WSA enjoy fantastic time at Wales Week in London with Tennis Wales and the LTA!

WSA enjoy fantastic time at Wales Week in London with Tennis Wales and the LTA!

The Welsh Sports Association (WSA) would like to thank everyone who made Wednesday’s Wales Week in London event such a special day! 

The WSA hosted ‘Showcasing the growth of tennis and the sport & leisure sector in Wales’ alongside Tennis Wales and the LTA at the National Tennis Centre to mark St. David’s Day. 

Thank you to all those that attended; it was great to see a such an eclectic mix of members, organisations & individuals, and we hope everyone enjoyed their time as much as we did, and found value in the event! 

We would also like to extend our gratitude to everyone at the National Tennis Centre for their wonderful facilities and hospitality, as well as Tennis Wales and the LTA for their collaboration and support offered in the lead up, and during the event. 

The WSA would also like to express its gratitude to Simon Clarke of Speakeasy Club, who hosted the event with great aplomb. 

Simon kicked off the day by introducing Oliver Scadgell, Participation Director at the LTA, who discussed the mission, vision and work of the organisation in getting more people into tennis and achieving their vision of a Tennis Opened Up. 

Simon Johnson, CEO of Tennis Wales, also talked with enthusiasm about the sport and its significant progress in Wales, before our CEO Andrew Howard talked about the WSA’s ‘Setting Sport up for Success’ strategy, the work the WSA is doing amid the cost-of-living crisis, and the range of resources and services that are supporting the membership base.

The audience were particularly interested in how the WSA and Procurement Partner 2Buy2 shared the ambition of ‘Charging up the Welsh road network’, through the ‘EV charging opportunity.’  

The objective is to ensure every community has access to rapid EV charging throughout Wales. The model being used, working with our charge point operating partners, not only provides a network of chargers, but also income to clubs and organisations for 20+ years. This service to local communities and the project compliments the WSA’s environmental and financial sustainability ambitions for the sector. 

Andrew then introduced Richard Thomas, the Chair of the recently formed, Welsh Sports Foundation (WSF). 

The Foundation is committed to removing financial barriers to sport and physical activity for children and young people. Designed for Wales, the WSF has been created to ensure it can work alongside Welsh Government, Sport Wales and National Governing Bodies of Sport in Wales to create an innovative solution to help tackle child poverty in Wales. 

Its vision is to create a healthy and happy Wales, where every individual child and young person is able participate in sport and physical activity. 

Joining the panel discussion was also Vicky Williams, People Director at the LTA, who spoke passionately about the importance of her organisation’s inclusion commitments and the work they’re doing to ensure that the breadth of society can enjoy the sport of tennis without any misconceptions about its accessibility.  

Fantastic event put on to showcase the development of tennis, particularly through @tenniswales. Also proof that my forehand still needs a lot of work!!! Many thanks to all involved @WelshSportAssoc @the_LTA https://t.co/zzephhEs9X

— Robert Kissick (@robkissick) March 1, 2023

Following the conclusion of the fascinating discussion, the attendees ended the day with tasters of cardio tennis, clay court tennis and even padel – the world’s fastest growing sport – at the National Tennis Centre’s world-class facilities.  

It was truly a special event and a day to remember, and the WSA would once again like to thank everyone who made it possible as well as everyone that attended!