This year's annual general meeting in the Art Centre cellar bar saw the election of a new chairman and membership secretary for STC. James Beech takes on the head role as club chairman, while Stefania Beech becomes our new membership secretary.

Thanks go to the outgoing chair Nick Sims and membership secretary Carolyn Davies for their important contribution to the good management of STC in recent years. We're sure to still see them on court from time to time.

Our new chairmain writes:

"I wanted to take the opportunity to introduce myself as the newly appointed club Chairman, taking over from Nick Sims. Nick has been acting chair for the past couple of years, so I would like to thank him for his hard work and patience whilst supporting the club over that time. 

Having been a member of STC for over 20 years and a team captain for the last 10, I hope that I have a good idea of what matters to club members. I play social tennis 2 or 3 times a week, in addition to league matches, which I hope gives me some useful insights to draw upon. Having recently retired from work, I also expect to have a bit of spare time on my hands!

I am very much aware that the quality of the playing surface, particularly the lower 3 courts, has deteriorated over recent years. At the moment, we are entirely reliant on Stamford School for court maintenance. My first priority, therefore, is to explore how we can get a bit more control over our destiny and secure a long-term future for the club on a high-quality playing surface. This won’t necessarily be a quick fix! 

In the meantime, I am keen to work closely with our club committee to manage and make the most of the facilities that we have. STC is a great club and we want to ensure that it remains an attractive place to play and enjoy tennis at both a social and competitive level.

I’m looking forward to doing what I can to help over the coming months and years. If you have any thoughts or concerns, I would love to hear from you. You can contact me on stamfordtennis.chair@gmail.com.

I hope to see you on court soon! James "

Other committee members remain unchanged from the previous year and can be viewed on the STC website.