Latest news with #Heathfield
South Wales Argus
a day ago
- Sport
- South Wales Argus
Tennis pair delighted to win national title at Wimbledon
Heathfield, 26, and Bush, 28, featured in the national finals at Play Your Way to Wimbledon, powered by Vodafone, which is the UK's largest individual mass participation tennis competition and is delivered by Vodafone in partnership with the LTA and the All England Club. Thousands of players took part in the qualifying stages this year, leading to county and regional finals in June and July, with the winners progressing to the national finals on Wimbledon's Aorangi Courts last week. The pair claimed victory in the men's doubles final to win the competition and revealed it was an experience they will never forget. Our grass courts are back in action 🤩 This week, they're hosting the Finals of Play Your Way to #Wimbledon, powered by @VodafoneUK 🎾 — Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) August 7, 2025 Heathfield said: "I don't think it's really sunk in yet. We were just happy to be here and play, so to win it is just a cherry on top of the cake. 'When it sinks in, I will probably feel a lot better about it but at the moment I'm just in shock. I've been to Wimbledon to watch before but never played here so I really enjoyed it. 'It's a really special opportunity. You don't get these opportunities very often so you have to make the most of it and getting to the final allowed us to play more games on the grass. It felt like our game improved every time we played a match.' Bush added: 'It's great to be here and play on a great court. I was here last year and I got to the group stages and got knocked out in the last game so it was great to be back again.' This year's tournament delivered over 10,000 playing opportunities with thousands of singles and doubles players taking part at 800 venues, leading to county and area finals in June and July, with the winners progressing to the national finals on the All England Club's Aorangi Courts from 3 – 9 August 2025. The competition aims to broaden playing opportunities and to inspire people of all ages and abilities to play tennis and follow in the footsteps of their tennis heroes by competing for a chance to play on Wimbledon's iconic courts. In addition to 14 and under singles, 18 and under doubles and adult doubles draws, the categories also included wheelchair (adult and juniors), learning disability and visually impaired competitions. The national finals also saw the return of popular para-standing and deaf tennis exhibition matches held during the week. World No.1 wheelchair doubles partners and Vodafone ambassadors Alfie Hewett OBE and Gordon Reid OBE were in attendance to cheer on the players at SW19 and offer their experience and advice. 'We would have loved to have had something like this when we were younger and playing'' said Hewett. 'Play your Way to Wimbledon is a massive event for someone to pick up a racket for the first time or start playing again if they haven't for a while. 'It's about being active at grassroots level, making friends and new tennis partners and that is the beauty of events like this.' Reid added: 'We want tennis to be available and accessible to everybody and get as many people as possible enjoying the sport. 'This event encapsulates that perfectly and we're proud to be a part of it.' Play Your Way to Wimbledon, powered by Vodafone, is the UK's largest individual mass participation tennis competition. It is delivered by Vodafone, in partnership with the LTA and the All England Club, forming part of Vodafone's ongoing commitment to supporting grassroots tennis in the UK and making the sport more accessible for players of all ages and abilities.
The Herald Scotland
2 days ago
- Sport
- The Herald Scotland
Tennis pair delighted to win national title at Wimbledon
Thousands of players took part in the qualifying stages this year, leading to county and regional finals in June and July, with the winners progressing to the national finals on Wimbledon's Aorangi Courts last week. The pair claimed victory in the men's doubles final to win the competition and revealed it was an experience they will never forget. Our grass courts are back in action 🤩 This week, they're hosting the Finals of Play Your Way to #Wimbledon, powered by @VodafoneUK 🎾 — Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) August 7, 2025 Heathfield said: "I don't think it's really sunk in yet. We were just happy to be here and play, so to win it is just a cherry on top of the cake. 'When it sinks in, I will probably feel a lot better about it but at the moment I'm just in shock. I've been to Wimbledon to watch before but never played here so I really enjoyed it. 'It's a really special opportunity. You don't get these opportunities very often so you have to make the most of it and getting to the final allowed us to play more games on the grass. It felt like our game improved every time we played a match.' Bush added: 'It's great to be here and play on a great court. I was here last year and I got to the group stages and got knocked out in the last game so it was great to be back again.' This year's tournament delivered over 10,000 playing opportunities with thousands of singles and doubles players taking part at 800 venues, leading to county and area finals in June and July, with the winners progressing to the national finals on the All England Club's Aorangi Courts from 3 – 9 August 2025. The competition aims to broaden playing opportunities and to inspire people of all ages and abilities to play tennis and follow in the footsteps of their tennis heroes by competing for a chance to play on Wimbledon's iconic courts. In addition to 14 and under singles, 18 and under doubles and adult doubles draws, the categories also included wheelchair (adult and juniors), learning disability and visually impaired competitions. The national finals also saw the return of popular para-standing and deaf tennis exhibition matches held during the week. World No.1 wheelchair doubles partners and Vodafone ambassadors Alfie Hewett OBE and Gordon Reid OBE were in attendance to cheer on the players at SW19 and offer their experience and advice. 'We would have loved to have had something like this when we were younger and playing'' said Hewett. 'Play your Way to Wimbledon is a massive event for someone to pick up a racket for the first time or start playing again if they haven't for a while. 'It's about being active at grassroots level, making friends and new tennis partners and that is the beauty of events like this.' Reid added: 'We want tennis to be available and accessible to everybody and get as many people as possible enjoying the sport. 'This event encapsulates that perfectly and we're proud to be a part of it.' Play Your Way to Wimbledon, powered by Vodafone, is the UK's largest individual mass participation tennis competition. It is delivered by Vodafone, in partnership with the LTA and the All England Club, forming part of Vodafone's ongoing commitment to supporting grassroots tennis in the UK and making the sport more accessible for players of all ages and abilities.
Yahoo
22-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
New kiosk on the Cuckoo Trail moves a step closer
A new kiosk being built on the Cuckoo Trail in East Sussex has moved a step closer ahead of the works' expected completion in September. The kiosk will form part of the Horam Hub, which was given the green light by Wealden District Council in January. It will be located by the platform of the former Horam railway station on the trail, which runs along the former Cuckoo Line railway line. Ahead of completing the works, the council has invited expressions of interest to operate a concession from the new kiosk. The Horam Hub is one of a number of improvements being made to the Cuckoo Trail, which runs for 11 miles (17.7km) from Heathfield to Polegate with a three-mile (4.8km) extension to Shinewater Park in Eastbourne. WDC said the hub was a "large piece of land that offers the opportunity to meet friends and family, take a break after a long walk or cycle, and stroll around the remnants of the old Horam train station". Landscaping improvements and enhancements to the existing historical features - including the old railway platform and signs - also form part of this project. All improvements to the Cuckoo Trail are being funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, from which the council was awarded £645,000. Anyone interested in operating the kiosk must make a submission by 17:00 BST on 18 July. Follow BBC Sussex on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@ or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250. South East towns awarded £20m neighbourhoods boost Wealden District Council
BBC News
22-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Council invites interest in new kiosk coming to the Cuckoo Trail
A new kiosk being built on the Cuckoo Trail in East Sussex has moved a step closer ahead of the works' expected completion in September. The kiosk will form part of the Horam Hub, which was given the green light by Wealden District Council in will be located by the platform of the former Horam railway station on the trail, which runs along the former Cuckoo Line railway line. Ahead of completing the works, the council has invited expressions of interest to operate a concession from the new kiosk. The Horam Hub is one of a number of improvements being made to the Cuckoo Trail, which runs for 11 miles (17.7km) from Heathfield to Polegate with a three-mile (4.8km) extension to Shinewater Park in said the hub was a "large piece of land that offers the opportunity to meet friends and family, take a break after a long walk or cycle, and stroll around the remnants of the old Horam train station".Landscaping improvements and enhancements to the existing historical features - including the old railway platform and signs - also form part of this improvements to the Cuckoo Trail are being funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, from which the council was awarded £645, interested in operating the kiosk must make a submission by 17:00 BST on 18 July.
Telegraph
28-03-2025
- General
- Telegraph
Cressida Bonas: ‘I was terrified I would lose my mother'
When our mother, Mary-Gaye, was rushed to intensive care with pneumonia last year, my siblings and I feared we might lose her. I'm close to my mum and we speak most days, so the thought of a world without her was terrifying. As my sister Isabella and I sat by her hospital bed, we realised how many chapters of her life remained untold. When she recovered a few months later, we committed to sitting with her at her home once a week, recording her memories and asking the questions we hadn't thought to ask until she became ill: What was it like growing up in England in the Forties and Fifties when food was rationed? What were her dreams when she was young? How did she raise us differently to how she was brought up? Through these conversations, she shared the wisdom she's gained over the years and the experiences that have shaped her. What struck us most was hearing about her early years in post-war Buckinghamshire. My grandfather, Viscount Curzon, met my grandmother Grace when his naval ship, HMS Howe, docked in Durban, South Africa. She came to England and they had a long and happy marriage. In 1947, my mother was born, and her younger sister the following year. She grew up in an era where children were expected to be 'seen and not heard', and where women and girls were often treated as secondary. Defying societal norms, she rebelled at Heathfield – a school that, at the time, didn't encourage girls to go to university. She married four times (first aged 22, to Esmond Cooper-Key) and had five children, including me, the youngest, when she was 44. Like many of us, Mum has made choices she's proud of and others she wishes had been different. She has also faced great tragedies, losing both her beloved sister and her eldest child. Inspired by her memories, Isabella and I decided to create Lessons From Our Mothers, a podcast series where we ask our guests how maternal influences helped to determine who they have become. We explore the passed-down values; the most important lessons they've learnt; how they, as mothers, might have chosen to do things differently; and what they would say to their mothers now. Reflecting on my own upbringing, I see how much I've absorbed from my mother; the traits subconsciously passed down through generations. I recognise in myself what I love in her: our shared sense of the ridiculous, laughing at ourselves, books, gardens, attempting (with little success) to be tidy, her strength of spirit, and the outlook that 'worse things have happened at sea'. I often try to recreate the wonder she brought to my childhood – her love of animals, stories and old songs. You're a Pink Toothbrush is sung at bath times in our house, teddies have their own voices, and hot chocolate is served up on ill days (she still believes it cures everything). But there are things I've chosen to leave behind, too; decisions shaped by the different world we now inhabit with our children – I have a two-year-old, and another child on the way, while Isabella has a 10-year-old daughter and an eight-year-old son. Today, we question and analyse more. With a flood of (often overwhelming) advice on the internet and social media, we debate and discuss everything from screen time to schooling and sleep routines. We listen to our children more now; when we were young, decisions were simply made for us. The discussions with our guests have been, at times, funny and often very moving. Mishal Husain, for example, shares how she learned to 'keep the show on the road' from her mother, who has always faced challenges head on. We also spoke with women whose mothers have died, including Kate Winslet, who longs for her Mum's secret recipe for the perfect roast potatoes, and Mary Berry, whose mother lived to 105. Philosopher Alain de Botton also spoke of children's X-ray vision of their parents' flaws, while psychologist Dr Shefali Tsabary, shared her 'conscious parenting' theory, which helps parents build deep and meaningful connections with their children. We appreciate that fathers play vital roles, too, but these discussions are rooted in our own experience as mothers ourselves. Motherhood has certainly given me a deeper understanding, and a sense of forgiveness, for the times my mum couldn't be there. For much of our childhood, she was a single mother of five and I often wonder how she managed to spread her love in so many directions. She used to call us her 'puppies in a basket'. Beyond her, my sisters have also had a nurturing presence and played maternal roles, with Isabella, who's 10 years older than me, Georgiana, and our eldest sister, Pandora, who recently died, always protecting me, and each other – even in Pandora's final days. I saw them become mothers and I have been lucky enough to learn from their experiences. My husband and I struggled to conceive, and our son is a product of IVF. Fortunately, after the successful transfer of another of our embryos, I am pregnant with our second child. Even though I remind myself how fortunate we are to have been able to have children, being a mum is the most challenging thing I've ever done. It is unpredictable, frightening and it tests me every day. Recently, my two-year-old managed to get a toy horse's hoof lodged up his nose, resulting in a long evening in A&E (the nurse reassured us that they'd had to extract equally peculiar objects from more unfortunate places). How life has changed, I thought. Motherhood has brought with it the strange and the mundane, repetitive and, at times, boring routines that I never anticipated. It's deciding, yet again, whether my son will have pesto or tomato sauce on his pasta for tea. It's the toy cars and squashed rice cakes that have replaced the lip balms and books in my handbag. It's knowing all the words to the Tractor Ted songs, and it's hoping that one day he'll ask for a bedtime story that isn't Dragons Love Underpants. Motherhood has somehow given me both more confidence while also leaving me, at times, frustrated and full of self-doubt. When I'm tired or impatient, I wonder if I'm doing it all wrong. Then come the moments of pure joy: When he slips his little hand into mine; when we dance to the radio; when he talks excitedly and nonsensically about diggers; when he leaps into my arms in the morning; when I look into his eyes and feel a love so deep it's hard to describe. I'm aware of how fleeting these days are, and I want to hold on to his innocence for as long as I can. My mum's life, her courage and even her mistakes remind me that there's no such thing as a 'perfect' way to mother. We are all just doing the best we can for our children, based on our experiences and our intuition. Recording this series of conversations with my sister has shown me how the wisdom from one generation shapes the next; how we hold onto some lessons, let go of others, and create new ones for the future.
