Performance Pathway Transition
There is some confusion concerning the future of the Performance Pathway and here we will aim to clarify the structure.
As you may be aware, the Regional Academy no longer exists. Players within Regional Academy and Regional Performance Academy have moved into the U17/U19 National Superleague and National Performance League environments.
England Netball also recently carried out a review of County Academy structures with an independent company conducting assessments of a number of County and Satellite Academy structures. Following the review, England Netball concluded that the continuation of the County & Satellite programs is a critical component of the netball pathway and effectively prepares our young netballers. However, the pathway will have new age groupings of U15 and U13 Academies with the Superleague Franchises providing Academy opportunities at U17 and U19 level.
There is a transition period until the new pathway begins in 2019/2020 but many of the London and South East County Netball Associations are adopting the new age groupings from September 2018 instead of September 2019 to ensure they are fully aligned to the new structure by 2019/2020.
By the 2019/2020 season the new Performance structure will look like this:
Principles of the pathway change are:
- Superleague/National Performance League clubs should not be delivering activity for U15 age groups and below.
- To achieve England Netball’s vision of having the world’s most successful Performance Pathway.
- To produce World Class players, who strive for excellence and live & breathe a ‘Netball First’ culture.
- A greater alignment between the pathway and talent development.
- Well-being and limiting travelling distances for U13 and U15 athletes.
U13 Academies
The U13 Academy (previously Satellite Academies) is the first step on the England Pathway. County Netball Associations manage and deliver U13 Academies on behalf of England Netball, delivering about 15 sessions per year.
Qualified and experienced Level 2 coaches should deliver the training programmes set by England Netball. The emphasis in the U13 Academy is for young netballers to learn how to train on their own, and to understand, experience and practice some of the different components required in a training programme.
Essex Met Academies
Kent Academies
Middlesex Academies
Surrey Academies
U15 Academies
County Netball Associations manage and deliver the U15 Academies (previously County Academies) on behalf of England Netball, delivering between 15-30 sessions per year.
Qualified and experienced Level 2 coaches should deliver the training programmes set by England Netball, providing athletes with the support and skill set they need to progress to the next level of the pathway, U17 Academies.
Essex Met Academies
Kent Academies
Middlesex Academies
Surrey Academies
U17s
Netball Superleague and Yorkshire U17 Academies, are located across the country within the Netball Superleague clubs and Yorkshire Netball Performance League team.
They provide a training and competitive environment for the athletes. Some athletes from this group will also be in the National Academy group.
U19s
Netball Superleague and Yorkshire U19 Academies, are located across the country within the Netball Superleague clubs and Yorkshire Netball Performance League team.
They provide a training and competitive environment for the athletes. Some athletes from this group will also be in the National Academy group.
Roses National Academy
The National Academy operates via centralised and weekend camps, bringing together the best U17 and U19 players in England for extra coaching and training.
It also provides athletes with an opportunity to access similar support services that are available to senior athletes, e.g. individualised strength and conditioning programmes, on-site physiotherapy, performance lifestyle and medical services.
Prior to tours and Netball Europe, U19 and U17 squads will be selected from the National Academy.