TENNIS is coming to a park in Worcester after the city council agreed to go ahead with plans to award a contract to run it.

At the meeting of the Communities Committee on October 30, councillors agreed to give the green light to complete the legal agreements with their preferred bidder to operate tennis courts in Cripplegate park over the next five years.

The decision comes after the council's planning committee approved plans to refurbish the tennis courts in Cripplegate Park after receiving £215,000 of grants and loans from the Lawn Tennis Association.

There will be hourly fees and advance bookings when the courts are operational, but there will also be free introductory sessions for residents.

READ MORE: Work to fix 'woefully inadequate' tennis courts in Cripplegate Park backed by Council

The proposals also include installing floodlights at Cripplegate Park to allow the courts to remain operational until 9pm.

This, the council believes, will encourage more people to take part when the courts open between February and April 2020.

Proposed rates for the new courts are a £15 registration fee to enable advanced bookings, followed by £7 per hour court fees for adults, £5 per hour for juniors and adult concessions of £3.50 and £5.25.

Councillor Stephen Hodgson raised the issue of maintenance, saying: "What provision is there that the court will remain in good condition? Will we end up paying for something terrible that people won't want to use?

In response, Warwick Neale, the officer responsible, said: "The LTA sets standards regarding maintenance of courts and there is a maintenance agreement in the agreement with the contractor."

Maintaining the courts will cost an estimated £6,288.80 per year over the course of the contract, according to the council's report.