Petition against CLOSURE OF BIDSTON TENNIS CENTRE

URGENT – Update and Petition against CLOSURE OF BIDSTON TENNIS CENTRE & LOSS OF 3 INDOOR COURTS

Matt Webb, Chairman WTL and Chairman Cheshire LTA, has emailed clubs to request support in objecting to the proposed closure of Bidston Tennis Centre by signing a paper petition.
The petition is available in HLTC Clubhouse so please sign as soon as possible, if you would like to do so. (The petition will be collected soon after 7th Feb.)

For further information, please see Matt’s email below:-

Thanks to all those Clubs and individuals who have already contacted their local councillors and MP to object to the Closure of the tennis centre and loss of 3 courts on reopening, if you have yet to do this, the consultation period is short, and I urge you to do so ASAP, (please email me if you need another copy of the suggested template). 

As an update, the CEO of the LTA, Scott Lloyd has been in communication with Wirral Council and Directors of the facility to formally object to these proposals and a meeting is being convened to propose alternative business models (which are being successfully employed at other indoor tennis centres across the Country) that can meet the needs of the Council to balance its budget whilst retaining this valuable indoor facility for local clubs and residents. 

At a local level, the County Association in conjunction with our LTA representatives are supporting efforts of the National Governing Body by encouraging Clubs and their members to contact their Councillors and MPs, collating their responses, feeding back genuine ideas into the process that will enhance the usage and viability of these courts going forwards.  If we lose these courts, there is no funding or pot of money to replace them, by engaging in the process and effecting a change of business model we can retain the centre intact and all benefit from greater access and more flexible usage as Clubs/players.

As part of our local efforts, we have been advised it would be powerful to send our written objections in the form of a petition, not an online electronic version but a good old fashioned one with ‘wet signatures’. To this end, please find a Petition that I kindly ask you to print off and get as many of your Club members to sign as possible.  As time is so short, I would ask for these to be completed and be ready for collection by week commencing Monday 7th February.  A member from the Cheshire Club Liaison Committee will be in touch with your Club to arrange picking these up.

Matt Webb