Spinneroos program keeps growing as registrations open for term 2

The 2021 Table Tennis Australia Spinneroos program for Term 1 is in full swing with providers around the country in the process of delivering the 8-week program.

This year Spinneroos doubled the number of its locations compared to Term 4, 2020. Term 1 saw 18 active programs, up from nine last year, whilst the number of registered partipants increased by more than 30%, with a record 121 kids involved in the activities.

President of Table Tennis ACT and local Spinneroos Program Manager, Heather Tomlinson, said that last year's program helped to increase their participation numbers as well as the number of coaches at the club.

"The club had low participation numbers for members under-12 and female members, so Spinneroos provided an opportunity to encourage younger children to try table tennis. Girls Spinneroos was also a great opportunity to specifically target female participation," Tomlinson said. 

Tomlinson also addressed the concerns some clubs still have around coaches availability, volunteer participation and low registration numbers, which could be detrimental to the club's reputation. Despite recognising that those worries were her own and should be addressed, she said clubs should not miss such a great opportunity to introduce table tennis to you people.

"Don't worry, just have a go!" Tomlinson said.

She added that the support from Table Tennis Australia goes beyond just providing equipment and IT and the whole program is built around creating a team environment where learning to play the game is just as important as learning from others' experience. 

"It actually felt like you were part of a team, trying to make a difference for the sport of table tennis," she said.

One of the strengths of the program is that it allows an easy approach for parents and delivers high value, including a simple registration process, club membership and bundling of kit bags. Table Tennis ACT was able to attract 40 new participants into the program - with a seven-fold increase in the number of girls aged under 13 and 16 new coaches now teaching at the club. This year Table Tennis ACT has again attracted 40 participants to their Spinneroos program in Term 1.

Registrations to become a Spinneroos program provider for term 2 are currently open - please check https://www.spinneroos.com.au/clubs-eoi/ for details on how to express your interest, or contact Egon Loh, National Manager for Participation and Development, at egon@tabletennis.org.au if you have any questions about becoming a provider. Expressions of interest will close 26 Feb 2021.