About Us

Tennis, Squash, Racketball, Padel and Fitness.

Ilkley Tennis Club:
A Premier Multi-Sports Community

Ilkley Tennis Club is a friendly club, run by its members for its members. With a long history stretching back to 1880, the Club enjoys a fantastic position next to the River Wharfe with panoramic views across Ilkley’s famous moor. Over the years the Club has grown into a dynamic multi-sports community and is now widely recognised for its high level facilities. Alongside our traditional rackets offering of Tennis, Squash, Racketball and Padel, the Club is also recognised as the premier fitness facility in our area.

Ilkley Tennis Club is managed by a full time General Manager who is supported by a fantastic team of dedicated staff and coaches. The team are always on hand to provide you with the best experience throughout your member journey with us.

Our Operations Team

General
Manager

Chris Harrison

chris@iltsc.co.uk

Chris joined the team in 2022 and brings a wealth of hospitality, venue and events knowledge to the team. Chris managed his own businesses for close to ten years before joining ILTSC. As a huge fan of racket sports Chris fell in love with the club when his business worked at the trophy from 2015. Joining the team assisting on the growth and future of the club is something he is truly passionate about.

Assistant
Manager

Nicola Bayne

nicola@iltsc.co.uk

Nicola was a Club member before joining the team. She is responsible for the memberships and management of the duty managers. As a tennis player, she played in the ladies rota, match-plays and Wharfedale teams and captained the Bradford Parks U15’s and Wharfedale A teams. She works to implement steps to ensure a fabulous member experience at our amazing club.

Head of Sales and Marketing

Zoe Judkowski

zoe@iltsc.co.uk

Having been a tennis member for over 20years, Zoe has always been familiar with the club and has represented the Ladies 1st team as well as playing for Yorkshire between the ages of 10 and 18. Previously a Personal Trainer in the club’s gym, Zoe changed roles to take on the sales and marketing position in October 2022. She has now completed a Digital Marketing course and works closely with the team to help the club continue to grow.

Head of Rackets and Development

Gavin Sutcliffe

gavin@iltsc.co.uk

Gavin was appointed as Head of Rackets and Development at the start of 2024. Gavin brings a wealth of experience from a career in the tennis industry, having previously for the Lawn Tennis Association in roles including Tennis Development Manager for Yorkshire and Regional Tennis Participation Manager in the North Regional Team. Within these roles, Gavin has supported the vision for ILTSC, with a particular focus on the Ilkley Trophy event, the ILTSC outreach programme, funding applications and facility development.

Head of Fitness

Marcus Whitehead

marcus@iltsc.co.uk

Marcus was appointed as Fitness Manager in December 2013 after a period as Senior Fitness Instructor and Maternity Cover Manager. Marcus is a Level four qualified fitness professional with over twenty years in the fitness and leisure industry, with over fifteen years’ experience at management level at various clubs around Leeds. Marcus has strong expertise in coronary rehabilitation and is a muscular skeletal specialist having worked with some of the best in the field at Leeds General Infirmary.

Head Coach

Kyle Brassington

kyle@iltsc.co.uk

Kyle was appointed Head of Tennis in September 2019 and prior to this was head of performance tennis for over 5 years at the club. Kyle grew up in Ilkley and was a member of the club in the early 90s. After his time at Ilkley as a junior Kyle tested his game against some of the best in the world on the professional circuit. He had a career high of 10 in GB and 810 on the ATP tour. Kyle now leads the coaching team at Ilkley and coaches players ranging from club improvers to national champions.

Grounds & Facilities Team

Head of Grounds

Will Rigg

will@iltsc.co.uk

Will joined the team as an Assistant Groundsman in 2015 and then, after having a brief year away from the club, he came back as the Head Groundsman in Spring 2022.

Will has always watched or played sports from a young age, mainly rugby union where he played all of his career for Otley XV. He has a keen interest in what it takes to prepare and maintain sports turf, especially grass surfaces, in a range of sports. He is currently undertaking a number of courses to improve and develop his knowledge and qualifications in this area.

Will also maintains and improves the surrounding grounds here at ILTSC, whilst also looking after the indoor tennis and squash courts and the outdoor all-weather courts.

Head of Facilities

James Smith

james@iltsc.co.uk

James has qualifications in construction and building having worked in the building industry for a number of years before he decided to expand his knowledge into Facilities Management. For the past 9 years he has specialised in the management of tennis facilities, in addition to his work as a swimming pool engineer.

James’ passions outside of work are caving, climbing, mountaineering and mountain biking.

He aspires to run and create a carbon neutral property which delivers the best customer experience and satisfaction.

grounds assistant

Peter Crowther

Pete has now been working here for nearly two years on the grounds team after a career including a wide variety of roles; farming, tree surgery and a head butcher. It is safe to say he has found his favourite role down here at ILTSC, mainly of its stunning location, colleagues and members. Pete takes real pride in maintaining our outdoor and indoor facilities, from cutting brilliant stripes into our grass courts to cleaning the squash courts.