Haverhill Lawn Tennis Club

Etiquette and General Rules 2024-2025

We aim to be a very friendly club and welcome players of all ages and abilities. Our aim is to promote tennis throughout the year for all age groups, both adults and children, through social play (CLUB NIGHTS), internal competition, league matches and to offer professional coaching to any members who want to improve their standard of play.

Subscriptions are due on April 1st. Full payment received by April 30th, entitles you to the Early Payment Membership Rate. This applies to both continuing and new members. Payment after this date will be at the Full Membership Rate per annum for continuing members. New members who join later will be charged on a pro-rata basis of this Full Rate.

Membership Categories:

• Family membership is 2 adults and their children under the age of 18.
• Senior membership applies to persons over the age of 66.
• Mini membership applies to children up to the age of 10
• Junior membership applies to children age 11 through 18
• Student membership applies to students in full-time education or a full-time apprenticeship.
• Parent/Child membership only allows the parent to play with the child, not with other adult members/visitors or at club sessions, although the child is allowed to play with other mini/junior members

The Membership Secretary will issue all members with a Membership Number. A list of current members will be produced each month and displayed on the notice board inside the clubhouse.

Court gate combination codes are changed frequently in order to keep the premises as secure as possible. Therefore, members should not pass on the current code to friends or associates. 

Clean tennis shoes/trainers with flat un-ridged soles should be worn on court. Members, guests and visitors are reminded that they have responsibility for their own safety and a duty of care to others whilst using the Club’s facilities. Please take care as courts can be slippery when wet. Take particular care in cold weather when ice may form on the courts, court surrounds and access paths.

Only drinks in plastic containers are allowed on court. Rubbish should be disposed of in the bins provided. Smoking is not permitted within the club boundaries.

Home fixture league matches usually take place on Wednesday evenings. Team players must be members of Haverhill Lawn Tennis Club and will not be able to participate in any matches until they have applied and paid their Annual Membership Fee. The Clubspark booking system will indicate if courts are being used for matches. Members using any free courts must ensure that they do not disturb the matches in progress.

Adult Club Nights are on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6.30pm onwards when floodlights are free. Tennis balls, supplied by the club for these sessions, are kept in the clubhouse and replaced regularly. There is a club morning every Friday 9.30 – 11.00, open to all adult members of all standards of play. On Sunday mornings, the courts are available from 10.00am for family tennis.  For payments rates outside these sessions please see Payment Guidelines. For further information on Club Night organisation please see Club Nights.

If members wish to play outside of club sessions, they should book a court which can be done up to 7 days in advance. To avoid blocking court access, as a curtesy to other Members, please limit your bookings to 2 hours per day on any court and don’t forget to cancel your booking if you are not going to play. Bookings must be made online. To book online, members will need to be registered with the LTA/Clubspark. There is no charge for members; non-members playing with members need to pay their share of the normal fee charged by the Leisure Centre, £8.80/hour, which equates to £4.40 per person for singles and £2.20 per person for doubles. The member is responsible for collecting payment and passing on to the Treasurer or a Member of the Committee.

The facilities of the Clubhouse are available to all members whilst playing on the courts. Adult Members can obtain keys from the Membership Secretary on payment of a deposit of £10.  It is the responsibility of all users of the Clubhouse to ensure that the building is kept clean and tidy at all times. Please wash your mugs etc. and return to the cupboard.

Payment Guidelines

Floodlights and balls are provided for Club Nights (Tuesdays and Thursdays) and on Sunday mornings. At other times, the following charges apply:

• Members playing outside of club sessions have free use of courts but must provide their own balls and pay for floodlights. Floodlight tokens can be purchased from Phil Unsworth  unsworth.phillip@gmail.com or Robin Miller at Club Nights. (£2.50/hour – cash only)
• Visitors playing with members outside of club sessions need to pay their share of the normal fee charged by the Leisure Centre, £8.80/hour, which equates to £4.40 per person for singles and £2.20 per person for doubles. This applies to coaching groups playing during holiday periods. The member is responsible for collecting payment and passing onto the Treasurer or a Member of the Committee.
• Only Club Members are entitled to play on CLUB NIGHTS. However, members may bring a guest occasionally, but are responsible for signing the 'Guest Book' in the Clubhouse and collecting a Guest Fee of £5.00, which can be given to the Treasurer or a Member of the Committee. A list of club members is available in the Clubhouse in case of doubt.
• Match fees for team matches which includes new balls and lights (Team captain is responsible for collecting payment and passing on to the Treasurer or a Member of the Committee):
  • • Home matches - £3 per player
    • Away match - £2 for fuel  paid to designated driver

CLUB NIGHTS

• Adult Members are invited to join in during Club Nights. Club Nights are friendly social settings for players of all ages and mixed abilities. However, new members, or members who wish to join in Club Nights for the first time need to arrange a session with the Club Coach, Matt Taylor, to assure a minimum standard of play. Juniors, who have reached a certain standard of play and been invited by our Club Coach, are also welcome to play at senior Club Nights.
• Members are encouraged to mix and mingle as much as possible to give all players the opportunity to play in games of various levels of ability. A Club Night Coordinator will help to ensure that people mix in and play with as many members as possible.
• On Club Nights Members are expected to give due consideration to players waiting to play, particularly on cold evenings. Likewise, it is in their interest to enforce the 'Member Only' rule or collect a guest fee (£5.00).
• CLUB NIGHT starts at 6:30 pm and all games should aim to start at the same time to ensure that everyone finishes at a similar time then everyone can mix in once the games finish. When the first game finishes they should wait for the others so that everyone can mix in for the next round.
• Games are organised by drawing coloured tokens from a bag which allocates courts.
• If any member is standing waiting for a game, they will automatically have a place in the next game. Likewise, if 2 or 3 are 'knocking up' they will automatically have a place in the next game.
• At the start of each session members should be 'knocking up' where there is an uneven number of players so that nobody is left standing waiting (i.e. if there are 9 players, 4 can start a set with 3 and 2 'knocking up')
• Everyone should mix in for each new game (fresh draw for everyone so that you play with different people all the time)
• To avoid members sitting out for too long, sets consist of eight games with sudden death deuces (receivers to choose which side). 

SAFEGUARDING

• The club’s safeguarding policy is reviewed annually by the committee. It is displayed on the club notice board and accessible via the club’s website https://clubspark.lta.org.uk/HaverhillTennisClub/Policies/Safeguarding
• Concerns regarding safeguarding should be raised with The Welfare Officer
• The Welfare Officer for 2024/25 is Nikki Green who may be reached via 07879 331 277. Her deputy is

Liz Cameron: 07837 737 585

CODE OF CONDUCT

• Members and their guests are expected to comply with the club’s Code of Conduct at all times

• The club’s Code of Conduct is reviewed annually by the committee. It is displayed on the club notice board and accessible via the club’s website https://clubspark.lta.org.uk/HaverhillTennisClub/Policies/CodeofConduct

Last update 21/08/2024,

Margaret May HTC Secretary