Padel Provision Gains LTA Award for Rocks Lane

But will success mean that other sports will be squeezed out?

Rocks Lane says it wants to broaden participation in padel on the courts on Chiswick Back Common

March 16, 2023

This Saturday evening (11 March) saw the Rocks Lane Multi Sports Centre on Chiswick Back Common receive an award from the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA).

It was presented at The Queen’s Club in recognition for its ‘outstanding contribution’ to British Tennis and particularly in ‘it’s trailblazing development of padel tennis in the community’.

A spokesperson for Rocks Lane said after the ceremony, “We are delighted that the team at Rocks Lane have been recognised for all their hard work.

“We will continue to work towards our goals that have stood us in good stead over the past 30 years.

“Our aim is to increase participation in sport across all sectors of the community, whilst maximising sporting opportunities for our existing loyal players.”

The facility is to host an international padel tournament over the Easter holidays which has required team sport pitches to be taken over. Some of the top players in the world will be participating.

Rocks Lane insists that this is on a temporary basis only and the pitches will be restored after the tournament. However, some local parents are concerned that the days of team sports like football and netball at the centre are numbered and that the temporary switch may become permanent at some point.

Rachel Garistina said, “I’m the mother of two Chiswick school children, both of whom have used the sports facilities at Rocks Lane over the last 10 years to take part in school PE lessons, holiday camps and the weekly, iconic, Friday Night Fives.

“This amazing facility at the heart of Chiswick has been a crucial part of their development, and we feel it is a very important community space that needs protecting for current, and future, generations of West London school children.

“Since 2020, the managing director of Rocks Lane, Chris Warren, has been steadily replacing the football, tennis and netball courts with the far more lucrative padel courts. We have just found out that the few remaining football pitches and netball courts (now down to only 3) are under threat by ‘temporary’ padel courts, due to be installed over the Easter holidays.

“Our 12-year-old son’s football team has already been forced out of Rocks Lane on a Friday night, as the loss of pitches to padel meant his team was only slated to play at 8.30pm, far too late for a Year 7. We really don’t want the same to happen to our daughter, particularly when girls’ sports are already so underrepresented and underfunded. Her primary school is also unclear as to whether PE lesson bookings will be able to continue in the same way next term.

“My understanding is that the terms of Rocks Lane's lease from Hounslow is to provide facilities for the local community. The padel court bookings seem to be the preserve of mostly adult men, who come from far and wide to pay expensive court charges to play. These new courts are not serving a broad section of local people, from young to old, but the (mostly middle aged, white) privileged few.”

Another parent wrote, “Each of our children uses the Rocks Lane facilities on a regular basis for both football and netball, as well as for school PE activities.

“We’ve used the Rocks Lane facilities since moving to the area in 2013, and our choice as to where live, where we send our children to school and where they play their sport has always been based around the continued use of the facilities at Rocks Lane to support the aforementioned activities.

“Over the past two years, I’ve watched with concern alongside others as the Rocks Lane Chiswick facility has replaced tennis/netball courts and football pitches with padel courts (we’re up to ten at last count). I’ve further observed the replacement of children and families from the local area who have a sense of loyalty and commitment to both their community and the Rocks Lane facility, with adults who come, pay, play and leave. I’m not alone here.”

Some users of the centre have suggested that the continued expansion of padel could represent a breach of existing planning conditions or require new approvals to proceed. Local councillor Jo Biddolph said, “The planning team has told me that it has not received a planning application but also that an application might not be needed. I have asked the council’s corporate planning team to tell me what obligations apply to Rocks Lane’s lease. I have heard from several parents who are concerned about the drift to padel tennis and the possible loss of more space to this more lucrative and adult sport. If the lease doesn’t protect children’s sports, I will do all I can to help families campaign against changes.”

As well as dismissing fears that it is planning to the areas to be switched over this Easter for padel on a permanent basis, Rocks Lane is adamant that the sport is not just for grown-ups. It has been offering free padel court access to local schools for some time although it was unable to name any that had taken up this offer so far. Some parents claim that although the courts may be available for free in theory, they are often booked up at times the schools would prefer.

However, Rocks Lane has recently appointed a School Sports Co-ordinator (SSC) to liaise with all schools in the local area to increase the opportunities for children to play sport. The new SSC has worked with schools in Richmond Borough on similar projects and she will be aiming to increase the number of state schools taking up the offer of free sports as they have done at Rocks Lane’s other facilities. There are also scholarships will be available to children to help broaden participation.

The club’s spokesperson said, “Our Schools programme will aim to introduce all Year 6 and 7 children to padel over the next two years. This will enable lots of children to enjoy padel and assist those who wish to take their sporting ambitions all the way to the Olympics!

“Please contact Emma@rockslane.co.uk if your school or local charitable organisation wish to get involved. “