ELLISWICK LTC NEWSLETTER – AUGUST 2026
Welcome to our August Newsletter. We hope that you all have had a great summer and are enjoying your tennis in the sunshine.
SAFEGUARDING
We are very pleased to share that the LTA has confirmed the appointment of two of our members, Kieran Lucas (Junior Member) and Alexander Gardiner, as Young Person’s Welfare Ambassadors for Elliswick LTC.
In this role, Kieran and Alexander will help strengthen safeguarding at our club by:
- Raising awareness of safeguarding and welfare matters among members and players
- Gathering feedback and acting as a voice for young people
- Providing an important link between the club committees and our junior members
We’re sure you will join the committee in congratulating Kieran and Alexander and supporting them in their new role.
Our Welfare Officer, Andree Haxton, works hard to ensure Elliswick remains a safe and welcoming place for everyone — whether playing tennis or socialising. If you have any safeguarding concerns, please contact Andree in confidence on 07900 006526, or report directly to the LTA at https://safeguardingconcern.lta.org.uk. You may also contact the local authority children’s/adult services team. If anyone is at immediate risk of harm, please call 999.
COACHING
The Adult & Junior Autumn Term courses are filling up but there is still time and space to book your place before the new term starts on Monday 7th September.
This is the link to the site:
https://clubspark.lta.org.uk/ElliswickLawnTennisClub/Coaching
CLUB NIGHTS
Our Summer club nights (Men’s nights on Tuesdays, Ladies nights on Wednesdays and Mixed nights on Thursdays, all starting at 6pm) are still continuing until the end of September. The Friday Junior Nights will reconvene after the Summer holidays on Friday 12th September and will also run until the end of September.
CLUBHOUSE AND GROUNDS
The clubhouse exterior doors and windows would benefit from a fresh coat of paint. They require some preparation and sanding to remove any flaking paint and prepare the surface for painting. If you know of a painter or handyman who might be interested in quoting for the job, please contact David Cowan on 07909 990275 (text or WhatsApp).
WINNERS BOARDS
The Winners Notice Boards in the clubhouse have now been updated with the names of the 2026 tournament winners.
TEAM TENNIS
LADIES TEAMS
We have a few remaining Herts League summer matches to complete in September. A huge congratulations to our Ladies Hot Rackets 2nd team, who have been promoted to Division 1 after battling through some incredibly tough fixtures — including one played in nearly 30‑degree heat, and a final match against two outstanding young sisters aged 14 and 16. Thank you to the whole team for playing with such enthusiasm, resilience and brilliance.
As we turn our attention to Winter Vets, we have entered one Over‑40s team, two Over‑50s teams, and two Over‑60s teams. Captains will be in touch once fixtures are released. If you would like to be considered for any of the teams, please contact our ladies captain, Rachel Hoddinott at [email protected].
MEN’S TEAMS
The Summer League season is now drawing to a close. A big thank you to all our team captains for their hard work in organising fixtures, and to every player who has taken part in team tennis over the summer.
The Vets Leagues will begin over the coming months. If you would like to be considered for the 40+, 50+, 60+ or 70+ squads, please contact our Men’s Captain, Mark Behan, at [email protected] and he will put you in touch with the relevant team captain. We have also entered one team into the Herts Winter National League, which is captained by Alexander Gardiner.
MIXED TEAMS
We are now moving into the Autumn/Winter competitions and have entered a number of teams into both the Autumn Datchworth and Winter Mixed leagues. The Autumn Datchworth runs from early September to mid-November, usually on Saturday afternoons, and the Winter Mixed follows from November through to April. Both formats are played as two‑pair teams. Anyone who played in last year’s mixed teams or in this year’s Summer Datchworth will automatically be included in the squads for the upcoming competitions. If you didn’t play in either and would like to be involved, please let Rachel and Mark know and they’ll add you to the appropriate squad.
SOCIALS
August Socials
August was another fantastic month at the tennis club with three brilliant events bringing members together.
We enjoyed a fabulous Magic & Music Show from our very own Tim Sutton, a delicious supper night prepared by the wonderful Jon & Marion Carr. We then rounded off the month with a highly successful Bank Holiday Tournament, with plenty of great tennis and friendly competition.
All three events were extremely well attended, and it was wonderful to see so many members getting involved and enjoying everything the club has to offer. A huge thank you to everyone who helped organise, host and support these events — they really are what make our club so special!
Please see details below for our future social events:
Events in September 2026
| Thursday 3rd | Wilson Demo – Coach Steve Shea has arranged for Mario Santos-Costa from Wilson to be at the club on Thursday 3rd September for you to try out the latest range of Wilson rackets and view their footwear options. |
| Thursday 10th | Supper Night – an Italian soire by Chris Rice who will be serving up some lasagna, salad, garlic bread and tiramisu, please click on the following link to sign up: https://forms.gle/ZqWZnqonWmKGXCio7 |
| Friday 25th | McMillan Coffee Morning, please click on the following link to sign up: https://cm26.macmillan.org.uk/fundraising/cm26032019 |
Events in October 2026
| Saturday 17th | Quiz Night and Fish & Chips, please click on the following link to sign up: https://forms.gle/1ZGwEvRfQfE1zxCG7 |
Events in November 2026
| Saturday 14th | Lulu and the Hullabaloos 8pm |
Events in December 2026
| Tuesday 1st | Members Charity Christmas Lunch |
| Saturday 5th | AGM – Please attend this important meeting and support the club. |
SAVE THE DATE — 19 December 2026
Join us for a festive Music & Magic Evening from 6:00–8:00pm in the clubhouse, organised by Sally Radcliffe. The evening will feature performances by Tim Sutton and the Upbeat Choir, along with mulled wine and mince pies to keep everyone cosy.
This special event is in support of Future Academy, a charity providing education and football opportunities for refugee children in Beirut: https://www.future-academy.org.uk/
If you would like to attend, please contact Sally at [email protected].
If you have any queries regarding any of the social events, please contact our Social Secretary, Jane Bisseker, at [email protected]
JUNIORS
We’re delighted to have entered five Junior teams into the Herts National Winter League: U12 Boys, U14 Boys, U14 Girls, U16 Girls, and U16 Boys.
Wishing all our junior players the very best of luck, and a huge thank you to our Team Captains for their hard work and commitment in organising the matches.
If you wish your juniors to be included in any of the teams, please contact our Junior Secretary, Dan Pearce at [email protected].
JUNIOR NIGHTS
The junior night will reconvene on Friday 4th September to Friday 25th September and it will return in the Spring of 2026. However, if your juniors still wish to play on Friday nights over the autumn/winter, courts 1 – 3 are booked for them on Fridays from 3:30 until 8pm, so they can just turn up and play.
Kind Regards
Elliswick LTC Committee
PS, Don’t forget to keep up to date with events at our website http://www.elliswickltc.co.uk and follow our Facebook page as well.