Disability coaching

The Tennis Foundation is currently working with the LTA coach education team to raise the profile of and enhance disability awareness and development training to provide all qualifying coaches with a broader understanding of disability tennis.

*

Coaching people with disabilities is no different from the everyday, mainstream, able-bodied coaching sessions. The new courses will demonstrate this fact and show all coaches how to adapt their sessions to suit their audience, whilst focusing on the ability of the athlete and not the disability.

We are developing a one day basic introductory disability awareness course that all qualifying coaches would have to undertake, leading to dedicated one day devlopment courses for coaches working with wheelchair athletes and people with learning disabilities. Due to the development of a new coach education structure, we do not anticipate the disability awareness and development being available until Autumn 2008 at the earliest.

*

If you are interested in this area of coaching please get in touch with us.

Download 'Delivering a tennis programme to disabled people - a case study' (PDF)

Case studies

*

"It's the most rewarding coaching I do, think outside the box, every one of them learns slightly differently. It makes you a better coach all round."

Chris Lumb - GB Learning Disability coach
*

With a deaf player I will use SSE or sign language, I always communicate verbally/oral but will use some sign as well if it will assist a deaf players communication needs. With hearing players I don't have to think so much about where I am standing, whether I am facing the players, what background noise there is, whether or not the sun is shining behind me or not etc. 90% of my coaching is with hearing players therefore when I am coaching a deaf pupil I probably have to think a little bit more...

Cathy Graham
GB National Deaf Tennis Squad and a LTA-licensed CCA coach