Safe Play

Safe Play Standards

Every child and adult in tennis deserves to train and compete in an environment that is safe, respectful, and inclusive. These are the standards we hold everyone on AllONDECK HUB to, players, parents, coaches, and clubs alike.

AllONDECK connects young African players with coaches, scouts, and opportunities. With that comes a duty of care. Our Safe Play standards are built around the principles of the ITF Safeguarding Children and Adults policies, adapted for how tennis is actually played across Africa, in clubs, academies, schools, and community courts.

Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility. If something doesn't feel right, speak up, see how to report a concern below.

For our full commitment, including coach vetting, guardian consent and how children's data is protected, read our Child Safeguarding policy.

Our commitments

What we promise

🛡️ Verified coaches

Coaches' credentials and experience are reviewed before they earn a Verified badge, so a verified coach is a real, vetted person.

🤝 Safer recruitment

We ask coaches to agree to our Code of Conduct, and we're building toward formal references and background checks as the platform grows.

💬 Safe communication

Keep contact appropriate and, wherever possible, visible to a parent. Private 1:1 messaging with a minor should always include a parent or guardian.

📣 Clear reporting

Anyone can raise a concern, confidentially, and we will take it seriously and act on it.

Code of conduct

Expected of every coach and adult

Everyone working with players on AllONDECK is expected to:

Put the player's welfare, safety, and development first, ahead of results.
Provide a safe training and competition environment, with age-appropriate sessions and training loads.
Treat all players with respect, no shouting down, humiliation, or persistent harsh criticism.
Avoid being alone and unobserved with a child; keep a parent, guardian, or another adult present or nearby.
Get parental consent for minors, and respect each player's boundaries and dignity.
Keep online and messaging contact appropriate, transparent, and ideally including a parent.
Be a positive role model, no smoking, drinking, or offensive language around players.

Not acceptable

Behaviour that is never allowed

The following are treated as serious breaches. They mirror the abuse and poor-practice categories used in tennis safeguarding:

Physical abusehitting, rough handling, or using exercise/physical pain as punishment.
Emotional abusepersistent put-downs, threats, bullying, or pressure that harms a player's wellbeing.
Sexual abuse or harassmentany sexual contact, comment, or grooming behaviour toward a player.
Neglectfailing to ensure safety, hydration, rest, or appropriate supervision.
Inappropriate online contactsecretive or unsuitable private messaging, images, or social media contact with a minor.
Discrimination or bullyingon the basis of gender, background, disability, or any other characteristic.

On and off court

Health, welfare & online safety

Player welfare

Train in the cooler parts of the day where possible; build in shade, rest, and hydration breaks, heat safety matters on African courts.
Match training load to the player's age and stage. Rest days and recovery are part of the plan, not a weakness.
Watch for signs of burnout or distress; a player's mental health comes first.

Online & platform safety

Profiles of minors should be set up and managed with a parent or guardian.
Coaches should communicate through appropriate channels and avoid private, unsupervised contact with minors.
Never share a child's personal contact details or location publicly.

Speak up

How to report a concern

If a child is in immediate danger, contact your local emergency services or police first. Safety comes before anything else.

For any other safeguarding concern, about a coach, another adult, or anything you've seen on or off the platform, contact us directly. You can report in confidence, and you don't need to be certain; if something worries you, tell us.

Report to AllONDECK

Email our safeguarding contact with as much detail as you can (who, what, when, where):

✉️ Email a safeguarding concern

For concerns relating to an official ITF event, you can also use the ITF's safeguarding reporting channels, and you may contact your National Tennis Federation. We will cooperate with the appropriate authorities where needed.

These standards set out how AllONDECK HUB approaches Safe Play and safeguarding; they are not legal advice. Coaches, clubs, and parents should also follow the laws of their country and the rules of their national federation. We review these standards as the platform grows.