Who we are: inspiring excellence every day
Yorkshire Tennis has been selected by the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) as the Regional Player Development Centre (RPDC) for the North East. At our core is the coaching experience and expertise of CV8 Tennis who provide high-performance coaching services for junior and full-time tennis players. We are based at the Headingley campus of Leeds Beckett University which provides outstanding facilities for athletes of the future. The RPDC is governed by Yorkshire Tennis Ltd which assures quality and sustainability with a healthy dose of Yorkshire ‘grit’.
What we do: achieving excellence every day
Our mission is to provide an inspiring and world-class coaching and support environment for pro players of the future. We aim to increase the number of nationally relevant players aged 10+, with a capability to transition to the International Junior Stage of the LTA Player Pathway by age 14.
Our philosophy, is built upon the core values of respect, hard work and togetherness to create a coaching climate which encourages excellence every day. Our programme creates a challenging yet supportive environment for players, parents, and staff members. We use our knowledge and understanding of talent development and combine this with our coaching expertise to create a developmentally appropriate programme which targets and integrates each of the performance factors.
How we do it: ingraining excellence everyday
Game-based focus for long-term player development
Our approach is driven by a strong game-based focus to player development. We fundamentally believe in linking all facets of performance and creating a culture where technical, tactical and physical skills are embedded alongside psychological development. Our GRIT acronym helps to ensure the coaching curriculum is consistently linked to game-based situations and develops the key qualities of resilience, independent thinking and teamwork both on and off the court.
Challenged-based learning enhances self-discovery and reflection
The coaching team create challenge-based learning opportunities for every player. Using GRIT we ‘teach’, ‘train’, and ‘test ‘ all areas of the game, educating and empowering players to learn about themselves in both training and competition contexts. Our programme offers opportunity for self-discovery and self-reflection and we pride ourselves on creating meaningful experiences for players to grow on both a physical and psychological level.
Player-centred-person-first
Our approach is very much person-centred which focuses on building relationships and getting to know the person within the player. We invest significant time and effort to understand the player, their personality and wider support team. This is fundamental to our approach and the effectiveness of our support services. We hugely value the opportunities that tennis affords to develop critical life skills and we ensure these are highlighted, celebrated and reflected upon to help our players thrive both on and off the court.