£50k for 50 Sites

Community sport is needed now more than ever before, there are thousands of tennis courts in public parks across the UK most of which are under utilised, TFF operated on over 120 sites pre-pandemic, we need to rebuild these NOW and then launch more, it's simple and it works.

For every £1,000 we raise we can match fund with another £1,000 (up to £25,000), allowing us to launch and run a new TFF site for a year.

Every £100 we raise funds a coach to run a TFF site for a month.

So every £1 makes a difference - and don't forget EVERY donation will be DOUBLED making your donation go twice as far.

TFF run free alternative mass participation sessions on public parks, targeting those that would otherwise not get the opportunity to play, those in more deprived communities, from different ethnic backgrounds, attracting people who feel “tennis is not for us”

Tennis is proven to increase self-confidence, decrease stress and depression, through TFF’s group sessions communities are integrated creating new friendships and addressing loneliness.

Sport England: “For every £1 spent on sport and physical activity, nearly £4 is generated for the English economy and society. Therefore, sport and physical activity can support the goal of levelling up communities and supporting the most disadvantaged people in society.“

Please help us to get people active, to rebuild communities and to maximise the usage of park courts.

What are TFF’s ambitions?

Take the already successful programme and use it as a catalyst to attract more people, especially from disadvantaged communities, into tennis, into physical activity, into voluntary community programmes that will benefit a cross-section of society.

• Through funding, our ambition over the next few years is to reach c.500 schemes, making Tennis For Free the biggest grassroots movement in the sport.
• We want to expand the sessions we run to include after school sessions where schools do not have the facilities and to train P.E. teachers how to run the TFF programme. 
• TFF  aim to link in with GP referral schemes and Well Being centres local to all our sites, primarily targeting teenagers struggling with Stress, Depression and Anxiety, we are part of the well-publicised movement to Social Prescribing.
• We have recorded over 150,000 attendees on our database in 2018/2019, the actual figure including unrecorded will be far higher
• Our last survey showed that 70% of TFF sites were in D/E social grade areas, proving there is a demand for the game in non-traditional tennis communities
• TFF have now launched a one-hour session designed for Clubs and Leisure Centres encouraging them to open up their sites to all of the local community
• We have many success stories, changing peoples lives through sport, it’s not about creating the next Wimbledon champion, it’s about supporting communities and individuals by giving a sense of belonging. 

Our programme reinvigorates under-utilised parks which struggle to attract funding and gives local authorities the opportunity to provide new sports development initiatives. Making the amenity a local centre for sport and activity and creating community pride and ownership in local facilities for the benefit of many.

What are the benefits to individuals and the community?

• Over two-thirds of TFF sites currently operate in disadvantaged communities and we attract from different backgrounds into the game and onto volunteering. Examples:
• Hounslow, 84% of attendees from non-white British backgrounds including Volunteers  
• Sefton Park, Liverpool. A high crime area, with 39 different nationalities registered as attendees.
• Hednesford Park, Sheffield; the Police have set up a Young Offenders Social Inclusion Scheme Session in-conjunction with TFF due to the scheme’s success in social engagement
• All TFF sites have no barriers to entry and welcome everyone.  As such, TFF schemes are ideal for helping those with mental health problems.  Example:
• Hednesford Park, Staffordshire. A GP Referral Scheme where patients suffering with mental health issues attend the sessions in a non-pressure environment as part of their rehabilitation process.  Transport is even provided to the site, we are rolling out this scheme nationally.
• All TFF sites encourage no cost physical well-being.  
• By running highly visible mass drills and games in high-profile public area for many it is the first experience of physical activity outside of school.

How can Volunteers help and benefit?

We want to encourage the community to volunteer and make TFF a scheme run “by the Community, for the Community”.  By creating platforms for ownership, TFF can become an integral part of the community for little cost. We offer multiple opportunities for volunteers to become involved and make a difference in their area all under the guidance of an experienced professional local tennis coach.