Sports Minister Helen Grant has praised a tennis scheme in London for encouraging hundreds of women to get back into the game.
Tennis Tuesdays was launched just before Wimbledon this year, offering women the chance to go down to a park after work, have an informal game and get tips from a coach.
Over the summer more than 400 Londoners have taken part and following its success in the capital it is now being expanded across the UK.
Mrs Grant this week attended a Tennis Tuesdays session in Paddington Recreation Ground, in Maida Vale, to try it for herself.
She told the Standard closing the gap between the number of women and men doing sport was her priority.
She said: “In terms of female participation we are doing really well. We have more women doing sport now once a week than when we bid for the Olympic Games in 2005.
“The figures are very good but there’s still a gap between men and women and I want to close it.
“There are lots of different barriers which range from self-confidence and self-esteem, to [looking after] children, time and money.
“It’s this type of scheme that will get women and girls enjoying their sport again and hopefully they will want to make it a habit for life.”
The tennis sessions were spurred on by research by the Women’s Sport and Fitness Foundation, which found 1.8 million fewer women than men participate in sport three times a week. By launching Tennis Tuesdays, British Tennis aimed to get rid of the “faff” sometimes associated with the sport, such as booking a court and finding a playing partner.
Claire Webb, project leader for British Tennis, said: “The idea is we put everything on a plate for women so it makes it really easy for them to play. We provide the equipment, someone to play with and a coach to offer tips.
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“It’s very relaxed and informal and it’s a female-only session to make them comfortable. We are trying to fit in with on-trend activities, particularly in London, so girls who would usually go to Bikram yoga or Zumba might give tennis a try with their friends.”
Prue Flexman, 32, from Islington, who has attended Tennis Tuesdays for six weeks, said it had reignited her love for the game. “This makes playing tennis so much easier,” she said. “You can just run out of the door in the morning and not worry about bringing anything.”
