We are looking forward to reopening for outdoor tennis on Monday 29^th March. The LTA guidelines state that we can resume both singles and doubles play, coaching groups, competitions, organised social sessions and box leagues

More information on social sessions and box leagues will be communicated separately but here we wanted to update you on the booking system and some guidance on how we can work together to ensure fair court allocation for all.

Court Booking System

The court booking system will open sometime during the afternoon on Monday 22^nd March and there are a few changes to let you know about for booking the outdoor tennis courts:

• When it opens on Monday afternoon, members will be able to book courts for the 2-week period from 29^th March up to 11^th April.
• Booking slots will be in blocks of 30 minutes as opposed to an hour. You can book up to 1.5 hours at a time and this can be done in one go – i.e. you do not have to book 3 x 30min slots separately. Added players names will only show on the first 30min slot.
• Members will only be able to book one court (up to 1.5hrs) at a given time – e.g. the same member can’t book or be added to a booking on court 7 at 5pm AND court 8 at 5pm on the same day.
• Members will be able to book and cancel a court part way through a session.
• There is a new ‘Calendar’ feature which will enable members to click on a particular date to book a court to reduce the need to scroll.
• Members will be able to reset their court booking password themselves rather than having to come through the office.
• Members will continue to have a maximum booking allocation of 8 hours at any one time (in any combination of 30, 60 and 90 minute sessions)

The link to the court booking remains the same: BLTSRC Court Booking

We will continue to monitor feedback and make improvements to the system on an ongoing basis.

Court Booking Etiquette

In a bid to ensure fair court availability for all please could members:

• Cancel any bookings that they no longer require - as soon as possible. Before we closed in January there was an increase in members booking courts and not showing up, therefore preventing other members from playing. This is particularly frustrating in the evening when lights are attached to a member’s booking so no-one else can use the court even if it empty. We will be monitoring court allocation and usage closely and if necessary may need to consider a nominal refundable charge for booking the outdoor courts.
• Only book one court session per day
• Please attempt to avoid creating a 30-minute unbooked slot between your booking and those of other members, as such ‘orphan’ slots are likely to go to waste. We will be monitoring this issue carefully, and if it becomes a major problem we may have to make further changes to the system.

May we remind squash members that they are welcome to play tennis for the time being and we hope to be able to update you more on the opening of the squash courts very soon.

Watch this space for follow-on communication about what’s going on at the Club over the coming days and weeks.

We appreciate your support and look forward to seeing you on court!

Kind regards