'Fantastic' regional tennis centre finally in full swing

The first serves have finally been delivered at a new regional indoor tennis centre in Dumfries after its opening was delayed by red tape.

The £2.3m facility had been expected to welcome its first players before the end of last year.

However, it had to remain shut until Dumfries and Galloway Council and Queen of the South Football Club, which will run the three-court complex, reached agreement over the operating contract.

A deal has now been signed, with both parties hailing the state-of-the-art tennis centre as a fantastic asset for south-west Scotland.

The regional tennis centre has been constructed within the existing King George V sports complex.

The new indoor courts will be open to clubs, schools and individual players of all ages and will also host tournaments.

The organisations which financed the development hope it will elevate the sport to a new level and open up opportunities to potentially develop future stars of the game.

The bulk of the funding came from the Transforming Scottish Indoor Tennis fund, operated by the LTA, LTA Tennis Foundation, sportscotland and Tennis Scotland.

Contributions from Dumfries and Galloway Council and the Holywood Trust completed the funding package.

Dan Armstrong, chief executive of Queen of the South, said it was fantastic for the region to have such a facility.

He said: "It's all about community engagement and getting more people playing different sports and leading a healthy and active lifestyle.

"The facility is fantastic and we really want to open it up to be community-wide and get as many young people playing tennis as possible.

"You never know who you could discover playing but first of all you need to build the pathway."

Tracey Little, who chairs the council's education, skills and community wellbeing committee, said she was "delighted" to see the centre open and available for use.

"Our council has invested in what we believe is a top-class community facility that will be well used by tennis players of all levels," she said.

"What is just as important is that it will provide a fantastic platform for a coaching programme of the next generation of tennis players through the school and after-school programmes that will be running."

An official opening is planned at a later date.