Alan Somerville, senior development officer of Cunninghame, presented a cheque for £1,000 to both Deborah Bodell, treasurer and Tracey Green a welfare officer of Lochmaben Tennis Club.

Lochmaben Tennis Club is a local sports club established in 1890 and is currently run by a voluntary committee. The Club has two full sized tennis courts and offers members access to these courts all year round.

The facility also has floodlights and a hut for storage of equipment and supplies. There are regular club events such as Social Tennis for Ladies, Gents as well as regular coaching offered to both junior and adult players.

The Tennis Club is well utilised by the local community as well as engagement with pupils at Lockerbie Primary School with coaching taking place from April to July as part of the Active Schools Programme via the Council. The Tennis Club also takes part in local events such as ‘Days of the Region’ where Open Days are hosted for people within the local community to come and try tennis.

Following a recent review that was carried out, it was found that the facility is in need of resurfacing and repair and that accessibility issues for people with mobility issues /wheelchair users were all highlighted as priorities. The funding received from Cunninghame Housing Association will assist with the costs involved of carrying out these repairs to ensure the facility is safe and accessible for everyone who uses it.

The funding for Lochmaben Tennis Club came from the Associations “Making Our Communities a Better Place Fund” which operates throughout the year (1st April 2021 to 31st March 2022) until the allocated funding is exhausted.

Deborah Bodell, treasurer of Lochmaben Tennis Club, said: “The Club have ambitious plans to develop and improve our current facilities and very much appreciate and are grateful for the support from Cunninghame Housing Association to help achieve this.”

Frank Sweeney, group chief executive of Cunninghame Housing Association, added: “We are delighted to be supporting Lochmaben Tennis Club with the financial costs involved to help make it a safe and enjoyable environment for all members and visitors whilst encouraging people to take part in such an active sport.”