Hello everyone,

We hope you are all well, enjoying some tennis and keeping safe.

In light of the proposed changes by the government which will be introduced on 4 July 2020 we would like to update you with the steps being taken by the club with this in mind, update some coaching opportunities the club is setting up and also give some information regarding club internal competitions.

  • Club guidance and booking updates:

We will be changing the booking system as of 4 July 2020. As such, we are going to eliminate the 30 minute cooling period and allow “back to back” booking. Booking slots will still be restricted to 1 hour and we ask that club members continue to be respectful of social distancing measures. This includes keeping the recommended safe distance at all times and allowing court users to exit and enter courts without coming into contact with each other.

We are looking to enable parent members’ access to the booking system. There is a significant amount of work needed to address this on Clubspark, including setting access hours, but we hope that in the near future this will be available.

Unfortunately we are still unable to open the club to guests and the club house will remain closed unless there is a medical emergency (The AED/Defibrillator and First aid kit are located within the club house).

  • Coaching sessions:

The club is reintroducing some coaching sessions and introducing an LTA approved coaching programme for beginners.

  • Tennis Xpress will start 11 July 2020 and is open to members and non-members on Saturdays. It is a learn the basics coaching programme with a six-week coaching course – Tennis Xpress is all about meeting other players and having fun! The course introduces the basic skills of tennis while introducing players to the scoring system and the rules. Taking place over six weeks, it’s aimed at adults who are either new to the game or a little rusty.

If you are interested you will need to book this course through Rally

  • Ladies coaching will resume on Fridays with 2 sessions from 10-11 and 11-12. The coaching programme will be run by the club so please use the club’s Clubspark booking system to book your session. A link to this will be sent to interested members.
  • Wednesday morning coaching (10–11am) will also resume and be open to ladies and men of all levels. This will be set as an adult group coaching group. If interested please book your spot through the club’s Clubspark account.
  • The coaching programme is also offering single and shared private lessons (this includes siblings, partners/couples from the same household as well as junior and adults members from different households). Furthermore, adult members can access “U3 and Me” which involves 3 members from the same or different households with 1 coach. Everyone must be a member to receive coaching. Please contact Head Coach Phil Layfield on 07815 927767 or email headcoach@shltc.info so he can help arrange these lessons with the coaching team.
  • Club Competitions:
  • 2020 Club Championship – We are pleased to announce that despite the current situation with Covid-19 the club will be running the annual Men’s & Women’s Singles and Doubles and Mixed Doubles Club Championships. This year the club championships will have some changes to the format to meet the current government and LTA guidance for this to take place.

An email was sent on Sunday to all members explaining the format, rules and how to enter. Entries into all events are open online until 4 July -10am, with draws being made and published on 5 July with the first round starting from 6 July. It is important to read the email as it contains details on how to join the 2020 Club Championship.

If you have not received this email please contact the club secretary at secretary@shltc.info

  • Box Leagues – The box leagues have been a huge success with club members of all levels competing and getting try the new FAST4 format. The box leagues will continue year round and this first stage will end 16 August.

For members who are interested in joining please let the club secretary know you are interested in playing. A total of 6 members are needed to form a new group and until this is met we are unable to start a new group.

Kind regards from the Club Directors.