- About
- Coach expectations
- Parent expectations
- Empower your child
- The drive home
- For support
Starting tennis is an exciting milestone for your child, and we are thrilled to be part of their journey. Hot Shots Tennis introduces children to the game in a fun, inclusive and positive way – building skills, confidence, resilience and friendships along the way.
At Tennis Australia, we believe that sport should be safe, welcoming and inclusive for everyone. This page lets you know what to expect and how you can help your child enjoy their tennis experience.
What is safeguarding in Hot Shots?
Safeguarding is about protecting children and young people from physical and emotional harm. In Hot Shots, it means creating a safe, inclusive and welcoming environment where kids can thrive and develop a love for the game.
Safeguarding includes:
- Physical safety: Safe environments and proper supervision.
- Emotional safety: Positive coaching, respect, and protection from bullying or discrimination.
- Clear reporting pathways: Making it easy and safe for concerns to be raised and addressed.
Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility – parents, coaches, volunteers, clubs, officials and players all play a part.
Why safeguarding matters
Positive, safe early sporting experiences help children build a lifelong love of the game. When children feel safe, supported and included, they are more likely to build confidence, form friendships and develop resilience. That’s what tennis is really about.
What you should expect from coaches and/or volunteers
Coaches and volunteers play a crucial role in your child’s tennis experience. Not just developing their skills, but helping shape their confidence, wellbeing and love for the sport.
All coaches and volunteers are expected to follow the Tennis Australia Member Protection Policy and Safeguarding Children Code of Conduct.
What great Hot Shots coaching looks like
Coaches and volunteers should create a safe, supportive environment for your child and maintain professional boundaries at all times by:
- Communicating respectfully with children, parents, club representatives and officials.
- Giving clear, age-appropriate feedback that builds confidence.
- Respecting children's emotional needs and understanding that every child is different.
- Modelling good sportsmanship for players to follow.
- Building a culture centred around having fun rather than winning – focusing on effort, improvement and developing a love for the game.
- Never trying to contact players privately outside of lessons.
- Avoiding physical contact with players.
Overall, a the person running your session, whether a coach or volunteer should be someone who makes Hot Shots a fun and playful experience, where children feel safe, welcomed and excited to play tennis.
What Tennis expects from you
As a Hot Shots parent, you are one of the most important influences on your child's tennis experience. Your support, encouragement and role model behaviour play a huge part in Tennis Australia's commitment to safeguarding.
Supporting your child on and off the court
- Create a safe and fun experience on the drive to and from sessions.
- Celebrate effort, sportsmanship and improvement – focus on your child's growth, not whether they win or lose.
- Embrace play, fun and enjoyment – these things help build confidence in your child.
- Talk openly about the importance of fair play and playing with team mates.
- Applaud good play by everyone, even opponents.
- Model good behaviour by speaking respectfully to coaches, officials, as well as other parents and children.
- Respect the sidelines by letting the coach do the coaching – your job is to encourage and support.
Overall, it's important to remember that Hot Shots Tennis is not about future rankings or grand slams, it’s about learning, fun and building a love for the game.
Empowering your child
Helping your child feel confident, respected and in control of their tennis journey is one of the greatest gifts you can give them.
Empowering young people means supporting their independence, their voice and their ability to make decisions, both on and off the court. An empowered child becomes more confident, self-sufficient, resilient and passionate about the sport and about life.
Teach them their rights
- You have the right to feel safe at tennis, always.
- You should be treated with respect by coaches, officials, other children and parents.
- No one should ever hurt you physically or emotionally. This includes hitting, bullying, shouting or making you feel scared.
- No one should ask you to keep secrets that make you feel uncomfortable.
- It’s okay to say "No" to anything that feels wrong – even to adults.
- If something feels wrong, you should tell someone you trust straight away.
- Your body and your feelings belong to you. No one has the right to cross your boundaries.
- Being included matters – there should be no discrimination based on gender, race, ability or who you are.
Support their voice
- Let your child express how they feel about their Hot Shots session.
- Remind them that their feelings and opinions matter.
- Encourage open conversations by asking questions like “How did you feel about today’s session?” instead of “Why do you keep missing your backhand?”.
- Encourage them to speak up if something doesn't feel right, and reassure them they will be listened to and supported.
Focus on growth, not results
- Praise effort, persistence and resilience.
- Highlight lessons learned after every session by asking questions like “What did you do well?” or “What would you like to try differently next time?”.
- Model respect and positivity.
- Treat all coaches, officials and opponents with kindness and respect, your child will follow your lead.
The drive to and from tennis
The time before and after a lesson (or if they are playing a match) can be one of the most important parts of your child’s tennis experience. While coaches and coaches play a role in creating a positive environment on the court, parents shape how that experience feels before and after.
Why it matters
Research shows that a child’s long-term enjoyment in sport is strongly linked to how their parents respond before and after sport. The drive can either build confidence or create pressure. The key is to focus on effort, learning, and enjoyment.
What to say
Start with something simple using these examples:
Before sessions
- “I’m looking forward to watching you today!”
- “Remember to focus on having fun on court today!”
After sessions
- “I loved watching you play today!”
- “I loved your effort on-court today!”
- “I was very proud of how you showed great sporting spirit and fair play on court today.”
If you want to ask questions about your child's session, keep them positive, open and focused on feelings and effort, such as:
- “What did you enjoy most about today?”
- “What do you feel you improved on?”
- “What was something your coach said that helped you?”
- “What’s something you’d like to try differently next time?”
If your child doesn’t feel like talking, that’s okay too. Sometimes the best support is quiet reassurance and a snack on the way home.
We're here to help
You and your child have the right to expect a professional, supportive and respectful Hot Shots experience. Club committee members, your club’s Member Protection Information Officer (MPIO) and any other members you feel safe disclosing information with are there to listen and act if you ever need it.
You can also raise a concern by:
- Reporting directly to Tennis Australia's Integrity and Compliance Unit (TAICU) via email at integrity@tennis.com.au or online form.
- Calling our whistle-blower service STOPLINE at 1800 11 SAFE (1800 117 233).
In case of emergency, call the Police at 000.
FAQs
Yes. All Tennis Australia Hot Shots coaches and volunteers hold valid Working with Children and Police Checks and complete safeguarding training. This helps ensure every session takes place in a safe, inclusive and supportive environment.
Be the safe space for your children outside of sessions, not another coach. Rather than correcting technique, focus on growth and attitude by celebrating small wins and praising moments of resilience. Remind your child that mistakes are part of learning. As long as they're having fun, they're doing tennis right.
It’s better to keep safety conversations normal and ongoing. Try using simple, age-appropriate language to remind them that asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s actually a brave and important thing to do. Whenever your child speaks up about something that made them uncomfortable, make sure to praise them and take it seriously.
You know your child best. Simply keeping an eye on ongoing changes in your child’s mood or behaviour, like seeming unusually withdrawn, worried or very tired, can help you spot when they might need a little extra support. And remember that there are people who can help.
If your child shares a concern with you, remember to listen calmly without judging or reacting harshly. Reassure them it's not their fault and they did the right thing by speaking up. As soon as you can, record details (what happened, when, who was involved) and report the concern to your club's MPIO or Tennis Australia's Integrity team.
