Hammersmith Park Tennis Courts Locked

Why lock the courts?

Sometimes our local council moves in mysterious ways.  On Sunday I went to the tennis courts in Hammersmith Park to play with my children, only to discover the courts locked.  

Two basketball players were also there, but none of us could get in.  Not to worry, I said, let's crawl in through the hole in the fence at the back.  But no luck; the council - in its wisdom and efficiency - has blocked up the hole. 

The two basketball players were undeterred; they simply climbed over the fence, while my kids and I had to find somewhere else to hit a ball. 

But how long will it be, I wondered, before someone makes a new hole in the fence? 

Community solution - make a new hole

As it turned out, the answer was - not long at all. In fact, it took just a couple of hours for someone to cut a new hole.  When I returned to the park later that day, the courts were full of tennis players, who had all climbed in through the brand new hole. 

Why lock the courts?
All of which raises two questions - why is our Council so keen on locking up the tennis courts? And secondly, why do they bother mending the fences, when local people simply make new holes, in order to get past the council's padlocks?

Banning tennis
Lockdown was a confusing time in Shepherd's Bush. Exercise was permitted, but tennis was banned. Our council padlocked the gate to the tennis courts in Hammersmith Park but, as on Sunday, local people simply cut a hole in the fence, to make their own entrance to the courts.

I'm not in favour of vandalising public property. But if the council does stupid things like locking up tennis courts for no apparent reason, then you can't really blame local people for finding their own solutions.    

The Shepherd's Bush Blog offers a personal view on life in Shepherd's Bush. If you would like to contribute a story about our neighbourhood, email us at shepherdsbushblog@gmail.com