Grassroots tennis funding specialist

Funding4Tennis services are delivered by Steve Goswell, a County Veteran Tennis player who has raised over a million pounds in grants for tennis clubs in the UK.

Steve has expertise and many years’ experience of sourcing funding for a wider range of tennis projects.

Background

Steve has been a keen sportsman all his life but did not start playing Tennis till he was in his forties. He became a tennis coach and went on to be senior coach and coaching coordinator at Cambridge LTC.

Cambridge LTC was struggling at that time and had low membership numbers. It needed funding for court resurfacing as well as clubhouse and car park improvements. Steve started to apply for grants from various organisations which resulted in over £150,000 in grants for coaching programmes; resurfacing two courts; draining and resurfacing a large car park; and a major upgrade to the Clubhouse. The grants he secured were instrumental in transforming Cambridge Lawn Tennis Club’s facilities and activities.

Steve introduced and managed an innovative coaching regime at Cambridge LTC that continues in operation to this day.

It has resulted in substantial benefits to club members and coaches – and a very substantial increase in income for the club.

Since then Steve has worked with clubs and Councils across the East of England to secure grant funds that have transformed their facilities and activities. These in turn have helped make tennis a financially viable sport for those who own and manage courts and clubs – even in small villages – giving them a strong basis on which to build for the future.

He can offer advice to venues throughout the UK and is currently working with clubs in Scotland, Sussex and Devon.

The Cambridgeshire Fund

Steve’s original idea to set up a fund to support tennis facility development by requesting an initial contribution from both Cambridgeshire LTA and the LTA was realized in late 2015. £100,000 was contributed by County and £100,000 by national LTA. The scheme, entitled ‘The Cambridgeshire Fund,’ ran for five years.

Over this period this £200,000 was more than matched by third party grants – as well as fund raised by the clubs themselves. By late 2019 a total of over £570,000 had been invested in facilities projects within Cambridgeshire tennis, £370,000 of this from third party grants.