The Fundraising/Sponsorship Imperatives

So where do we fit in?  

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As Buckinghamshire Lawn Tennis Association (“Bucks Tennis”), we are the local representative body of the LTA, largely run by a Committee of enthusiastic Volunteers, operating on a not-for-profit basis – to administer, facilitate and deliver national objectives and initiatives to ‘open tennis up’ following the national vision of growing the game by making it relevant, welcoming and enjoyable.

 

Our Mission statement is to support the County’s clubs, administrations, officials and Coaches to get ‘more people playing tennis more often’; increasing and improving Junior and Adult competitions for all (including Inter-County matches, County Championships and club competitions) and to continually develop the quality of the County Performance Junior Programmes.

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What do we do? 

 

Follow the LTA’s lead in governance and development of tennis in Bucks from grassroots participation through to the brink of the professional game.

 

This involves support, investment, coordination, and delivery of a myriad of different aspects of local tennis from our youngest club infants through junior, adult and senior performance to our County Veterans, Disability and Deaf programmes and teams overlaid of course by Safeguarding and Governance. We offer over 150 juniors the opportunity to grow their life skills through an inspiring County training programme including Inter-County Cup events, linked to the County’s welcoming network of Clubs, professionally motivated coaches and dedicated volunteer run Committees.

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Over 60 Clubs enter teams for all ages from under 8 to over 60 in Bucks Tennis leagues with tournaments and festivals supplementing these opportunities. The launch of a new Strategic Plan and Website alongside other social media platforms places Bucks Tennis at the forefront of on-line attention.

 

As well as providing financial assistance and running development courses for our players and coaches we also make available Grants and Loans to clubs to assist with their capital projects. We are the reference point for communication and policy for our clubs and their Committees on all tennis related matters via website, emails, bi-annual Club Forums and telephone through our Admin Office based at our County Indoor Centre at Cressex, High Wycombe. Owned by Bucks Tennis, this is managed and operated under a lease to a nationally recognised tennis facilities company - Virtus Leisure Management Ltd.

 

However, the best graphic indication of what we provide and indeed achieve as a County is best detailed in the attached ‘Bucks Tennis Achievements’ review presentation last delivered at our most recent AGM. There is an impressive array of nationally recognised achievements from our much talented Juniors; disabled (VI); upcoming Mens, seniors and Veterans and Ladies senior teams (who have been National Champions twice in recent years) to name just a few highlights.

 

Why do we need funding / Sponsors? 

 

Year-on-year cutbacks from central LTA subsidies we receive, have coincided with increasing expenditure for Bucks Tennis activities as our financial commitments have grown – the result of our implementation of development strategies and programmes delivering our goals and ambitions as a highly successful and aspiring County on the national stage.

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Volunteers, coaches, officials, clubs and venues all play an essential role in the future of our sport; without them, tennis can’t exist. At Bucks Tennis we are committed to providing our people and places to play with the right investment and support alongside the LTA to ensure that work is acknowledged and celebrated to preserve the game for the next generation to enjoy.

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Inevitably for Bucks Tennis to maintain its crucial role in growing our game, the shortfall in our annual income to expenditure must be bridged – in the past this has been from the legitimate sale of Wimbledon tickets to Sponsors. This practice was completely overhauled by the LTA and strict new protocols introduced in 2020/21 that finds us now needing to seek fresh avenues and connections for Fundraising and Sponsorship opportunities that will hopefully enable us to maintain the status quo. If we are not successful, then our long-term financial survival is in jeopardy.  

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So, we are now seeking to engage Sponsors /Partners in all or any aspects of our operations as we develop ideas and potential packages that might attract crucial new streams of funding.

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What can we offer? 

 

Aside from the obvious opportunity to join the Bucks Tennis family with all its multi-faceted diversity and competition, a snapshot is:

 

• Access to our digital platforms on website and social media. 65 clubs with approx. 15,000 adult members across the County.

• Our bi-monthly newsletters are circulated to all club contacts (who will as a minimum will circulate to their Board comprising c. 5-15 members) plus c. 120 coaches and c.60 Bucks Tennis personnel. Many clubs will also circulate to their full membership as a matter of course.

• Branding opportunities, prize presentation and competition associations and access to our Forums, regular club communications and Handbook.

• Mentoring opportunities to engage with aspiring junior or senior players and a wealth of opportunity to engage and invest in our best talent at every stage of their tennis journeys through to the perimeter of the professional game.

• School association programmes and competitions and we run team building workshops as well as numerous coaching courses – all with the capability of Sponsor engagement.

• Advertising opportunities around our superb 4-court indoor facility available in High Wycombe – which has an annual footfall of around 26,000+ people (c. 75% of which are adults) through programmes, camps, tournaments, coach education, junior and senior’s tournaments, county training, spectators, visitors and general bookings.

• We still have the capability to sell the rights to access and purchase Wimbledon tickets at face value - subject to LTA overview and a signed engagement contract.

 

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So what’s next?

 

If you are interested or like what you read - please get in touch! For all the reasons we have outlined, we would be delighted to hear from anyone willing to commence a discussion around an investment in Bucks Tennis – from a personal ‘patron’ perhaps wishing to give something back to the game they love, right through to a commercial business keen to take advantage of the opportunities our game can provide.

 

No amount is too small, and no commitment is too short – we would just like to speak to you so please contact me or any of the Bucks Tennis team of Volunteers that can be found on our website.

 

Thank you for reading our Prospectus.

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Graham K. Tallyn,                 

Chairman of Bucks Tennis Fundraising Committee,

Director, Bucks Tennis Ltd,

Contact: wimbledon@buckstennis.com or 07493 235727