Parents' Safe to Play resources
The LTA wants tennis in Britain to be at the forefront of safeguarding in sport, and parents and carers play a vital role in achieving this.
This video includes a dramatised true story safeguarding case to see where things can go wrong. Check below for more information, tips and guidance to help you keep children under your care safe in sport.
Parents' safeguarding FAQs
Tennis, padel and your child's wellbeing
Find out more about keeping your child happy and healthy while playing.
Tips and further advice for parents
When thinking about joining a tennis club, ask for details of its safeguarding procedures check for this information online too.
All LTA Registered Venues should have this information available and this should form part of your induction to the venue.
Make sure you know who the welfare officer is and let your child know so that if there are any safeguarding issues you have someone to contact. You can assure yourself that a coach is LTA Accredited with appropriate training and criminal records check by using our 'Find a Coach' tool on the LTA website.
If you can’t readily establish this information please speak to the LTA safeguarding team safeguarding@lta.org.uk.
Be a positive role model, demonstrating appropriate behaviours and responses to events which can happen on and off court. The team receive a number of complaints around parental behaviour each year, which often result in referrals to Social Care and the police. Please help us to make tennis safe and enjoyable for all.
Have realistic expectations of your coach and respect their professional boundaries. Make sure you are clear on the codes of conduct for sessions so that there can be no confusion as to what is appropriate behaviour by coach and behaviour expected of you and your child.
Check that your coach is LTA accredited as this ensures a basic level of safeguarding knowledge and a DBS check when coaching children.
You should not allow a coach to transport your child to and from coaching sessions and should ensure that any electronic communications between coach and player have you as a parent or other appropriate adult copied in.
Be aware of the indicators of abuse. Report anything that worries you.
If you have a safeguarding concern contact the LTA Safeguarding Team. We are here to assist and would much rather people report to us than have a safeguarding concern on their mind.
Remember by reporting a concern you are not making a judgement, rather you are referring to professionals to consider all the information and decide what further action, if any, should be taken.
If you or your child uses social media, be aware of the information that is shared and the risks that can be posed. Ensure that contact between coach and child is solely for the purpose of arranging lessons and that parents are copied into messages.
Keeping Safe
- Parents and venue officials are aware who and how people from your club are able to contact you;
- Coaches should only communicate with children under 18 years if it is done through a WhatsApp/text group or email that includes their parent(s)/carer(s) and relates to only tennis-related matters;
- If a video call/online coaching session is required, parent(s)/carer(s) should be informed and asked to provide their written consent if the child is under 18 years old. Video calls should involve another adult, such as the parent/carer;
- Adults such as coaches should contact your parents/carers directly, or have your parents/carers copied in to any messages;
- Your coach should not ask to be ‘friends’ with you on social media and they have had safeguarding training on how they should correspond with junior players;
- Social media sites have privacy settings, which you should utilise and are there to keep you safe.
Do not
- Post or give out your personal details, such as your mobile number, email address, or address;
- Accept friend requests on social media or other communication platforms from adults at your venue such as your coaches, club officials, referees, and team captains;
- Invite those adults to be friends on your social media and communication platforms;
- Post, text, email, or communicate anything online or offline that may be deemed as offensive, abusive, racist, or threatening by way of comments, language, or behaviours.
Do report
- Your venue will have a Welfare Officer who you can speak to if you are worried about something, especially if it is something you have seen online or something has been posted about you that makes you unhappy or is offensive;
- If you cannot speak with your venue’s Welfare Officer about any communications you received that made you feel uncomfortable or were offensive, tell an adult you trust. This may be a teacher or another official at your club;
- If you have received a communication that is offensive or upsetting, tell the appropriate adult and make sure you copy/save/print the post before you delete, as it may be required as evidence;
- You can report anything that makes you feel uncomfortable to the LTA Safeguarding Team through an online system
- You can contact childline anonymously via 0800 1111 or childline
- You can report online to the police via CEOP
Remember
- Whilst a message or post can be shared privately between you and a friend, for instance a direct message, if the other person shares it online then it is made public;
- What you post online leaves a digital footprint and whilst you may delete a post, it may still be retrieved and others may have sent it on or taken a screenshot;
- Anything you do or say online, whilst you think it may be private, may be shared by others, so do not say anything offensive or that you would not want to be made public;
- Do not suffer in silence and reach out to an appropriate adult if you receive any online communications that make you feel uncomfortable or threatened. There are adults who can help and support you.
More support
The LTA Safeguarding Team is here to support and safeguard children in our sport. There are also other organisations that can provide advice, particularly on specific topics such as cyberbullying, sexting, gaming, video chats. Advice on these topics and more can be found via the following websites:
The NSPCC have an annual national campaign which looks to increase positive parental involvement in youth sport. This is called the Parents in Sport Week, and you and your parents can read more about this via their website:
The LTA holds workshops designed to provide parents with the knowledge and skills needed to support their children competing in tennis and padel.