How to Choose Tennis Coaching for Your Child - A Parent's Guide
How to Choose Tennis Coaching for Your Child - A Parent's Guide
Choosing tennis lessons for your child is harder than it should be.
Tennis coaching is an unregulated profession. That single fact catches most parents off guard - and it's the most important thing to understand before you book anything. Anyone can call themselves a tennis coach. There's no legal requirement to hold a qualification, carry insurance, or have any safeguarding training at all.
That doesn't mean good coaching is hard to find. It just means you need to know what to look for. This guide walks you through the things that genuinely matter - the must-haves, the green flags and the red flags - so you can make a confident choice for your child.
Most of what follows is simply what good, professional coaching looks like. As it happens, it's also a fair description of how we run things at PH Tennis - but the checklist stands on its own whoever you choose.
Start With the Non-Negotiables
Some things aren't preferences - they're essential. Before anything else, check these.
Qualified coaches
Because the profession is unregulated, you have to check this yourself. Ask directly whether the coaches are qualified - LTA qualifications are the UK standard. It's genuinely surprising how many people offering tennis coaching aren't formally qualified at all. A good provider will be happy to confirm their coaches' qualifications without hesitation.
Insurance and safeguarding
Qualified coaches working with children should hold appropriate insurance, a DBS check, first aid certification and safeguarding training. These protect your child and are a basic marker of a properly run operation. Again, a professional provider will have all of this in place and won't mind being asked.
At PH Tennis, every coach is LTA qualified and holds the appropriate DBS, first aid and safeguarding certifications. We consider it the absolute baseline, not a selling point.
Signs of a Professional, Well-Run Operation
Once the essentials are covered, the next thing to assess is whether the provider is actually organised and professional. How a coaching business presents itself off court tends to directly reflect the effort and organisation you'll see on court. A few simple checks tell you a lot.
Look for a landline or office number - not just a mobile
This is a small detail that reveals a great deal. If the only contact is a mobile number, it usually means you're dealing with a single individual who is doing all the coaching themselves. That means customer service is likely to be slow and patchy - because the person you need to speak to is on court all day. An office or landline number suggests a proper operation with someone managing the admin, the bookings and the communication.
Check the website is current
A website still advertising last Easter's camp or courses that have already happened is a red flag. It suggests disorganisation. A site showing upcoming courses, future camps and a forward-looking schedule tells you the opposite - that they plan ahead, they're organised, and they take the operation seriously.
Coaches in uniform, taking the job seriously
Coaches who turn up in proper uniform and present themselves professionally are usually the same coaches who put real effort into their sessions. The off-court persona matches the on-court effort. It's a small thing that signals a bigger attitude.
What to Look For On Court
This is where it really matters. If you can, watch a session before you commit - or ask detailed questions about how sessions run.
Sensible group sizes - and qualified coaches actually coaching
Look for a maximum of around 10-12 players per qualified coach. But there's a catch to watch for: some providers have one qualified coach overseeing three or four unqualified assistants, splitting the children into groups and calling the assistants "coaches." The actual coaching content should be delivered by the qualified coach, not handed off to untrained helpers.
No more than six players per court
Group size only tells half the story - court space is the other half. A group of sixteen might be fine if they're spread across enough courts, but cramped onto one court it's a problem. Look for no more than six players per court, whether that's a mini court or a full court. Ideally it's around four per court, because that's the point at which every child can be playing almost the whole time.
Proper mini tennis equipment
For younger children, the equipment should be genuinely adapted - mini tennis rackets, mini (lower compression) balls and proper mini nets. A coach who simply winds the big net down instead of using proper mini nets is showing you their level of care and effort. Adapted equipment isn't a nice-to-have at these ages; it's how children actually learn and succeed.
Plenty of playing time
Look for lessons of at least an hour, ideally an hour and a half. Children improve through repetition - they need enough time on the ball to actually develop. Short sessions, especially in larger groups, simply don't give them enough touches to progress.
The right atmosphere - playing, not queuing
Watch what the children are actually doing. They should be playing, rallying and learning in a supportive, open environment. What you don't want to see is children standing in long queues, being "basket fed" balls one at a time, or being told exactly what to do and how to do it. Good coaching has children active, engaged and discovering - not waiting their turn.
The Things That Signal a Serious Programme
Beyond a single good session, the best providers offer structure around the lessons - the things that turn casual classes into genuine development.
A clear progression pathway
There should be somewhere for your child to progress to. Look for a structure where children move up through clearly defined groups or levels as they improve, so there's always a next step and a sense of direction.
Tight age and standard ranges within groups
This is a big one. The best groups have a tight age range and a tight standard range, so every child is appropriately challenged and supported. A group with a huge spread of ages or abilities is a warning sign - some children will be bored, others left behind. We treat wide-ranging groups as a firm no.
A tournament and team structure
Look for tournaments and team play running alongside the lessons. This gives the coaching a purpose beyond the weekly class - somewhere for children to test themselves, represent something, and apply what they're learning in real competition. Lessons are far more meaningful when they lead somewhere.
A way to track progress
Some method of monitoring and communicating progress matters. Whether it's a formal progress tracker or a clear, transparent system for when and why children move up between groups, you should be able to see how your child is developing rather than guessing.
At PH Tennis, every player has an online progress tracker that you can log into at any time to see what your child is working on and how they're progressing - updated regularly by their coach.
A Simple Checklist
When you're weighing up a provider, run through these:
• Are the coaches LTA qualified, insured and DBS checked?
• Is there an office or landline number, not just a mobile?
• Is the website current, showing upcoming courses and camps?
• Are coaches in uniform and presenting professionally?
• Is the actual coaching delivered by qualified coaches, not unqualified assistants?
• Are there no more than six players per court (ideally around four)?
• Is proper mini tennis equipment used for younger children?
• Are lessons at least an hour, ideally 90 minutes?
• Are children playing and rallying, not queuing or being basket fed?
• Are age and standard ranges within each group tight?
• Is there a tournament and team structure to progress into?
• Is there a clear way to track your child's progress?
If a provider ticks most of these, your child is in good hands.
See How We Measure Up
Everything in this guide is how we believe junior tennis should be run - and how we run it across our North London venues. If you'd like to see it in action, the best thing to do is come and watch a session or book a taster.
We're happy to answer any of the questions above directly. Find a session at your nearest venue on our timetable, or get in touch and we'll help you find the right starting point for your child.
