Courts refurbished at Charterhouse School / by John Patrick Reynolds

Charterhouse School has refurbished two of its eight Eton fives courts - hiring JPR Courts to transform them from barely usable courts into sports facilities which are good-looking, safe and fun to use. 
The courts now have York stone floors - matching the stone of the buttress tops - in place of smooth concrete; they have light grey walls instead of glossy-beige-and-dark-blue ones. A decorative flourish in the shape of the school's logo has been added to the front walls, symbolising the fact that these are now sporting facilities of which the school can be proud. 
The courts were recently christened at the school's annual four-pair match against the Jesters club, attended by the EFA's president Richard Barber, chairman Richard Black and vice-chairman Ronald Pattison. The school's master in charge John Troy, who has driven the refurbishment programme which has also included the clearing of overgrown trees and the improvement of drainage, was also present at the celebration, and took part in the match. 
At a dinner afterwards in the Peter May Pavilion - named after an alumnus of the school who won the Kinnaird Cup three times as well as captaining the country at cricket - Richard Barber said the courts were now a credit to the famous players who once played upon them. He added that they were now welcomed the school's current population of boys and girls and encouraged them to take up and play the wonderful game on Eton fives.
Old Carthusian Ronald Pattison said xxx he was grateful for the school's commitment to the game and hoped that the work could be extended to the school's other six courts. He pointed out that there were another six courts which currently were out of commission but, if added to the eight currently in use, would create a wonderful group of fourteen courts that could host competitions such as the National Schools' Eton Fives Competition, or indeed any other. 
Delighted members of the Blackguard Club which uses the courts every Wednesday, said the courts had been transformed. They added that the courts were now a pleasure to play upon.  
The work had become necessary because the courts had been dangerous in wet weather or conditions which encouraged condensation. The glossy paint - put on top of nineteenth-century render some decades ago - meant that the moisture could form and stream down onto the equally impervious concrete floor, laid in the past few decades, which became slippery. The beige colour also meant that the ball was never very visible whether white or brown. The new colourant allows the render to breathe; it is light grey to allow maximum visibility to the ball when white and still contrast with a light brown ball when the coating has worn off. The sandstone slabs are slightly porous, so give a firm footing to players even in wet weather.