TENNIS players have come up with some ace ideas to help save their local club.

Members of Terrington Tennis Club are on a publicity, recruitment and fundraising drive to raise £20,000 to resurface its two courts.

One idea has been for club members and villagers to "foster" a chair and redecorate it.

Club member Anne Northeast has decorated one of the chairs, while her husband Nick, who is in his 70s, planned to run the Edinburgh Marathon, raising more than £300 for the court fund.

And the club will be hosting a Pickleball and Pimms event on Saturday, July 2, from 3pm to 6pm, sponsored by IT Sports, which will include a prize raffle.

Trevor Watson, captain of Terrington's tennis team, said: "Our two courts need resurfacing - it would be a shame to lose them. It will get to a point that they are unsafe to play."

The courts are owned by the village hall, says Trevor, and so far, £10,000 has been raised. Members are setting a target to raise around £3,000 for the next three years and then have the work done.

Meanwhile, besides fundraising, they are working hard to promote the club and try to attract new members. The club currently has around 20 members who pay an annual fee of £50.

Trevor hopes the Pickleball and Pimms event will encourage people to come along and try a new activity. Pickleball is played with different bats and ball, on a smaller-scale court, and is said to be a combination of badminton, tennis and table tennis.

York Press: Pickleball - said to be a combination of tennis, badminton and table tennisPickleball - said to be a combination of tennis, badminton and table tennis

Trevor said: "Pickleball is very popular in America. We plan to run this event and if there is enough interest, we can set up a regular session for people to play Pickleball at the club.

"This could help raise the profile of the club and let people know there are other games you can play on a tennis court."

The idea of redecorating club chairs was also a way to raise its profile, admits Trevor.

He said: "We had the chairs in the clubhouse and we had the idea to ask people to volunteer to look after them and repaint them. So they were 'fostered out' to our 'foster chairers!'"

"It captured the imagination of the village and we have had five back so far, all are different. It is a talking point, especially when visitors come to play with us."

For more information about the club, visit: terringtontennis.co.uk