Standards of behaviour

Stebbing Tennis Club is responsible for setting standards and values to apply throughout the club at every level. Tennis should be enjoyed by everyone who wants to play the game. This policy is fully supported by the Club Committee.

Tennis etiquette is different from the rules of the game. It covers a broad range of actions and behaviours which are traditionally considered acceptable on and around the tennis court. Here are some actions and behaviours that Stebbing Tennis Club recommends to members:

• All members attending Club Sessions should be inclusive and welcoming.
• When playing please wear recognised sports clothing (not jeans, beachwear or football shirts etc.) and most importantly non-marking “Tennis Shoes “. This is for two reasons, first, other shoes mark and damage the courts and second, non tennis shoes do not grip the courts as well and can cause accidents and avoidable injury if you were to fall or slip.
• Show respect and courtesy to your opponent(s), your partner, and others on or near the courts. Keep your voice down and confined to your court as much as possible so as not to disrupt players on adjacent courts or neighbours of the club.
• Please do not walk behind players whilst a game or a rally is in progress, this is to avoid distracting other members and most importantly to avoid any potential accidents on court.
• No food or drink is allowed on court except water and sports drinks.
• Mobile phones must be switched off on court.
• Rude and offensive language is not permitted.
• If the club is busy and players are waiting, then the rule is to play one short set only (best of 7 games) and then vacate the court.
• Please use the paths to access the courts and do not cut across the grass verges – this saves mud from being taken onto court.
• All litter must be removed from the courts and grounds at the end of play and deposited in the appropriate receptacle or taken home with you.
• During Club Play sessions stronger players are expected to adjust their style of play accordingly when playing with or against weaker players.
• All players are expected to observe the accepted standards of tennis etiquette at all times.
• All league matches are governed by the rules and regulations put in place by the league, ie they take precedence over any Stebbing Tennis Club rules or etiquette guidance.

Safeguarding

At our Club we strive to ensure that all children, young people and adults at risk ae safeguarded from abuse and have an enjoyable tennis experience.

Everyone who is involved in tennis has  shared responsibility to support this by promotiing the welfare of all children, young people and adults at risk

Coaches at the Club are all accredited and are DBS-checked.

The Club Committee receives safeguarding training.

The Club has a safeguarding policy and statement. STC Safeguarding Policy

For any safeguarding concerns, please contact the Welfare Officer, Stephanie Taylor on 07787 127117 or email steph.tenniswelfare@gmail.com. 

Children/adults at risk

A child is considered to be a person under the age of 18.

Children under the age of 14 must be supervised by their parent, carer or guardian. This is due to concerns that they may not be mature enough to deal with an emergency or difficult situations.

It is understood that in certain circumstances, a parent, carer or guardian may delegate responsibility for supervision of their child to another adult member of the Club, It is not acceptable, however, to leave a child on Club premises with other adults without making specific arrangements with an individual.

It is a parent’s decision as to what age they allow their child to attend Stebbing Tennis Club unsupervised between the ages of 14 and 18.

The above applies both at events and activities at the Club and at away matches, with the exception of coaching sessions at which a named LTA-approved coach will be in attendance.

Anti-bullying

Stebbing Tennis Club will not accept any form of bullying within the club, be it in person or via social media.  Any complaints of bullying will be dealt with swiftly by the Committee.  If evidence of bullying exists the person/child responsible may be asked to leave the club.

Booking the courts

Members may reserve courts by making a booking via the Court Bookings page. 

Members may also take guests to the court, a fee of £3 per guest is payable.

Floodlights

The floodlights are operated by inserting tokens into the boxes located just inside the courts. One token costs £10 and lasts one hour. Tokens are kept at the clubhouse and can be bought at any time when a member of the committee or a coach is onsite or during Thursday club night from a committee member. Please note that the floodlights may be used Monday to Friday until 10pm but not at weekends.

Clubhouse

The clubhouse is open on Club Night, for club matches and for all club events. There is an outside toilet with a combination lock for members to use when the clubhouse is locked. The code will be sent to you when you pay your subscription. Otherwise, please contact any of the committee members.

All litter in the clubhouse must be deposited in the bins provided.

The clubhouse and toilet areas should be left clean and tidy at all times. A broom, mop and cleaning supplies are located in the toilet.

Car park

The last person to leave the club is responsible for securing car park gate. It should always be closed and locked if you are the last to leave the club.

Dogs

Well-behaved dogs are welcome at most times at the club.

Dogs may not be brought to the club on junior camps days, during junior group coaching sessions, on junior prize giving day and to other ad hoc events at the club (members will be notified of these at the relevant time). 

The committee reserves the right to request that a member’s dog is kept on lead at all times, or not brought to the club.

Dog owners are responsible for clearing away their dogs’ mess immediately from the lawned area.

Tennis balls

Please take any dud balls be taken out of circulation and place them in the “old ball box”. We recycle all old balls so please don’t throw them in the bin.

Please collect any balls that are hit out of the courts and don’t leave them to litter our hedges. We appreciate some balls land in the middle of prickly hedges and can be difficult to retrieve, especially in the dark. However, a ball grabber is available in the clubhouse to help retrieve balls from awkward places.

All balls should be collected at the end of play and returned to the appropriate place in the clubhouse.

The committee member(s) who arrive(s) at the start of club sessions are responsible for ensuring good quality balls are available for play throughout the session. There is a regular stock of nearly new balls from league matches which will continue to be used for club sessions. The club will purchase a supply of new balls which will be kept in the container as reserves – these can be used when the stocks or quality of nearly new balls are deemed inadequate.

If any member is unhappy with the quality of balls available during a club session, please speak to any member of the committee present and ask for better balls. All committee members have the authority to open new tins of balls and requests will not be refused. If no committee member is present and better balls are required, please take from the stocks under the sink and inform a committee member afterwards.

Coaching

Coaching sessions are ONLY permitted with one of the club’s authorised coaches. At present the coaches approved by Stebbing Tennis Club are Sheetal Pandya and Mark Clark.