What will your squash club look like in the future?

Around 75% of the global health crisis is down to poor diets, lack of physical activity and environmental pollution. Regularly playing squash has the potential to prevent some of this and there are three broad areas we can tap into.

1. we can make squash more fun
2. we can make squash more social
3. we can make more ‘health-focused’ squash clubs

More fun

With white walls the typical squash courts can be considered as cold, intimidating spaces. What messages are we sending when we expect people to play in such places? Making our clubrooms more fun can start with a great facility design. Convenient storage, good ventilation, easy water access, effective lighting, strong colours, inspiring images – all of which can make our facilities more inviting. Learn more

Technology is having an influence too. New interactive ‘exergaming’ options hit the market every week. An incredible number of people also have access to some form of device. Great audio-visual technology can also enhance the squash experience. Learn more about Interactive Squash.

More social

Success comes from building connections between members. No-one ever left a squash club because they made too many friends or were having too much fun. Group programmes are a good place to start building a social environment. Other opportunities to build a stronger social atmosphere include:

• Fostering ‘clubs within your club’ to build social networks. Find out more
• Making the most of social media by encouraging your members to interact online and encourage each other. Find out more

More health

The more difficult task is helping members embrace regularly playing squash and following other healthy habits as part of their daily lives. You might widen your squash club’s health focus by:

• Developing your own regular newsletter with educational tips and inspiration on squash, health, fitness, nutrition advice and so on. Learn more
• Offering a healthy environment and encouraging members to look at their carbon footprints.
  
• Linking with other providers in the community – host seminars and offer discounts with local physiotherapists, etc.

So what could the future of your squash club look like and should your club be evolving to meet these new demands?