Jan 25th. Work has now started on rebuilding all three courts at Kintbury Tennis Club. The project has been a long time in the planning, backed by furious fund-raising (of which more later) and a lot of soul-searching, time and effort from the leaders of the project.

Our biggest problem was realising that we didn't just need a resurface job. We needed to relay all three courts because the material under the current surface had crumbled away and our courts had deteriorated beyond the point where anyone was happy. A simple resurface would just have meant that we got the old problems back again within a few years. And none of us wants to see more cracks like the one shown here.

So our old courts had to go. The contractors, AMB Sports, came in on the morning of January 25th and started by taking down the fencing and the old net posts and nets. We also realised that the porch on the club house would be in the way of the new fencing, but more than that, that it is badly rotten and would probably need replacing soon anyway. So, we plan to take the porch away too (if we are allowed to do so).

More significantly, we are going to remove the bank between courts 2 and 3 and level off everything. This will remove a feature that threatened us with closure when West Berks Council paid us a visit a year or so ago.

Jan 30th. In fact, the bank has already gone!

So has any real semblance of a playing surface!

The photos opposite were taken on the afternoon of Saturday January 30. You can see that the process of levelling off has started.


Feb 1st. The chair of the parish council has agreed to the complete removal of our porch. It was so rotten it made sense to get rid of the whole thing rather than repair it. Maybe some time in the future, when we have the money, we can think about replacing it somehow. In the meantime, removing the porch has raised the cost of the overall project but we think that it had to be done.

Feb 8th. As you can see from the photo alongside, the levelling off process is almost complete. This surface has to be approved by the surveyor we have appointed to act on our behalf, before a membrane is applied and then a further level of hardcore goes on top. By the time we are done, the surface will be raised a few more inches, meaning we will step up onto our new courts. I guess the new courts will be a step up in every sense of the word. Somewhere under this layer are the cables that feed the floodlights, encased in ducting just in case we ever need to get at them, and also we have paid a bit extra to ensure that the drainage is good. The photo on the right shows where a drainage channel will be constructed.





Feb 11th. Things are moving on apace. The brick kerb is being laid around the court perimeter, and the porous membrane has gone on top of the levelled surface. You can see the roll in the picture to the far right. On top of this membrane will go a layer of loose stone, as shown. This will be levelled off, and the first layer of porous tarmac will be applied.

The playing area is being increased as a consequence of this work and that means we've had to get rid of the porch from the club house, which used to protrude into the courts (you may recall).



Feb 23rd. It is starting to look like a tennis court now that the team has come in with its high tech machinery to lay the tarmac. The first layer has gone down today, leaving space for a final layer to go on top. A laser guidance system is used on the heavy roller to ensure that the level is as good as it can be, and the guys have had to work quickly to create and seal the joins because of the very cold weather. You can just about see the gap between the tarmac and the top of the red bricks at the back of court three.

You can also see the tarmac on top of the stone layer in this photo, which looks across from court two to court one. I was standing where the old bank used to be.



The various layers that have been built are also shown below.

I'm not sure what this hole is for, but it does show the layers!




The fence posts have also gone up along with the new gate posts, two at the clubhouse side and one at the car-park end. The holes for the net posts have been sunk and capped off so that the tarmacing can continue.

I think one picture more than any other illustrates the difference between the new courts and the old, and it is this one taken at the back of court 3. The workman is levelling off the cement that basically protects the structure at the back of the courts. (I resisted the temptation to add my initials or a hand-print). You can see how high the new surface is being built compared to the old.



Mar 2nd. As of today, nothing is happening. The courts look great but the workmen have gone. Basically, we need some warmer weather (oh, my, after the coldest winter for about 30years, we REALLY DO need some warmer weather) so that we can lay the top surface of tarmac. It is anyone's guess when spring will come, but we stay hopeful.



The fencing is up, albeit that it needs to be tightened in places, so the courts are starting to look like proper courts.



March 9th. Today AMB Sports informed me that they plan to start laying the top layer of tarmac tomorrow. In truth, it is still colder than they would like it to be, but if the courts are to be ready for handing over by early April then the work has to be done sooner rather than later. There's a chance that temerpatures will rise a little by the end of the week so that's what we are hoping for.

It is hard not to talk about money on a project like this and although work has started there is still much to do. Money has been hard to come by, in the sense that it is tough to get money ahead of deciding to do the work, and tough to decide to do the work without knowing you can get the money....... We have been highly fortunate to win generous grants from the Miss Lawrence Charitable Trust, West Berkshire Council Youth Opportunity Capital Fund, West Berks/Greenham Trust Vibrant Villages, Berkshire Community Foundation and Kintbury Parish Council. It is interesting to note that no Sporting body - either the LTA or SportEngland - has been willing to commit any money to help restate an existing facility like this. One wonders if the Olympics have removed any hope of small clubs getting any help from sports funding? So much for its legacy.

Careful management of the club's finances over many years by several different committees has meant that we have also been able to commit the club's own savings to the project, plus guarantees from several members to cover the shortfall. We still have some grant applications pending, but we do need every member to consider if they can help by making a donation to our development fund. After all, there is still a lot more we need to do to improve our clubhouse, install lights on court 3, and maybe even construct a fourth court. If every member were to donate £100 to the development fund, we'd beable to achieve some amazing things.

All donations to the club would be gratefully received, and we have also found a legitimate, genuine way of raising income without asking anyone to dig any deeper into their own pockets than they would be doing already. If you visit our online shop (click any links from this page) you can help us earn a small income from major high street retailers, just by buying what you would normally buy. In fact, we insist that you ONLY buy what you would normally buy. And we do not want you to buy anything that you would normally buy from any of the shops in Kintbury. We are a village club and we support our own village.

But if you sometimes make purchases from the likes of BT, Marks and Spencer or HMV (to name just a few of the hundred+ stores we have teamed up with) then we encourage you to make your purchase via the Kintburytennisclub online shop. Please also tell your friends because they can even earn some money for us without buying anything. Just applying for a credit card or doing a survey can make some money for the club, and every little helps.

Please do consider using our online shop. And THANK YOU for doing so.