TO MARK what would have been the second week of The Championships, The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) has announced a donation of 2020 Championships balls and towels as part of the AELTC’s contributions to the recovery from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

A donation of 30,000 Slazenger balls will be made to the LTA, the governing body for tennis in Britain, in support of their new campaign – Play Your Way – to encourage people to get back on court and promote the accessibility of tennis however and wherever people choose to play it. The balls will be distributed by the LTA to registered coaches, clubs, parks and schools.

Smaller donations of 2020 Championships balls will be made to two charities supported by the Wimbledon Foundation, the official charity of the AELTC and The Championships: the Youth Sport Trust, the Foundation’s national charity partner and deliverer of the Set for Success programme for 14-16 year-olds, and Regenerate, a local charity which helps young people gain life and leadership skills. Donations will also be made to the AELTC’s community tennis programmes, the All England Club Community Sports Ground in Raynes Park, and the Wimbledon Junior Tennis Initiative, which takes tennis to schools in the neighbouring boroughs of Merton and Wandsworth.

A quantity of 25,000 2020 Championships towels has been set aside to fulfil donation requests by charities and organisations dedicated to helping society’s most vulnerable. One example is Crisis, a charity which is working to help people who have been affected by homelessness, and who have been housed during the coronavirus pandemic, but who lack basic household items that many of us take for granted. The AELTC will donate 2,400 towels to assist their work over the coming year.

Richard Lewis CBE, Chief Executive of the AELTC, said: “We are committed to using the collective strength of Wimbledon to provide help for those in need, and so we are pleased to be able to put the towels and balls which had been produced for this year’s Championships to good use. It was strongly felt that the bulk of The Championships balls should be directed to the LTA to help them encourage more people into the sport, while The Championships towels would be best donated to charities who are working to support society’s most vulnerable, those affected by homelessness and seeking basic household supplies.”

Scott Lloyd, LTA CEO, said: “We would like to thank The All England Lawn Tennis Club for their donation of these tennis balls to support our Play Your Way campaign and our work to open up tennis to more people. While the cancellation of this summer’s grass court events was a disappointment to so many people, we are delighted to be able to create something positive from it by supporting grassroots tennis. Over the past few months we have done all we can to protect and support tennis from parks to elite level, and so we look forward to seeing these tennis balls and those from the LTA’s major events being put to good use by our registered venues and accredited coaches across the country.”

Helen Parker, Head of the Wimbledon Foundation, said: “Following the cancellation of The Championships, the Wimbledon Foundation has been working together with the AELTC and The Championships to use our resources, funding and facilities to support a number of homelessness charities in London. We are pleased to be able to add to that support by donating a quantity of 2020 Championships towels to Crisis.”

Jon Sparkes, Chief Executive of Crisis, said: “We are very grateful to the AELTC and Wimbledon Foundation for donating these iconic 2020 Championships towels. Generosity like this goes a long way, giving our clients a unique slice of history and letting them know people are thinking of them.

“As we help people into secure homes of their own, essential items like towels mean they have what they need as they settle in and begin to rebuild their lives. Everyone should have the security and dignity of a home.”

Further to the donations of 2020 balls and towels, the Wimbledon Foundation’s £1.2m Coronavirus Fund continues to help support those who are most vulnerable at a local, regional and national level.

Since May, more than £300,000 has been awarded to charities in Merton and Wandsworth to help address mental health challenges, create opportunities for young people and to support those facing adversity. Beneficiaries include Wimbledon and Wandsworth Foodbanks, Home-Start Merton and Wandsworth and local homelessness charities.

In addition, £200,000 has been donated to the London Community Foundation to be distributed via the London Community Response Fund to projects in Merton and Wandsworth. One of 14 charities supported to date, Wandsworth Community Empowerment Network (WCEN) are using their emergency grant to fund two community advice workers for three months helping people access food supplies; supporting those facing financial hardship and seeking employment; and providing support to those struggling with poor mental health.

Looking to those in need further afield, more than £150,000 has been granted to national charities supporting response and recovery efforts including the British Red Cross, NHS Charities Together and The Royal Foundation.

A donation of £50,000 to the British Red Cross towards their Hardship Fund is helping to provide financial support to individuals who were already financially at risk before the COVID-19 outbreak and whose financial situation has deteriorated due to the crisis.

Alex Fraser, Director at the British Red Cross, said: “We know that people are struggling financially right now and we are very grateful to the Wimbledon Foundation for donating to the Hardship Fund to help support the people most financially impacted by coronavirus.”

A donation of £10,000 to The Royal Foundation has been granted in support of the Foundation’s ‘Our Frontline’ initiative, which is offering mental health support to those working in health, the emergency services, social care and keyworkers. Our Frontline is a partnership between Shout, Samaritans, Mind, Hospice UK and The Royal Foundation of HRH The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.