Durham & Cleveland LTA is committed to offering a safe and inclusive environment for players, relatives, parents and friends wherever tennis is enjoyed within our County. We fully endorse and apply the LTA Safeguarding strategy. Our County Safeguarding Lead is Gill Reeves and she is available to offer advice and guidance when required.  She can be contacted at welfare@dclta.org.

Our Safeguarding Policy provides a detailed statement of the standards required of everyone who is involved in tennis in our area – parents, players, coaches and volunteers. We also have a Travel Policy which defines the roles and responsibilities of coaches and assistants, parents and players when our junior players are required to travel to matches. We encourage all clubs to adapt this policy to their own circumstances to ensure correct procedures are in place, not only for junior club matches but, very importantly, for situations where junior players are playing in adult leagues.

As part of the LTA’s Minimum Registration Standards we fully endorse the requirement that all Clubs appoint a Welfare Officer whose contact details are fully visible both at the club and also on any website. Role of the Welfare Officer offers a useful guide. All Welfare Officers should complete Safeguarding training at least every three years as well as being regularly DBS checked.

Prior to completing any course it is recommended that Welfare Officers check that the course is approved by the LTA. Below is an overview of accepted training. One of the following must be undertaken:

For details of currently advertised training, please see Safeguarding Training.

In addition, from 1 October 2019 it became a requirement that all LTA Registered clubs who use the services of Level 3 (and above) coaches are LTA Accredited. This means they undergo regular safeguarding and first-aid training as well as DBS checks.  As part of their Accreditation they personally commit to ongoing coach development. This ongoing Accreditation is monitored by the LTA to ensure there is full compliance. It is anticipated that this requirement will extend to include Level 2 coaches with effect from 2021-22 LTA Registration.

There is also a dedicated Safe to Play website which aims to highlight the role everyone involved in tennis (parents, players, coaches and volunteers) can play in protecting our children and young people; raising awareness of safeguarding to ensure everyone taking part in sport and physical activity has a positive experience.

Durham & Cleveland LTA adheres to the LTA’s Safeguarding policies and procedures which are available via the LTA Safeguarding webpage. From this webpage it is easy to navigate to topics like safeguarding training, criminal record checks, practical tips, reporting a concern, other available resources and the minimum club standards. A helpful Flow Chart is available to guide any consideration of a safeguarding issue, both for a Concern Within the Tennis Environment and a Concern Outside the Tennis Environment

HOWEVER…..

should you have an urgent concern or need to report anything, however small, you can:

If someone is in immediate danger, call the police (999).

Please remember at all times, that doing nothing is NOT an option: report all concerns and disclosures as soon as possible.