Football, Tennis and Golf Academies
Elite Academy, an education and sport academy based in Liverpool, are offering young players aged 16-18 the opportunity to combine their education with gaining the skills and qualifications needed to become a professional tennis coach.
They are taught a two year Level 3 Extended Diploma in Sport (Performance and Excellence) and a Level 3 Subsidiary Diploma in Enterprise and Entrepreneurship. From September 2015 A-Levels will also be offered. Upon completion of these qualifications players can apply to university in the UK, colleges in America or move into a career in tennis coaching.
The goal of the academy is to create a pathway for young people who want a career in coaching. They take part in academic study in the morning and in the afternoon they train at David Lloyd Speke where they are taught how to become successful coaches in the future. They have the opportunity to improve their own playing standard but the main emphasis is on developing their coaching skills.
Throughout the duration of the course players are put through their Level 1 and 2 coaching qualifications. Alongside this, many of the units they cover in the Extended Diploma such as Sports Coaching, Sports Development, Sports Nutrition, Psychology for Sport and Sport as a Business prepare them for a career as a tennis coach once they achieve the qualification. Players on the academy are part of the junior coaching team at David Lloyd Speke where they get to develop their coaching skills and gain valuable work experience on the club mini tennis programme.
The academy is already up and running this year, with the first set of students currently studying for their Level 3 Diploma and coaching qualifications. From next year students will have access to brand new classrooms complete with an IT suite, interactive whiteboards and video analysis.
Any players who are interested in finding out more about the academy can attend an Open Evening at David Lloyd Speke on Tuesday 17th March at 6pm. Alternatively they can contact Paul Freeman on 0782 185 4518 or complete an expression of interest form on the Elite website: eliteschools.co.uk.