Return to play on 25th July
We are delighted to announce that squash and racketball can return to play from the 25th of July, albeit with certain restrictions in place. England Squash have now released full guidance for squash clubs, venues and coaches.
If you are a club, venue or coach please download the full guidance document ( links provided below) to ensure you are up to date with all the guidance available. Please be aware that there may be further amendments and updates to the guidance so it is worthwhile checking at regular intervals.
Playing in a safe environment
It is fantastic news that we are allowed to get back on court. But we need to ensure that this is done in a safe way. In order that stringent health and safety policies are met, the game may not be quite as we recognise it and new habits will need to be formed, in the short term.
If you are a venue that is due to reopen, please make sure you have completed a COVID-19 risk assessment and that you have an effective and practical plan. The guidance document provides information on both. Every venue is different so should be treated as such. To facilitate safe play, each club/venue has a responsibility to carry out a risk assessment, based on their individual circumstances .
If your venue shares or rents its courts from a separate provider (e.g. if you are based at a leisure centre), then try to work with the owner or operator of the courts to establish a safe return to play. They may have different protocols to those that England Squash have outlined. In this case, you must follow the provider’s guidelines.
Ways to play
There is a clear set of recommendations for ways to play which provide options for getting players safely back on court whilst maintaining social distancing. Having reviewed these recommendations for new and different ways of playing, it is clear that we can still enjoy our time on court.
The full guidance includes:
• Top five tips for clubs and venues
• Creating a club/venue COVID-19 Secure Plan
• Guidance for a COVID-19 risk assessment and template risk assessment
• Poster kit
• Ways to play
• Delivering COVID-19 Secure Squash (for coaches)
• Where to find additional support and resources