Dear Member,

I am writing to introduce myself as the new Chairman following Tony Collett’s decision to retire after 8 years in the post.  I was previously the Treasurer and this job has been taken over by Gail Collett.

The reformed Committee is now as follows:

This year for the first time we have put together a programme of Social and Tennis Dates for your Diary, see homepage.  We hope you find it interesting and will attend the events, which also raise money for the club.

In particular, please support the Quiz Evening at Preston Cross and the “Bring a Friend” and “Parent and Child” Competitions, which are aimed at encouraging new people to play tennis and become members.

Sometime in March and April, Courts 1 to 4 will be pressure-cleaned and painted.  Disruption will be kept to a minimum and warning notices will be posted in the clubhouse if the courts cannot be used whilst the paint is drying.

This year we have had to raise the cost of subscriptions above the rate of inflation.  This is because the costs of running the club have risen.  Members nowadays do not seem to have the time or inclination to do jobs like leaf-sweeping or small repairs to the clubhouse, so we are having to buy in services which were done voluntarily in the past. 

Having said that, we are still fortunate in having members who keep the clubhouse supplied with tea , coffee, toilet paper and towels and who maintain the garden and empty the bins in their free time.  A big THANK YOU goes to them.

 If you have some spare time and would like to help the club, we would love to hear from you.

 In addition to the day to day running expenses, the costs of maintaining the courts are also rising steeply.  The court cleaning and painting mentioned above cost £4,787 in 2000 when it was last done.  This time in 2004 it will cost in the region of £6,500 – an increase of nearly 30% in 4 years. In the same period our subscription has risen by 17.5% 

In 3 or 4 years time, courts 1 to 4 will need to be relaid which is likely to cost over £30,000.  Currently the club has £37,000 in savings – so our reserves will be severely depleted and recruitment of new members must be high on our priority list!

 To end on a more upbeat note, I wish all our members another lovely summer with lots of tennis.

Irene Gawne

Chairman