These are the new procedures taking place at Writtle Tennis Club from Friday 5th June

Buildings & Facilities

• Writtle Sports and Social Club remains closed until further notice (social club, 4G pitch, play area)
• The car park opened on Wednesday 3rd June
• Club toilets will be open and remain unlocked. There will be a sign for members outside the toilets allowing members to indicate whether they are in use or not. Only 1 person in the toilet block at a time.  They will be cleaned any time the courts have been in use 
• The hut (kitchen) is locked and not accessible 
• The ball room and changing room is locked and not accessible. The ball machine cannot be used. Please read below regarding balls and lights

Coaching

• Writtle Tennis Academy is only providing 1:1 or 1:2 lessons providing members are from the same family or parents/adults agree.
• Court no.1 will now be used for coaching (top, nearest to hut)

Social Tennis

• All social tennis remains cancelled

Matches 

• All local and Essex leagues remain cancelled

What to do

• Online court booking system must be used: 
• 3 courts are now bookable. No.2 court (top, furthest away from the hut) and no.3 court (bottom, nearest to the hut) and no.4 court (bottom, furthest from the hut)
• 30-minute gaps have been allocated in between bookings 
• All bookings, either play or coaching, will be staggered following LTA guidance
• How to book courts: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_dR1Rst70Z2m_uxAZ8JA4QRwmPeG8Any/view?usp=sharing 
• Singles and doubles from different households allowed as long as you remain 2 metres apart as far as possible
• In order to be aligned with LTA guidelines ‘activity can take place for groups of no more than six people’ and to be fair within the club, only 1 booking per member per day
• There is a one-way system. On arrival please walk along the path as usual. You will see 2m spaces marked at the gate. On exit please leave via the gate towards the back of hut onto the playing field
• Players do not now need to use their own clearly marked tennis balls – however, if you choose to use shared balls then extra care must be taken to ensure you do not touch your face during play, and you should clean your hands before play and immediately after finishing
• Please return your used balls in the box provided. Please play with new balls in box provided
• You must bring your own drink or bottle
• You can use the outside tap for drinking water and washing your hands
• The height of the nets will already be set
• There will be handwash and sanitiser available. It is recommended you bring your personal hand sanitiser
• On exit, please use the antibacterial spray/ wipes to clean any surfaces. Also wipe down the gate handle and padlock 

Other notes

• The key for the lights will be on the key ring attached to the ball. It will stay in the light switch locker. Please leave it in there
• Where attendance of a parent/guardian (non-participant) is required, or a carer for a disabled player, it is permitted and is not counted as part of the maximum group size of six, but should be off court and limited to one per player where possible, with social distancing strictly observed while watching the sessions
• Please continue to refrain from touching handrails and sitting in any of the court areas.

This is what we are doing to ensure we are following the guidelines, so members are safe, and the club can be accessible. We cannot stress enough that all members should be following the governments guidelines. If rules are not complied, it will be considered a serious breach of conduct. 

We request that all our members play their part in minimising the risks, which for certain categories, might mean, regrettably, not playing tennis at all.

It is particularly important for people in these categories to assess their individual circumstances:

• Are 70 or over
• If you are high risk or have a long-term condition
• Are pregnant
• Have a weakened immune system

Please look after yourselves and others around you. The club’s operations will be reviewed on an on-going basis, following the guidelines, and will be in contact with you all with any further updates or developments

Very Important

To prevent the spread of the virus, we ask all members to observe the following practices:

• Do not play tennis if you are showing symptoms, including a persistent cough or a fever that means you might be carrying the virus
• If someone develops symptoms of COVID-19, they should be directed to follow the Government’s ‘test and trace’ guidelines, which can be read on the Gov.uk website
• Anyone who has been advised to self-isolate as a result of developing symptoms, should clearly not, therefore, take part in tennis activities for the duration of the self-isolation period
• No person to person physical contact wherever possible. Try to maintain social distancing of at least 2 metres from other people
• Avoid racket sharing and clean equipment when finished
• No shaking of hands before or after matches, just touch rackets
• Avoid changing ends between games
• Wear gloves if possible, to provide extra protection
• Try to avoid touching your face
• Ensure best practice in terms of personal hygiene which should include frequent hand washing especially before and after playing given the handling of tennis balls. Use your personal hand-wash or the water and soap provided at the outside tap. Paper towel will also be available. Please bring your own towels for drying hands if you prefer