Clubmark was introduced by Sport England in 2002 and is currently being implemented across 34 sports. The LTA administers its own version of Clubmark based on the National guidelines for best practice combined with real life examples of successfully run places to play across the Country.
There are over 900 Clubmark accredited places to play in the UK, with a further 600 working towards the best practice accreditation.
Clubmark provides you with the tools and resources you need to ensure your place to play is delivering a quality tennis development programme and operating in line with best practice. Benefits of this include ongoing programme development, increased membership, increased participation, staff development, raised profile and access to more funding opportunities.
Clubmark is not intended to be difficult to achieve, but you will need to do some work to ensure that the minimum criteria is met. In many cases, facilities are already running a professional set up with a quality programme of activity. In this instance, Clubmark can be used as a resource to collate all policies and procedures as well as improve the communication between the various club officials and coaching team.
There is an online support area which contains the latest templates, resources and case studies to help you understand each element of the file, its relevance and what is required to meet the Clubmark standard.
All places to play awarded with Clubmark:
As a committee you need to review your existing policies, procedures and activities and then identify where additional resources need to be developed, deciding on the best methods for producing these resources.
Start by looking at the Tennis Clubmark criteria page – run through each item of evidence required and tick off what you feel you have in place to get some understanding of the remaining workload. Then divide the work across the various committee members and coach, put in timescales and ensure you meet regularly to monitor progress.
Your local Tennis Development Manager can assist with forming a plan to distribute the workload across the volunteer group to ensure efficient and effective progress.
Once all your evidence has been collated the folder/website area is ready for assessment – this is usually done by one of the local Tennis Development Manager or County Assessor.
To qualify for Tennis Clubmark status, you first need to be registered to the LTA.
More information on places to play registration
To apply, contact your LTA county office. They will provide you with a resource pack and evidence file and can support you through the process.
There is no cost to apply. You will however be required to invest time in collating information to meet Tennis Clubmark criteria and your coaches and club representatives will be required to attend courses in child protection, equity in your coaching and first aid if they have not already attended these courses.
View a case study of how Princes Risborough TC has utilised Clubmark to maximise the potential of the club.