Basketball England has produced Return To Play guidance to help the sport bounce back from the COVID-19 pandemic.
It comes as the Government starts to ease social distancing measures and has been compiled with the input of all departments at Basketball England, including the Sports Science and Medicine Team, led by Chief Medical Officer Dr Dane Vishnubala.
BE has consulted with members, clubs, stakeholders, other sports, higher education institutions, research sectors and Sport England in order to plot a phased, flexible way forward for the sport based on an agile response to the developing Government advice.
The guidance features levels from five down to zero, which align with Government’s social distancing rules. We have moved into Level Three, with Level Zero being a full return to unrestricted basketball in England, when that is possible.
Our Return To Play Guidance is built on five guiding principles:
Click the image below to access the Return To Play Guidance in full.
Our sport faces a number of challenges in resuming. There is significant physical contact within the game, meaning social distancing rules will affect the way we return to playing.
Most clubs hire facilities and will have to follow additional rules and procedures as venue operators re-open at different times under a variety of authorities.
Basketball also has a large proportion of players and coaches from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds. These communities are disproportionally affected by COVID-19 and we are taking the risk of returning to the sport seriously for all members.
Basketball England’s CEO Stewart Kellett said: “This document is the result of a lot of hard work and collaboration. We have produced a flexible, fluid plan for a staged return to play, even as things are continually evolving. There is COVID-19 research coming out each day and the Government plans will depend on many factors.
“Having reviewed the current research, we will update the guidance as things change and it is possible to move to a new level, while listening to feedback from within the game along the way.
“Our goal is to keep our basketball community safe as they take their first steps towards playing again.”
As we progress from one level to another, we will highlight key changes and provide support to our partners, leagues, clubs and members.
We have also hosted a series of live webinars to explain our reasoning and offer clubs and members the opportunity for discussion and to ask questions with regards to the guidance document. These can be rewatched using the links below.
Rewatch the webinar by clicking here
Rewatch the webinar by clicking here
Rewatch the webinar by clicking here
If you have any questions regarding the RTP guidance, please email [email protected].
We have also compiled some FAQs following questions we received during our initial consultation with a selection of clubs and stakeholders, these can be accessed using the button below.
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