Here's your Friday update, covering:Local tennis courts in Cardiff set for major investment; Cardiff backs ‘My Things Matter' children in care pledge; Cardiff Council wins Construction Excellence in Wales Civil Project of the Year for 2023/24.

Local tennis courts in Cardiff set for major investment

A popular tennis scheme which has boosted the number of people taking up the sport in the Cardiff suburb of Heath, and which would see significant sums of money invested into local tennis courts, is set to be rolled out to six other parks across the city.

The plan, which was approved by Cardiff Council last week, saw ‘in principle' funding agreed which could see the LTA invest in the region of £750,000 in 29 of the city's tennis courts, through its UK Government and LTA Tennis Foundation funded Park Project.

As part of the agreement the refurbished courts, starting with those at Rumney Hill Gardens, Victoria Park and Llandaff Fields, will be manged, operated, and maintained by Tennis Wales, who currently operate the Heath Park tennis courts.

Cabinet Member for Culture, Parks and Events, Cllr Jennifer Burke, said: "The LTA and Tennis Wales' delivery of investment at Heath Park has converted a site that was in poor condition with very limited tennis activity into a vibrant, tennis hub where the game is being enjoyed every day. There has been a significant increase in people taking up the game there, with coaching, schools' activity, and competitions all on offer alongside regular games. There are now 900 members playing at the Heath courts, including the first LGBGTQ club in Wales. It's really exceeded our expectations and it's very exciting to think this LTA investment will enable the scheme to be rolled out across the city, bringing the sport to even more people."

The LTA investment is part of a £30 million UK-wide programme that will see thousands of existing park tennis courts in poor or unplayable condition brought back to life for the benefit of communities, through renovation works and improved court accessibility with new gate-access technology and booking systems.

Cllr Burke continued: "The ambition is to improve the customer experience, grow the numbers of people playing the game, and create safe places to play by reducing vandalism, anti-social behaviour and misuse which we've seen at our other courts. Importantly, Tennis Wales, will re-invest any money raised from playing fees into the courts so they are maintained to a high level and people have a great place to learn and enjoy the game."

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Cardiff pledges to children in care, that ‘My Things Matter'

Cardiff Council has pledged its support for the ‘My Things Matter' campaign, an initiative that helps to make sure that children and young people in care are treated with respect and dignity when they move home.

Run by NYAS (National Youth Advocacy Service), ‘My Things Matter' pushes to end the use of bin bags when children in care move home and asks local authorities across England and Wales to provide formal written guidance for staff and carers to support children experiencing moves.

By signing up to the campaign, Cardiff pledges to children and young people in their care to;

1. Keep their most precious belongings safe during their move and promise they will not be moved in bin bags.
2. Provide written guidance for them and anyone helping them to move.
3. Never move or throw away their belongings without their consent and always respect their personal property.
4. Support them to make a complaint if any of their belongings have been lost or damaged during their move. And finally,
5. Communicate with them about their move and ask how the move went.

Cardiff Council's Cabinet Member for Children's Social Services, Cllr Ash Lister said: "Ensuring that all children in care feel self-worth and are respected is priority. Moving home can be an anxious and stressful time for anyone, but particularly for young people who may have already experienced turbulence and upset during their lives. We are committed to making this a smooth and dignified transition where young people feel supported, in line with Cardiff's ambition of becoming a UNICEF UK Child Friendly City.

"Our children and young people deserve the very best and that's why we're so proud to sign the ‘My Things Matter' pledge, and hope more Local Authorities will join us."

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Cardiff Council wins Construction Excellence in Wales - Civil Project of the Year 2023/24

Cardiff Council has been awarded Civil Project of the Year Award for 2023/24 for the Central Square Transport Scheme.

The award relates to the transformation of Wood Street, which includes a new road layout; new bus lanes; rain gardens to manage surface water drainage; improvements to the public realm and a highway network which gives priority to buses ready for when the new Transport Interchange opens to the public.

The scheme is also the first of its kind in Wales, with a pedestrian crossing built specifically to accommodate blind and partially sighted people, with additional planting and ‘bee bus stops' installed to increase biodiversity in the city centre.

Cardiff Council contracted Knights Brown to undertake the work, which took place during the COVID Pandemic.

Cllr Dan De'Ath, Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning and Transport said: "The award is testament to all the hard work that has been put in by council officers and the contractor to complete this scheme on time and within budget. I am also pleased that we worked with a range of organisations through the consultation to ensure we delivered a scheme which is fit for all users, as well as improving the traffic flow in this area of the city.

"The Council has worked very closely with disability groups to install a bespoke pedestrian crossing that caters for blind and partially sighted people. I know this has been warmly welcomed by RNIB and put forward as a model of best practice for when other pedestrian crossings are implemented across the city.

"Wood Street has been transformed. Not only does the street look far better than previously with additional planting and a new road layout, but the engineering will also ensure that the road doesn't flood in bad weather and the new Bus Interchange will be able to operate efficiently, ensuring that buses are given priority over general traffic."