Wales Regional Tennis Centre
Plas Coch Road, Wrexham.  LL11 2BW
Tel: (01978) 265260   Fax: (01978) 362730