21 January 2020 | Tennis Queensland

Five Queensland state schools will benefit from new and improved tennis courts through a partnership program involving Tennis Queensland, the Queensland government and Tennis Australia.

The Queensland Education Minister Grace Grace announced the first five schools to receive funding in Round 1 of the Tennis in State Schools initiative (TISSI),  ranging from Far North Queensland down to the Gold Coast.

“Today I am excited to announce the names of the five state schools to benefit from our three-year, $1.5 million initiative to get more students to play tennis,” Ms Grace said.

“This fantastic program will include new courts, improvements to existing courts, and repairs of existing tennis facilities.

“These facilities will also be available for the wider community to use, with Tennis Queensland providing insurance cover for the facilities if the school is affiliated with it.

“We are working on the principle that if you provide the right facilities, young people will want to play tennis.”

The successful schools in the 2019-20 financial year are:

• Camp Hill State Infants and Primary School
• Mackay State High School
• Mossman State School
• Palm Beach-Currumbin State High School
• Wellers Hill State School

Tennis Queensland Chief Executive Mark Handley said the program will have a positive impact on the health of the wider community.

“TISSI is about using tennis as a vehicle to support a healthy, active and vibrant school community. We know improved facilities leads to more people wanting to play sport and that includes students, teachers, parents and carers,” Mr Handley said.

“Tennis is a sport for life so by creating facilities of a higher standard in schools, we are giving our young players the chance to connect with a positive passion that will see them throughout their years.”

Applications for the next round of TISSI are now open, with submissions to close at the end of term 1, 2020.