Coaching
Our first-class junior coaching programme, delivered by award-winning coaches, caters for all ages and abilities from complete beginners to national competitors. We have over 350 mini and junior players playing tennis with us each week, and our performance programme currently supports 20+ players on the LTA County & Regional Pathways and National Age Group Programme.
The Billericay Lawn Tennis Club coaching programme has continued to go from strength to strength in 2022. The number of players accessing the junior and mini programme has been sustained from 2021, bolstered by the fact we now have a big increase in players committing to two or more coaching sessions per week. In 2022 we focused much of our attention on the development of the 10 & Under section. We were reselected as an LTA 10U Performance Programme, making us one of 62 venues in Great Britain deemed to be delivering the highest quality coaching and player development in this age group.
We were also chosen as one of only 5 venues in Great Britain to be awarded Tennis First 10 & Under status. This is an elite scheme focused on developing world class players and coaching programmes in the 10 & Under space. By scoring over 30% higher than the four other venues in Scotland, Wales, the South of England and the North of England in a rigorous initial assessment, we are likely to be the flagship venue when the Tennis First ‘Get Ready!’ programme publicly launches next year.
The coaching programme has continued strongly in the 11-18 space, with more young intermediate members ready to play team matches, and there has been an increase in adult members attending Cardio Tennis on Fridays and Beginner Coaching on Saturday mornings. We are looking to expand the adult programme in 2023 and would welcome members’ feedback on what they would like to see more of. We also began offering disability tennis sessions in 2022, developing partnerships with Hamelin Trust and The Bungalow to provide tennis for adults with learning disabilities. The club anticipates an expansion of the disability programme in 2023
The coaching set-up at Billericay is continuing to work well. We were pleased to welcome two new coaches to the team in 2022, Ray Bradfield who is working in the junior club and disability programmes and Katie Gardner who is working primarily in the junior performance programme. Overall, this has been an exceptionally good year for the junior section and coaching programme.