Qualification Bypasses
The LTA is recognised as an ITF Gold Level Coach Education System and has a small number of bypasses available to other coaches.
A small number of ‘bypasses’ are made each year for former players who meet the ranking thresholds outlined below. These are made on a case by case basis, and usually where significant coaching experience has already been obtained, but no formal qualification is held by the individual. In addition, any bypass tends to be coupled with a rigorous individual development plan, which is supported and invested in by the LTA for these small number of cases.
The below table is the list of currently accepted bypasses:
| Coach Level | Bypass Criteria | What to do next |
| International / Commercial coaches with 3+ days training | Able to join Accreditation – must start at LTA Assistant | More details on this page – evidence must be provided |
| Teachers with a PGCE or QTS qualification | Able to bypass LTA Assistant if teaching certification provided* |
Must complete LTA Instructor Readiness Test if rating lower than 7.1 Contact the Workforce Development Centre to book on the course directly |
| Qualified coaches from other sports (UKCC Level 2) | No bypass available | N/A |
| International / Commercial coaches with 15+ days of face-to-face training | Able to join Accreditation – eligible to access the LTA Tennis Coach Course without the need to complete the LTA Assistant & LTA Instructor qualification** | More details on this page – evidence must be provided |
|
Former pro tennis players Former wheelchair pro tennis players within the last 5 years
|
(ATP/WTA)
|
Each application will be based upon a variety of measurers (qualifications, experience, training profile etc.) Please use the Contact Us form or speak to your local Workforce Development Centre |
|
Former British pro players (ATP/WTA) |
Best ranking of 1000 or higher |
More details on this page |
*the course must have been completed and not in-flight
**these qualifications are not awarded
We do not make available a route to ‘bypass’ qualifications for those who do not meet the ranking threshold in the table above.
The reason for this threshold is that each step of the pathway progressively develops key coaching knowledge and skills. By not undertaking the qualifications from Assistant up, prospective coaches will not have an opportunity to develop their core coaching knowledge and skills in a tennis-specific context across communication, demonstrations, feeding, health and safety, risk assessment, and the basics of technical and tactical development and skill acquisition, among other areas. Furthermore, courses at LTA Instructor and LTA Coach build on the robust foundations introduced at LTA Assistant which means that anyone not undertaking qualifications from the base of the pathway, will be significantly disadvantaged and not extract the full benefit of higher levels of the pathway.
We want those undertaking LTA curriculums to be set up for success, have a positive course experience and most importantly, extract the most they can from each level of the pathway. For this reason, undertaking the qualifications from LTA Assistant is the optimum route for developing expertise and currently what is available to those with strong playing experience, but without a world ranking, that meets our thresholds.