Volleyball England has published useful FAQ following to Tuesday’s announcement. Please read all here .
As you can know, the Junior session at Kendrick will be running as normal on Mondays from 7:30 pm and the adult indoor training is suspended for the moment.
From Thursday, 24th September, organised indoor sport for over 18s will no longer be exempt from the Government’s rule of six.
The new ruling, introduced to adult indoor sport as part of a string of new measures to address the rising number of Covid-19 cases, means that indoor volleyball cannot be played by a group of more than six adults in England.
All organised indoor volleyball activities for children will continue to be exempt from the rule of six. Beach and outdoor volleyball played under Volleyball England’s Government-approved guidance can continue.
Further details and clarification are being sought on what these changes mean for indoor sport for those under and over the age of 18.
In an address to Parliament, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said these new measures could last up to six months.
Sue Storey, CEO of Volleyball England, said: “Today is National Fitness Day. How ironic that it is also the day we confirm the gut-wrenching news that adult indoor volleyball as we know it may not take place until March.
“The last few months have been incredibly challenging for everyone connected to volleyball. Now, at a time when we are developing plans to grow the sport, we are faced with another barrier to playing the game we love, and that barrier may be around until the end of the season.
“Alongside other indoor sports, volleyball makes a huge contribution to the lives of individuals, to the economy and to society.
“It creates social bonds between people of different ages, cultures and backgrounds. It keeps us fit and happy as we dart around the court to dig, block, and pancake the ball. And there are improved health and benefits to the individual and wider society through volunteering. All of this will continue to be lost in the months ahead.
“Volleyball England will follow these new rules to the letter and ensure the community adheres to them too. It will also campaign for common sense to prevail.
“Why have indoor sports not been granted the same opportunity as pubs and restaurants to introduce tighter measures to make our environments even safer? We followed a meticulous process to allow organised volleyball to safely return in July and we are eager to devise plans that would make indoor volleyball even safer, if required.
“Let us summon that spirit of togetherness that the Prime Minister spoke of to work on bringing indoor sport and all of the health, social and economic benefits that come with it to return.”
The restrictions on indoor sport for adults were announced a day after Volleyball England joined with more than 100 sport and physical activity bodies to send a letter to the Prime Minister urging him to ringfence funding for the recovery of the sector – or risk fuelling physical inactivity and related illnesses for a generation.
It is critical that everybody observes the following key behaviours:
Wash your hands regularly and for at least 20 seconds.
Cover your face in enclosed spaces, especially where social distancing may be difficult and where you will come into contact with people you do not normally meet.
Stay two metres apart where possible, or one metre with extra precautions in place.
We are pleased to announce that we are starting our Outdoor volleyball on Tuesday 25th August at 6 pm held at Prospect Park in Reading. It’s currently only open for members.
Actions plans for each discipline were submitted to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport in the last fortnight and on 27th July, the long-awaited return of volleyball was confirmed.
With immediate effect, volleyball activity (6v6 indoor volleyball, 2v2 beach volleyball and 6v6 outdoor volleyball) can now take place as long as the necessary modifications and safety measures are in place to mitigate the transmission risk of the coronavirus.
Behind the scenes, the Hub team and our Return to Volleyball Working Group volunteers have been working hard to prepare detailed guidance to allow the sport to return. Crucially, competitions should only resume once the necessary risk assessments and safety plans are in place and when organisers are confident that Government, venue and Volleyball England advice can be followed.
Sue Storey, Chief Executive of Volleyball England, said: “We are extremely happy to announce the Government has confirmed that our plans are in line with their guidance. This means we have been given the green light to get back on the sand, the grass and the court and play our sport again, both in training and competitively. We are still working hard on our plans for the return of sitting volleyball and hope to to have some positive news to share soon.
“This is a big day and a huge step forward on the road to the full resumption of volleyball. I would like to say a huge thank you to all of those people, most of them volunteers, that have worked so hard and given up countless hours to get us to this stage.
“I wish everyone good luck as they take to the sand, the grass and the courts around the country in the coming weeks – have lots of fun, stay safe but please stick to our guidance.
“We will continue to work hard to help everyone in the volleyball community adapt to this new way of operating, so please keep talking to us.”
Plans are currently being developed for the return of indoor sitting volleyball.
Volleyball England is planning to hold a webinar on Thursday, 6th August at 6.30pm to talk through these plans in more detail and answer any questions. Details of how to join will be published soon.
I don’t know about the rest of you but I am getting severe withdrawal symptoms from Volleyball training and whilst we can’t actually train there is no reason why we can’t get together, if only online.
What I am proposing is a quiz, on Tuesday starting on the 21st April from 19:30. Exact details are to be sorted out, but it will be run by me.
We will try to run it on Zoom, once I have sorted out how to use it myself, and I will send out details closer to the time.
If you want to get involved then please contact me :
As previously communicated, in light of government advice and with the closure of sports halls and schools, Reading Aces Volleyball club has been forced to stop all training with immediate effect. At this moment we are unsure when training will restart but we will keep you posted. Details will be on the club website at https://readingaces.wordpress.com/ or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/10847690724/.
Note that National Volleyball League and Berkshire Volleyball League have also made the same decision, so matches will were cancelled until further notice.
Those of you who are paying by standing order, please arrange for the payment to stop after the March payment. Anyone who has already paid beyond that point will have credit once training restarts. Anyone who still owes us up to the current March, then please arrange for payment at your earliest convenience; details can be found here: https://readingaces.wordpress.com/membership/fees-2017-18/
If you have any queries then please contact one of the following committee members:
Volleyball England has come to the difficult decision to cancel all Volleyball England camps and competitions up until Wednesday, 20 May 2020. The termination of these activities will commence from 9am on Tuesday, 17 March. This will impact all upcoming games and events.
Read more here. Following this announcement the Berkshire Volleyball Association also has decided to suspend all upcoming games.
As a result of this and following the government’s advice, we regret to say that Reading Aces is also suspending the training sessions in all locations until further notice. We might introduce outdoor sessions in May but this is to be decided.
Stay safe and healthy and thank you for your support!
The Loddon Valley Leisure Centre has fixed the floor so we are now resuming the trainings at our normal time from 7:30 pm – that’s both BVA and NVL teams.
It will be a perfect reception!
Good dive, Vanda
Guernsey champions
Up in the air
Come on, Reading Aces!
Chris is celebrating
NVL Div 1 team
Anastasia is hitting
Hooray we won!
Soussy and Mirjam block a hit
Last point of the season 2011/12
Thank you for always being at our home games!
Reading Aces Volleyball Club is having fun in the sun
Winning team in Bath
Marcela is hitting
Anastasia Antipina & Marcela Bletzer from NVL Div 1 ladies team took third place in Brighton!
Vicky hitting
Winning couple in Sandbanks, Vanda & Anastasia
