Redditch Tennis Club - Ready 2 Play on Clay

Aim: RTC is aiming to fundraise £25k towards the overall £60k cost of resurfacing two of our dilapidated, damaged and almost unplayable courts.

About Us

Redditch Tennis Club (RTC) is a highly respected, much loved community tennis club, with over 150 members.  Established in 1980, we are located in the heart of Batchley, Redditch, an area characterised by high levels of socio-economic deprivation, falling within the top 10% of deprived wards in the country.

We have six tarmacked courts and a small wooden clubhouse.

Our Head Coach and Club Coach deliver a range of programmes and opportunities to encourage high levels of participation in the sport and meet the needs of the local community and beyond.  This includes after school's clubs, holiday camps and individual/group coaching sessions. We also host the Redditch Schools Games tennis event each year. At the club we pride ourselves on meeting the needs of all players, from those playing recreationally for fun, through to those wishing to follow a performance pathway.

Our Challenge 2022

As part of the first stage of updating our club facilities, we are aiming to raise sufficient funds to enable us to resurface Courts 1 and 2 with ITF approved Red Plus Clay [Red Plus Clay website]

Our current tarmacked court surfaces are now over 16 years old and are significantly degraded and showing signs of damage (e.g. deep cracks, uneven surface etc - see photos below) which impact upon players experience, enjoyment and safety when using the courts.

As well as the courts requiring resurfacing due to them reaching the end of their life, playing on tarmac courts is weather dependent - any moisture on the courts makes them slippery and hazardous.  Red Plus Clay allows for all year round play, enhancing the club’s ability to offer a high quality tennis programme to members and the local community irrespective of the weather or time of year.

Contributions from previous fundraising efforts, and drawing on some of our reserves has enabled us to contribute £35k towards the resurfacing cost of £60k.

How our project will be United by Birmingham 2022

Located less than 15 miles from central Birmingham, host of the Commonwealth Games 2022, we plan to capitalise on this worldwide sporting event by encouraging and supporting those in the local community who are inspired by the Games to take up tennis.  Playing the sport offers multiple benefits to the community, including bringing people together, improving physical and mental health, getting active and the social aspects of the sport. 

As a club located right at the heart of the community we are genuinely committed to enabling and supporting all members of the local community, regardless of their diverse needs and circumstances, to actively participate in tennis, from a grass roots level to competitive play.  We hope to bring the community together, inspiring those interested in the sport, creating a legacy from the successful 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games that will live on for generations to come.

Red Plus Clay Courts are few and far between in this area and having them at RTC will enable us to create and maintain a lasting legacy of the Commonwealth Games and United by Birmingham 2022.  We know, having engaged with club members and the local community that providing a high quality, all year round court surface will be hugely beneficial to the community, helping to bring people together and unite those wanting to be active and play tennis in their local place and space.

A club at the heart of the Community

At Redditch Tennis Club there is a relaxed tennis scene with regular club and coaching nights for all abilities; whether you've been playing for 2 months, 5 years or have never held a racket. Everyone is made to feel welcome.   

Alongside our members we welcome over 1,000 non-members per annum from other clubs across the country as well as from schools and families within the local community.  

The club is located at the heart of the local community. Sitting alongside the Redditch Borough Community Sports and Social Club, we play a key role in bringing people to the locality and providing access to social and sporting facilities, encouraging people to get active and enjoy the physical and mental health benefits associated with playing sport 

Our ethos and aim is to ensure that tennis is accessible to everyone irrespective of age, social background, income, gender or ethnicity.  With this in mind we offer a range of programmes to meet the needs of our diverse community and membership. This includes free sessions, use of quality equipment for those where the cost associated with tennis might prevent them from getting involved, holiday camps, group and individual sessions, pay and play, social tennis and after school clubs.

Batchley First School use the facilities at the tennis club to provide pupils with the chance to learn about all aspects of the game.  These sessions are supported by our qualified coaches and are well received by members of the local community.

Our membership starts with those just old enough to hold a racket and extends up to our oldest active member at the age of 80.  Women’s tennis is specifically targeted through women’s only Club Nights and the “She Rallies” initiative where females of all ages are encouraged to have a go at the sport in a safe, fun and encouraging environment.

We run a full tournament schedule across the year, with high levels of participation, including both club members and players from around the country.

During COVID lockdowns in 2020 and 2021 the tennis club was used extensively by the local community to exercise and interact at a safe distance as tennis was one of the few sports permitted by the UK government.

Despite everything RTC is currently doing to support the community, we as a club have many plans to further improve our offering by

• Developing and expanding our current coaching programme; 
• Increasing the social aspects of club life;
• Further increasing participation opportunities for those with an interest in the sport
• Growing our facilities and raising the profile of our club in the area, county and beyond.

Why Red Plus Clay?

Red Plus Clay will allow for all year round play, enhancing the club’s ability to offer a high quality, all weather playing experience for all who access the club, including our members and the local community.

Our longer term mission is to develop the club to allow us to retain and develop local talent, offering attractive facilities that, along with the top class coaching, enable our younger players to develop their skills as they transition into County, National and International tennis competitions.

Our current challenge is more immediate.  We need to maintain playable courts, keeping our members and those who use our facilities healthy, active and safe, whilst also ensuring we continue to provide the best coaching we can in an officially recognised socially deprived area, for the local players and wider community. 

When our ambitious aims to resurface Courts 1 & 2 with Red Plus Clay become a reality we will be able to offer a world class playing surface, attracting those who love the sport and want to experience a surface that is rarely available in England. This includes members of the local community, fee paying members and ambitious players from across the country.

Current successes

Despite our small size, RTC has, throughout our 30+ year history, played a significant role in developing youth and adult tennis. Current members include several adult world tour and County Champions and this is something we want to continue to encourage and enable. 

The junior coaching programme has developed many young players to compete at county, national and international level over the last 12 years.

Our current pool of up and coming homegrown talents includes:

• Felix Gill (20 years old). Felix has a current ATP World Ranking of 427 and reached an ITF Junior World Ranking of 23. Felix currently competes in tournaments around the world. His preferred surface is clay. He recently reached the second round at Wimbledon 2022 in doubles with Arthur Fery and has won two Pro Tour Singles events on clay in Egypt & Belgium.
• Alex Maggs (21 years old). Alex had many successes here in the UK, from county titles to International Junior Doubles titles. Alex is now completing his 3rd year of a tennis scholarship at the University of New Mexico in America.
• Latesha Grant (18 years old). Latesha has multiple County Championship wins behind her and has helped the Herefordshire & Worcestershire 18&U County Team gain promotion two years in a row. Latesha has recently started a tennis scholarship at Holy Names University in California.
   
• Paulina Jurkowska (17 years old). Paulina is the #1 ranked female player in Herefordshire & Worcestershire. She has recently reached the final in a Premier British Tour Doubles tournament. Paulina reached the semi finals in three ITF Junior events in the last twelve months and has a WTA Pro Doubles ranking.
• Oliwia Sztorc (14 years old). Oliwia is currently ranked #42 in Great Britain (14&U) and has recently won the 16&U Girls Singles & 18&U Girls Singles events at the Herefordshire & Worcestershire County Championships. Oliwia made the Quarter finals of the Road to Wimbledon finals and has started competing in Tennis Europe events which includes tournaments in Great Britain, Finland and Turkey.
• Callum Hooper (13 years old). Callum was recently crowned Herefordshire & Worcestershire 16&U Boys County Champion. He has also started competing in Tennis Europe tournaments and finished last year ranked 25 in Great Britain (12&U).

Whilst we are very proud of these players who represent the club at the highest national and international level, we are equally supportive of nurturing and welcoming recreational players, who want to play the sport because of the social and health benefits.  These players are made to feel as welcome, included, valued and supported as much as our performance players and are included in social events, club champs and coaching sessions.

Why Crowdfunding?

RTC is hugely ambitious and has a number of long term aspirations to improve the club. However, the cost of keeping our existing facilities in working order in order to achieve these ambitions is the immediate challenge. Over the next 2-3 years we need to resurface two more of our courts and upgrade our lighting; this is going to cost us a considerable sum of money.

Whilst we are new to Crowdfunding, we see this as a really effective way to help us achieve our goals by raising the profile of (and helping us manage) our fundraising efforts, particularly where we seek support from outside organisations and funding bodies.

As a community facility based in a socially deprived area, our aim is to work with local partners, sponsors and benefactors to ensure we provide affordable and rewarding tennis experiences for everyone in Redditch and surrounding areas, irrespective of social standing, financial position, age, ability, gender or race.

Attracting Crowdfunding support will enable RTC to unlock funding opportunities from local and national organisations that would otherwise not be possible. A key outcome of our Crowdfunding campaign is to assist us in developing an operating model where we can become self sufficient for the first time in our history.

How can you help us?

1. Purchase rewards from our Crowdfunding page. Following generous donations we have a range and variety of rewards available, including vouchers, discounted membership, sponsorship options and one off donations.  Please support the Club and take advantage of one of these exciting rewards

2. Spread the word. Share our project on your social media pages and tell the world to get behind us! Let your family, friends, colleagues and community know about our fundraising efforts and Crowdfunder page.  The more people we reach, the more support we will get.

3. Offer additional rewards that we can add to our Crowdfunder page.  If you are a local business or are able to donate rewards please let us know by contacting us on [email protected]

It is important that we receive your help NOW, not tomorrow, next week or the week after. The Crowdfunding page is only open for 6 weeks starting 23 September 2022. On 4 November 2022 the RTC Crowdfunding page closes and we unfortunately can no longer raise funds through it. This is an "all or nothing" fundraising initiative i.e. if we do not reach the £25k fundraising target by 4 November 2022 all donations will be refunded and RTC get nothing.

Finally, thank you

Thank you so much from all of us at RTC for taking advantage of one of our rewards, sponsoring the club or making a donation - we are very grateful.  As a result of the support given we will be able to enhance and improve the overall experience at RTC for members and the community as a whole.