Club Focus: Summer 2011

Update on Club Teacher Training and TD Courses

by John Pain

The EBU’s successful free Club Teacher Courses continue to find a good take up from clubs looking to ensure a steady flow of new players coming into their sessions in future years. Each club is offered one free teacher training session in any 24-month period. Second and subsequent teachers may attend the course on payment of £102 per person, subject to available space. Occasionally, however, there is some misunderstanding about the terms and conditions attached to the free places. Please note…

“Any club that takes advantage of our free teacher training has to agree to take all reasonable steps to provide training within one year of the course, use the EBU Bridge for All programme and to produce at least 4 students as Pay to Play members within 2 years of the course. In addition the club will agree to remain affiliated for a full three years after the training course has taken place, otherwise the EBU retains the right to reclaim all or part of the costs involved in providing the course.”

We are currently looking for suitable venues for the 2012 programme. Since the scheme began in September 2010 we have run courses in Richmond Surrey (Sept); Farnham Surrey (Nov); Stowmarket Suffolk (Jan); Oxford (Feb); Brierfield Lancs (April); Taunton (April); Nottingham (April/May); Patcham (May); Torquay (June), Edgware (June) and Wetherby (July). Future courses for 2011 will be in Chichester (October but already full) and Horsham (November). I’m also hoping to have dates for West Midlands Bridge Club, Solihull and St George’s Bridge Centre, Darlington before too long.

If you would like to host a course in 2012, please contact john@ebu.co.uk for further details. Courses are usually held on a Saturday and Sunday. Normal start time is 3.30pm on Saturday finishing around 5pm on Sunday.

Club Tournament Director Courses

Clubs booking a full paying member on a TD course can send a second club member to the same course FREE OF CHARGE. To take advantage of the scheme both the paying member and the free member must be booked at the same time, and the booking must be made by the registered secretary of the club (who will vouch for both participants as club members). Affiliated clubs taking advantage of this scheme must agree to remain affiliated for at least 3 years from the date of the courses (or else the EBU retains the right to seek payment for any free courses taken).

We are currently looking to produce the programme for 2012. In 2011 we will have held courses in 18 venues up and down the country – Churchdown (Glos), Aylesbury, Welwyn Garden City, Leicester, Darlington, Newark, Isle of Man, Harrogate, Cambridge, Farnham, Exeter, Horsham, Brighton, Wantage, Huddersfield, Sheffield, Tunbridge Wells and Warrington.

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