Falkirk Community Trust (FCT) have been successful in receiving £33,900 worth of funding from the Young Start Lottery fund to develop a brand new Sports Coach Academy programme for high-school children across Falkirk. Forty-five school pupils from all eight secondary schools across Falkirk have already taken part in a three-day training program as part of the initial roll out.
The 45 new Academy Coaches were put through their paces during an extensive three-day training course during the October holidays, whilst many of their classmates were enjoying the break. The Academy Coaches undertook the following courses: Emergency First Aid, Child Protection, sportscotland Multiskills Coach Workshop and Positive Coaching Scotland Workshop.
Once the pupils are trained and qualified in their chosen sports, they will be coaching and developing sport in local primary and secondary schools as well as linking into many community clubs across Falkirk.
Coach Academy
The FCT Coach Academy programme aims to deliver a pupil-led Coach Academy across the whole of Falkirk Council, providing a pathway for nearly 300 pupils aged between 14 to 24 to develop key skills, experiences and qualifications to lead and deliver quality physical activity opportunities in their schools and wider community.
The FCT Coach Academy will create a two-tier pathway for young people to develop into confident, experienced and qualified community coaches as Tier 1 Sports Academy Coaches and Tier 2 Sports Academy Apprentices.
Cameron Reid, Active Schools Manager in Falkirk said:
“This is a fantastic opportunity for all of our new Academy Coaches; they will gain valuable qualifications whilst having a tremendous impact on school and community sport across Falkirk.
"The Young Start funding has given us the opportunity to reward these dedicated and hard-working pupils with valuable real-life qualifications and I can’t wait to see the impact this programme will deliver to sport in Falkirk.”
More sports academy coaches
The Trust aims to recruit 96 Sports Academy Coaches across Falkirk (12 per High School over two years) and these pupils will actively lead sports sessions within schools and the local community. The Sports Academy Coaches involved will receive the following training:
- UKCC qualification of their choice
- First-aid training
- Child protection
- Positive Coaching Scotland
- 3-hour sportscotland multi-skill sports coaching award
- 3-day team-building and launch event, including lunch and away day
More apprentice coaches
The Trust aims to recruit 200 Academy Apprentice Coaches across Falkirk (25 per High School over two years) and these pupils will support sports sessions within schools and the local community. Academy Apprentice Coaches will receive the following training:
- Sports Leader UK Level 1 qualification
- Online first-aid course
- Coach Academy t-shirt
The programme has been made possible through a successful bid to the Young Start Lottery Fund, which is set up to give young people greater opportunities in life and to better prepare them for college, university and further employment.
Find out more
Check out the Active Schools section of the sportscotland website.
