Following a review of the proposed Regional Academy Programme, and an extensive review with Focus clubs, basketballscotland are pleased to announce that the programme will go ahead during the 2018-19 season.
We know it has been quite some time since the original announcement about this, so we wanted to let you know how this will look.
Who’s the Regional Academy for?
The Regional Academies will be targeted at our U14 age group (players born in 2005 or later) with around 300 players across Scotland taking part in the new programme.
What’s the curriculum going to look like?
There will be a new National Curriculum led and delivered by Performance staff with more details being rolled out at our brand new Coaching Summit on August 26th 2018, at Oriam.
Where will the Regional Academies be based?
We have established 8 Regional Academy Partnerships (RAPs) that will play host to the programme in the following areas:
- Ayrshire
- Central
- Edinburgh
- Glasgow East
- Glasgow West
- Grampian
- Highland
- Tayside and Fife
Who’s going to deliver the Regional Academies?
8 Regional Academy Leads will be recruited and appointed by basketballscotland. There will also be a Head Coach for each of the Boys and Girls programmes.
Where and when will training sessions take place?
Each RAP will have the opportunity to decide where and when training sessions occur. This planning process will be supported by basketballscotland to ensure that there is a bespoke approach that works within each region.
There will be 2 coaching periods. Phase 1 will take place between September and December with Phase 2 taking place between January and April.
There will also be 2 event days for all Regional Academies. These will take place in December and April with a focus on athlete testing, 1v1, 3v3 and scoring.
We want to develop more coaches
All clubs who nominate players for the upcoming Regional Academy programme must provide a coach at all Regional Academy sessions. If a club has a Head Coach involved in the Regional Academy, they must also send another coach to learn and develop.
Joining the athlete journey
Coaches and parents play a crucial part in the journey of our athletes and we will be providing more support for both groups during the season. Online webinars will be rolled out with a focus on how to support player development on and off the court.
