Coach Licensing
IS YOUR TENNIS COACH LICENSED?
By signing up to and displaying the Tennis Ireland Safeguarding Statement, stakeholders have demonstrated their commitment to safeguarding all their members and through working under the guidance of the National Governing Bodies safeguarding policies and procedures, volunteers, employees and contractors should seek to create a safe, enjoyable, positive, equitable, welcoming and encouraging atmosphere for all involved.
Part of Tennis Ireland’s recruitment policy states that all Coaches should be Licensed.
All individuals or organisations that employ or contract coaches (e.g. clubs, schools, individual players) should employ only licensed coaches. This development is supported by Tennis Coach Ireland (TCI). To review the criteria for the 2024 Coach Licensing Scheme and apply for your License please see below.
2025 Coach License Applications
The application form for 2025 Coach Licenses will be available on this page from Tuesday 17th December.
WHAT IS THE CRITERIA FOR 2024?
In order for a coach to be eligible for licensing in 2024, the coach must satisfy the following criteria:
1.CPD Points
Amass a minimum of 100 points under the regulations of the TCI Continuous Professional Development Programme for 2023.
2.Safeguarding
Safeguarding certificates are valid for 3 years with the Sport Ireland/Sport Northern Ireland online refresher extending this by a further 3 years. If you have a refresher certificate, you must also hold the original Safeguarding Certificate.
For Example, if your cert is dated 2018 your refresher cert needs to be dated 2021 to extend it to 2024, after which you will need to complete the full Safeguarding 1 course again (before the date on your original cert expires).
All Safeguarding courses should be completed through Sport Ireland (run by the Local Sports Partnerships) or Sport Northern Ireland. From 2022 onwards no other Safeguarding training will be accepted.
To update your certificate, you can complete the Safeguarding 1 Online Refresher with Sport Ireland here or Sport Northern Ireland here.
3.Garda Vetting/Access NI
Be able to provide evidence that you have been vetted within the previous 3 years; Garda Vetting or Access NI as appropriate through Tennis Ireland/Ulster Tennis. Vetting completed before 2021 is no longer valid.
4.Registration with Tennis Ireland
Be registered with Tennis Ireland by paying the €20.00 Coach License fee at time of application. Payment can be made via card on the application form below.
N.B. it is important that when stakeholders request evidence of a coach’s license, that they also check the Coach’s Garda Vetting disclosure and Safeguarding Cert to ensure they do not expire during the year in question.
If either tasks expire, it is the responsibility of the Stakeholder taking on the coach to work with children and young people and the Coach to ensure both Garda Vetting and Safeguarding are kept up to date.
HOW DO I APPLY FOR MY LICENSE?
Apply for your 2024 License by clicking the link below.
Please note, applications made via e-mail or phone will result in a delay in being processed.
FOR HOW LONG DOES A LICENSE REMAIN VALID?
The license scheme runs on an annual basis, and so the license is valid from January 1st to December 31st of the year in question.
Last updated: 18th November 2024
CONTINUOUS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME FOR COACHES
Tennis Coach Ireland (TCI) works with Tennis Ireland on the coach Continuous Development Programme (CPD). All TCI members are informed of the programme and how it operates, and of ongoing CPD opportunities.
If a coach is not a member of TCI, but wishes to be involved in CPD (usually for Tennis Ireland Licensing purposes see note below), TCI will keep a record on their behalf of the points gained, if the coach informs TCI of the fact that they have accrued points, and provides the necessary evidence. Coaches who are not members of TCI are welcome to attend TCI CPD events – charges may apply.
FOR MEMBERS ONLY: TCI offers to examine and potentially ratify for CPD points events that are self-nominated by a coach (this is a time-consuming process and so is offered as an enhanced service to members only).
NOTE RE TENNIS IRELAND LICENSE:
Coaches need to factor in the importance of CPD points within the Tennis Ireland Licensing Scheme, where in order to be registered as a `Licensed Coach` in 2024, a coach will need to achieve 100 points under the CPD 2023 scheme. (i.e. the scheme works on a ‘previous year’ basis).
The Tennis Coach Ireland Administrator is: Nicola Herbert