We begin Youth Development Week by getting an insight into the education of our Academy prospects.
This week offers a chance to reflect on the positive work and progress being made, as we are joined by Head of Education, Olivia Linton and Academy Teacher, Andy Price.
“The boys have been brilliant again this year,” Olivia began. “We have thrown new experiences at them and they have grasped them all. We have taken them out of their comfort zones and provided them with challenges.
“Academically, they are doing very well. We have had more boys studying A-Levels than ever before, which is very positive for us and the players.”
Andy added: “We reflect very positively. The engagement of the First Year Scholars in my case has been very good, both in the classroom and the things they have done outside of that; they have learned from those experiences.
“We believe that the quality of the boys is very high in terms of their academic standards and they are motivated in that area to do very well.”
As well as performing on the field, many of our young talents are making great strides in gaining qualifications, ranging from BTECs and A Levels.
Olivia continued: “In the group of First Year Scholars, we have Olly Reynolds who will do the extended diploma on his BTEC and he is also doing an A Level in Psychology. He attends Cardiff and Vale College twice a week to do that outside of his training schedule.
“Jacob Hobson is also doing an additional BTEC, the equivalent of one A Level in Business Studies. He’s doing very well in that. From the Second Years, we’ve had Dakarai Mafico and Ronan Kpakio do AS Levels in Mathematics, which went well for both of them.”
The development of our Academy players has a values-driven approach, with keen attention provided to the importance of studies off the field.
“Education is something that is driven from the top-down here,” Olivia told us. “Academy Manager Gavin Chesterfield and U18 head coach Tom Hutton are always very attentive when it comes to the players’ education. We’re in constant communication to make sure that players are doing their work alongside their training schedules.
“We have a lot of players who represent Wales at age-grade level, so we ensure that work is provided for them when they’re on camp. It’s massively important to give the players the best experience we can provide.”
Andy added: “The players really understand the importance of education and that it is crucial going forward that they gain as many qualifications as possible. The understanding is definitely there and the players are putting in that effort to develop accordingly.”