Club news
Club tournament: It's tournament time again! The draws are now online here >> and on the clubhouse noticeboard. Plenty of time to complete a round before going off on an August holiday!
Club sessions: It's been great to see so many people coming to the weekend sessions recently, from 2:30 to 5:30pm Saturday and Sunday. Club sessions are open to everyone of 'club standard' (if you're not sure whether you're of that standard, then talk to Joe) and the principle is that we all mix in. So this is not an opportunity to arrange your own sets.
Wednesday evening club sessions are from 7:00 to 9:30pm.
Thursday morning club sessions are from 10:30 to 12:30.
Junior club sessions are every Sunday from 5:30 to 7:00pm. 12-16 year olds welcome. Any questions, just contact Joe on 07956 265158.
Intermediate doubles coaching: Many experienced players have said they would appreciate some doubles coaching. We are running a session for intermediate players on Tuesday mornings 10-11am. This is drills and practice of doubles strategy, open to members and non-members. A court is then available for people to continue to play and put what you've learned into practice. Cost: £12.50. Please let Sylvia know if you are interested in this. You wouldn't need to commit to every week.
Beginners' coaching session: Joe runs another beginners' group 7-8pm on Wednesday evenings. Cost £12 + £2 for lights. If you're interested please contact Joe at joetenis@hotmail.com or 07956 265158.
On court behaviour: Please do your best to keep shouting to a minimum. Emotions are part of tennis for sure, but swearing and shouting - even if it is only at your racket - can be off-putting to your opponent and in extreme cases disturb other people using the Estate grounds. In particular, please be aware of your noise levels if you're playing early morning. And we all play our best tennis when we feel supported and comfortable, so encourage your partner. Criticising is counter-productive and not in the spirit of the club. In the end it boils down to one simple principle - be nice!
Guest fees: you are welcome to bring guests to play at the club (except for weekend club sessions) but please:
- let us know in advance who you are bringing and when (email guest@muswellhilltennis.com)
- once they have played, pay £5 per adult guest, £3 per junior into the club account
This is important as we need information about who is playing for the purposes of our insurance.
Members may bring the same guest 10 times each tennis year. A member may bring up to 3 guests weekdays till 4pm.
Tennis balls: If you are buying tennis balls from the club the cost is £6 per tin.
Contactless payment for the floodlights: We have moved to a contactless payment system for the lights. All debit and credit cards and ApplePay are accepted (but not Amex). The card reader is behind the door on entering the clubhouse. As agreed with our neighbours, floodlights should not be on after 9:30pm.
The climate crisis: We're doing our bit. All the lighting at the club, both on and off court, is now LED.
Booking courts: The booking system lets you book for the current day and the next six days. It is possible to have one booking each day for up to 90 minutes maximum per member (or group of members).
- Please remember to cancel a booking if the court is no longer needed.
- We ask all members when booking a court to avoid if at all possible leaving half hour gaps before or after your booking.
- We ask that members do not just turn up hoping that a court will be free - please book a court by going to the website and clicking on court bookings.
Car parking : We ask that, where possible, you walk or cycle to the club. If you need to drive, we have 7 spaces in our car park and we ask that the first car to arrive parks at one end or other of the car park, to encourage others to park so that we make use of the 7 spaces. In addition, we need to remind long standing members and to advise new members of the following:
- We have no right to use car parking spaces at The Paddock. It is merely a friendly arrangement with a neighbour
- We may only use The Paddock spaces when our spaces are full
- When using The Paddock spaces we must always leave 3 spaces empty so that we do not deprive any resident or visitor of a space
- We are not permitted to park in the curve opposite the entrance to The Paddock parking
Car park stickers: Once you've renewed your membership, if you will be using the club car park, please pick up a 2024/25 car sticker from Mike, Ian, Joe or Sylvia.
Clubhouse security: If court 4 is the only court being used and there is no-one in the clubhouse, in the interests of security please lock the clubhouse.
Closing up: A gentle reminder that if you're the last person/group leaving the club at any time of day please make sure that in winter the clubhouse heaters are turned right down to the frost setting (the red dot), doors are properly closed and locked and that the gate is closed behind you. With the weather so changeable it may well be that later bookings get cancelled, so don't assume others will be there later.
Emergency contact details: It's essential that we have contact details for a parent or guardian of junior members.
But it is also important for us to have contact details for ALL members, particularly if you are the only person in your family who is a club member. Hopefully it will never be needed, but it would be terrible if there were a serious incident and we didn't know who to contact. So please check that we have up to date details in your profile on clubspark.
Supervision of Juniors: When children attend formal coaching sessions or holiday camps, they are supervised by the coaches concerned. However, when junior members and their guests use the club's facilities at any other time that is permitted by the club, parents and guardians must understand that there are no staff on the premises to safeguard, supervise or assist children, and at times there may not be any adults present at all. Parents must therefore accept complete responsibility for their juniors and guests when using the facilities of the club and the neighbouring North Bank estate, and either arrange for their play to be supervised or knowingly allow them to play unsupervised.
Safeguarding & Diversity: The LTA have asked us to make all members aware of their responsibilities when it comes to safeguarding children and vulnerable adults. Guidance and details of our Welfare Officers who will deal with any issue is on the noticeboard in the clubhouse. You can also find advice on what to do if you have a concern in the 'Club policies' section here>>
Volunteers please: It significantly extends the quality and life of our lovely courts if we drag them every couple of weeks. Ian is looking for a pool of people willing to drag the courts occasionally. Obviously the more people volunteer, the less often any one person has to do it! Please help! Contact Ian at facilities@muswellhilltennis.com.
Feedback: As we reflect on the past year and what we want to change, the Committee would welcome your feedback! Things that have gone well, things we could improve - we'd love to know, so just drop us a note.