We plan to start our mix in program from Thursday 1st April and we will be using the same safety-first procedures that we introduced in December 2020. The way they will work is as follows:-

• Each session will have its own WhatsApp Group (ie Sunday mornings)
• Email info@redbourntennis.org.uk or message Tim Moss 07836549855 on WhatsApp to request to be added to a group or to  multiple groups. Please be clear which sessions you wish to join
• Spaces will be allocated onto the mix-in in multiples of four. If there are odd numbers or more than 16 people requesting to play a waiting list will operate
• Players will be allocated in priority order on a first come first served basis
• Booking will open seven days less two hours before the session. (ie booking for the Sunday 4th April session at 10.00am will open on the Sunday Morning Mix-in WhatsApp Group at 12.00 midday on Sunday March 28th) Requests sent too early will be ignored!
• Players will be allocated a partner who they will keep for the whole session to minimise contacts. Partners will be posted to the WhatsApp Group
• Opponents and courts will be pre-allocated and posted to the WhatsApp Group.
• Organisers will try and mix up partners and opponents. Some weeks may have stronger and weaker players partnered against similar opponents and some weeks will try and have similar standard fours partnered together. This process will not be perfect and not everyone can play with Berni every week!
• Due to the long period with no play permitted we will start with 1 hour 30 minute mix -in sessions with two 45 minute games for each pair, rather than the previous 3 games of 40 minutes each
• If players wish to play on with different partners or opponents after the session, they must book a subsequent court for track and trace purposes
• Players should bring their own marked balls and should serve with their own balls
• Opened sets of balls may look ok but are likely to be soft after two months. New balls can be obtained at the great price of just £4 a tin from Katy Thomson who can be contacted at Katy.thompson39@yahoo.com
• For these pre-arranged mix-ins it is important that players give as much notice as possible if they can’t attend as the activities are very challenging to re-arrange at short notice
• If the weather looks bad a decision on play will be made at least one hour prior to the start of the session and posted on the relevant WhatsApp Group
• Being part of the WhatsApp Group doesn’t commit you to playing in any of the sessions but you will of course receive all messages posted on that group!
• All sessions are open to all adult members. We are an inclusive club and keen to encourage all levels of players to participate and meet other members. The Saturday morning session in particular encourages less confident players to join and to meet other players of a similar standard.
• We will aim to always have at least one steady player to join in with the Saturday morning session to help things get going
• If less people sign up for the sessions, courts reserved for mix in will be released 48 hours beforehand so  that they can booked for general play
• If Covid rules change as infections drop we will review the need for pre-arranged mix-ins and decide whether or not we return to ad hoc turn up and play sessions

Session times are as follows:-

• Thursday evening            17.30
• Friday morning                10.00
• Saturday morning           10.00
• Sunday morning              10.00

If you have any questions or want to join a group email info@redbourntennis.org.uk – you will need to provide your mobile phone number if you wish to join the WhatsApp Groups. For bookings and mix ins after the 1st April you will of course need to renew your membership. Just log onto to the Redbourn Clubspark website, click on Membership and follow the instructions.

Thank you and here’s to the return of tennis and the mix-in!

Tim Moss

On behalf of the RTC Committee