Appoint a Young Person’s Welfare Ambassador at your venue
Support the development of young leaders at your venue by introducing the LTA Young Person’s Welfare Ambassador (YPWA) programme - a practical, engaging way to strengthen safeguarding and empower young voices in your tennis community.
What is a YPWA?
YPWAs, are young people aged 11–24 who play an important role in promoting safeguarding within their venues. The 12-month training programme supports YPWAs to:
- Raise awareness of safeguarding and welfare issues amongst members and players
- Gather feedback and become a voice for young people
- Provide an important link between venue committees and children and young people
Why appoint a YPWA?
The YPWA scheme is the first of its kind in British sport, designed to give young people a voice in safeguarding and welfare conversations at tennis venues.
By supporting a YPWA at your venue, you’ll help:
- Encourage youth leadership and give young people a meaningful voice in your venue
- Strengthen your safeguarding approach with visible peer support
- Benefit from young people's creativity, confidence, and lived experience
- Help them boost their CVs, UCAS personal statements and future opportunities
- Enable them to volunteer alongside a friend — increasing engagement and retention
Your YPWA won’t handle safeguarding cases – that remains your responsibility – but they will help promote positive messages and encourage open dialogue. Together, you can make safeguarding more visible and relevant to young people.
How to appoint a YPWA
You may already have someone who springs to mind who would love to take part in this opportunity, or you may want to consider an application process within your venue to identify a suitable young person. When identifying someone please ensure they:
- Are aged between 11–24 years
- Understand the role and expectations
- Have consent from their parent or carer if aged 17 or under If aged 16 or over, they will require a volunteer DBS check gained through the LTA
When you have identified your YPWA, you will need to sign up using the form below.
There is a cost of £20 to the venue. If this cost may be an issue to your venue, please do not hesitate to contact us via ypwa@lta.org.uk and we can explore further with you.