Table Tennis England and Sheffield City Council have joined forces to bring Ping! to the heart of the city.

Ping! Sheffield will add to a number of community projects supported under the Move More Sheffield agenda, a localised strategy to see meaningful improvement in the health, wellbeing and quality of life of everybody living in Sheffield.

Once the current restrictions are lifted, those who love table tennis or even just want to try new ways of being active can access ping pong equipment at various locations across the city, both indoors and outdoors.

A list of places to play, news and events are available on the Ping! Sheffield website. Although not currently in use, tables and accessories have been registered outdoors at Sheffield Railway station, Tudor Square and Sheffield Cathedral, and also indoors at Island Café, Hillsborough Leisure Centre, the Albert Table Tennis Centre and Vulcan Table Tennis Club.

Councillor Mary Lea, Cabinet Member for Culture, Parks and Leisure at Sheffield City Council, said: “We are thrilled to be working with Table Tennis England to bring this national initiative to the city.

“Ping! provides yet more opportunities for people in Sheffield to enjoy healthy activities for free. Through partnerships like this we are making sport more accessible to everyone, investing in the wellbeing of our residents and trying to address health inequalities across our communities.

“Just ten minutes of physical activity can improve our mood, and we know this has been a huge positive factor for many during the pandemic. Under the current national lockdown Ping! equipment is not available but once restrictions are lifted I look forward to seeing people from all over the city making the most of these fantastic free facilities.”

Colin Eley, Partnerships Manager at Table Tennis England, said: “The flexible nature of our sport means we can look forward to creating a wide range of different ways to play, whether competitively or socially, for people from all walks of life. Sharing the same passion, we’re excited to be working closely with Move More Sheffield to take ‘Ping Pong to the People’ of Sheffield!”

This year will be the 12th year of Ping! and Table Tennis England is working behind the scenes with partners in a number of other locations in order that the initiative is ready to go when coronavirus restrictions are lifted.