James Whitman
LTA Level 5 coach with 18 years of experience across club and academy programs.
A member-run tennis club on the South Bank.
Founded in 1932 by a small group of local players, Riverside has been a quiet fixture of south-west London ever since — four courts, four generations, one clubhouse.
Our history
Ninety-four years
of tennis by the river.
Riverside was founded in 1932 on a strip of land donated to the Borough by a local member who, the story goes, simply wanted somewhere closer to home to play. The first courts were grass. The first clubhouse was a converted boatshed.
Since then we've grown — slowly, deliberately — into a club of around 380 members, with a coaching team, a junior pathway and a fixture list that takes us across south-west London every weekend in the season.
What hasn't changed: every decision is taken by the members. We're run by a committee, we're owned by no one, and we open the gates to the public for an Open Day every May.
Facilities
What you'll find here.
Four hard courts
Two recently resurfaced acrylic courts and two all-weather macadam — floodlit and playable year-round.
Practice wall
A full-height practice wall behind court 4 with measured baseline markings — perfect for solo work.
Clubhouse & terrace
Changing rooms, a small bar, a pro shop and a riverside terrace looking out across the Thames.
Coaching pavilion
Dedicated home for our coaching team, with ball machines, video review and a full kit of practice tools.
The team
Who runs the club.
Priya Shah
Runs the junior pathway from Mini Reds through to County squads. LTA Level 4 and a former Surrey junior champion.
Rob Kessler
Chair of the members’ committee. A familiar face on Saturday morning men’s doubles for the past decade.
Why choose
Riverside.
Membership rates- Member-run since 1932 — no shareholders, no corporate interests
- One of the strongest junior pathways in south-west London
- Honest pricing, with no joining fee through 2026
- A welcoming clubhouse culture, not a quiet one