A LOCAL tennis coach could be out of business due to a David versus Goliath-style tendering battle.
Claire Pomfret has spent ten years building up and running VP Tennis – a diverse and inclusive community tennis club at Victoria Park. But she was recently forced to bid in a Warwick District Council tender process for the future operation of the site and may now lose her business to a large national organisation.
The blow came as a result of WDC deciding to put all its tennis courts to tender to allow national organisations such as Everyone Active to bid for them.
Residents have been rallying around Claire en masse, submitting a petition with over 500 signatures and heartfelt comments to WDC, but to no avail.
A spokesperson said: “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.”
WDC said it would not be commenting while the legal tendering process was taking place.
The council announced in September last year that it was looking for a new organisation to run its tennis courts and a tendering process would go live that month.
It came, WDC said at the time, as part of a review of the outdoor sports provision in the area which took place in December 2021.
Current operator VP Tennis was given six months’ notice, in accordance with the terms of its licence, to accommodate the outcome of the tender process.
Last September a WDC spokesperson said VP Tennis would be given the opportunity to tender for the operation of the tennis courts should they wish to do so, and draw on their experience of delivering a tennis offer at Victoria Park.
“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,” the spokesperson added.
The results of the tendering process will be revealed next week.
