Welcome
back to playing tennis. We are lucky that it is one of the sports
permitted by the government and we can play tennis, though somewhat restricted,
in accordance with their advice for England and LTA guidance.
Following completion of a risk assessment and measures taken arising from that
the club will be open for play at midday on Thursday 21st May 2020 when all the
nets on the hard courts will be up and set at the correct height as the net
winders have been removed.
The entrance gate now requires only the use of the keypad and you should use
disposable gloves and anti-bacterial wipes when entering and exiting. Please
keep the main gate closed at all times.
Before you visit the club, please ensure you have your own supply of disposable
gloves, disinfectant wipes and hand sanitiser.
On entering the club grounds, please read the club rules relating to Covid-19
which are on the new noticeboard, just inside the entrance gate.
The Clubhouse facility remains closed as we do not have the resources to ensure
the required cleaning and disinfecting regime for objects and surfaces that are
high use indoors like the cloakroom facilities, doors handles, lights and token
boxes. Fortunately, nights are getting lighter for longer as we go forward.
Booking is open and for this period of restricted play has some different rules
including staggered start times and a ten minutes crossover period. The
grass courts will open in a couple of weeks. Booking will be available
for court 2 & 4 only as the run off gaps between these three courts are
below requirements.
On Monday, Wednesday and Friday booking is only available from 09.00 to allow
the groundsman one hour of maintenance time on the hard courts.
The maximum booking time allowed is one and a half hours and remains two per
week per member. Please try to avoid leaving a half hour gap when
booking.
During this period due to the loss of their club and group coaching sessions
parents of juniors will be able to book courts up to 4 days in
advance. Parents/guardians of junior/mini members will be emailed
instructions separately for this.
Court 5 remains the coaching court which is allowed only on a 1:1 basis and in
line with LTA coaching guidance.
Juniors aged 14 years and under may only play under the supervision of an
accompanying adult who can ensure they keep to social distancing and other
required measures.
No visitors are permitted during this period.
The first aid box is now situated outside in a marked plastic box under the
clubhouse fire exit steps.
Here is the LTA guidance for players which runs alongside our ALTC requirements
of all members in order to keep everyone safe and avoid the spread of Covid 19.
IMPORTANT:
Do not come to ALTC to play tennis if Government advice means you should stay
at home because you or someone you live with has or has had symptoms of
COVID-19, or you are in the most vulnerable category and have been advised to
shield from the coronavirus.
Member
Requirements for Safe Use of the Courts
Social Distancing
Keep
2 metres apart from anyone else at all times and in particular give way to
those exiting at our entrance/exit and on the narrow pathways as the signs
indicate.
Members can only play after booking a court via the Court Booking System.
Members are not allowed to turn up at the club “on spec.”
Do not arrive early for your booked court time or congregate.
Go on court 5 minutes after your booked time and leave five minutes before the
end of your allotted time in order to prevent encounters with other members
coming and going to the courts.
Leave immediately without congregating anywhere on our facility.
Hygiene
Measures
Provide
your own hand sanitiser, anti-bacterial wipes and disposable gloves and take
your used waste material back home for disposal.
Practice public health advice for hygiene and in particular use hand
sanitiser/anti-bacterial wipes before and after play.
Use a gloved hand and clean the keypad with anti-bacterial wipes before and
after use when operating the main gate
Clean your point of contact with court gate with disinfectant wipe before and
after use and use gloved hand when opening / closing.
Equipment
Use
your own equipment and it is recommended that you sanitise racquets and water
bottles before and after use.
Take only the minimum equipment required on court and make sure you take
everything you brought with you away when leaving. This includes any waste
material.
No items should not be placed on the net posts, keep all your possessions in
your bag separate from others.
Each member should only handle their own tennis balls which should be clearly
marked (e.g. with your initials) or a different branding to their opponent
unless the players are from the same household.
Avoid picking up or serving with tennis balls that are not yours, use your
racquet/foot to pick up and return them to the other end or other court.
Dispose of any tennis balls at home.
All the bins around the club have been removed for the safety of the
groundsman.
Play
A
maximum of two players per court (singles only) and players may be from
different households.
The only exception to this is when four players are from the same household and
they may play doubles. If anyone is found to have breached this then we
will have to consider how it is dealt with.
Maintain a two-metre distance at all times during play and taking breaks.
No handshakes or other physical contact.
Avoid changing ends or agree to do so using opposite sides of the net.
Avoid going on to an adjacent court during play or to retrieve a ball if
players are present on it.
Here is a link to a video Ben kindly offered to make for us to illustrate the
venue requirements. https://youtu.be/LrJNt-WJb0E
Coaching
Coaching
on a 1:1 basis is available in accordance with Ben Obong’s guidance which is in
line with the LTA. Contact Ben to arrange.
The committee hope that you will enjoy being able to get back on court playing
social tennis in our magical grounds. Though the majority of us do not
play singles, practicing rallying and strokes for an hour with another member
would be a good opportunity to ease ourselves back into play and get some
outdoor exercise.
Please be responsible during this restricted play period and keep to the
guidelines and requirements so that collectively we can sustain keeping the
club open for play.
If
you have any suggestions in the light of experience, please let one of the
committee know and we can consider them.
This is an ever-changing situation which we are keeping under constant review.
We will keep you informed if we find some things are not working and changes
are required in the light of experience, if are able to move things further
forward or in the event we have to shut down again.
Stay alert, control the virus, save lives.
Helena
Culshaw
President
On behalf of ALTC committee
