Leamington residents show support for coach in tennis courts campaign

Claire Pomfret is fighting to keep the VP Tennis club she has created at Victoria Park after Warwick District Council put the use of the courts there out to tender.
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Leamington residents have shown their support to a sports coach’s campaign to continue to run a tennis club on courts in the town.

Claire Pomfret is fighting to keep the VP Tennis club she has created at Victoria Park after Warwick District Council (WDC) put the management of the courts there out to tender.

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And Claire’s supporters have now used a drone to take aerial photos and capture a video to make their feelings known.

Claire's Pomfret's supporters on the tennis courts at Victoria Park. Picture supplied.Claire's Pomfret's supporters on the tennis courts at Victoria Park. Picture supplied.
Claire's Pomfret's supporters on the tennis courts at Victoria Park. Picture supplied.

Syliva Fogg, one of the supporters, has said: “After Claire had successfully ran VP Tennis at Victoria Park for ten years, WDC decided to put all tennis courts to tender to allow national organisations such as EveryoneActive to bid for the future operation at Victoria Park.

“However, Victoria Park users continue to support Claire and appeal to WDC to listen to the community's wishes.

"A previous petition to stop the tender process with over 500 signatures and heart felt comments was ignored.

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"We believe that the desire is for a real diverse and inclusive community club and the wishes of the loyal members and users should be taken into account over commercial interest.

"VP tennis is more than a tennis club, it is a community that is still working and playing tennis together."

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WDC launched the tender process in September last year and secured funding to resurface the courts at Victoria Park, replace the current floodlights with LED lamps and install an online booking and payment system.

Councillor Moira-Ann Grainger, WDC’s portfolio holder for neighbourhood and leisure, said: “We know how much our residents enjoy the availability of grassroots sport in their local community venues, and we want to ensure we can continue to offer everyone the best value that we can, whether they are our up-and-coming stars of the future, or families and friends playing together for leisure, fun and fitness.

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“This tender process provides an opportunity for the council to increase its tennis provision across the district and provides a funding stream to reinvest into maintaining, improving, and securing the long-term future of tennis in this district."