Monday 21 09 2020
UWS has announced a new partnership with the Scottish Volleyball Association to provide students industry-relevant coaching and development experience.
The partnership, which will initially take place at the University’s Ayr campus within the BA (Hons) Sports Coaching & Development programme, will provide students with an insight into the workings of a national governing body in sport, and provide real and relevant industry work experience.
Scottish Volleyball Association staff will work closely with the students across a range of modules, giving them the opportunity to progress along the coaching pathway. As well as a host of coaching qualifications, students will also have access to work experience in community club and national team coaching settings. Teaching staff at UWS will also work with Scottish Volleyball Development Officers to provide continuous professional development opportunities for coaches and volunteers.
Commenting on the new partnership is Professor Chris Easton, head of the division of Sport and Exercise at UWS. He said: “We are thrilled to announce our new partnership with the Scottish Volleyball Association and look forward to the fantastic opportunities this will present to our Sports Coaching and Development students. It will be great to work alongside the team at SVA to provide UWS students with first-hand experience in working with a professional sports body and they will gain industry insights in coaching and development, from grassroots right through to elite level.”
Following its first year at Ayr, opportunities to work with the Scottish Volleyball Association will be rolled out to other UWS campuses, such as Lanarkshire, which is home to some of the country’s most advanced sports and exercise equipment. This includes a state-of-the-art environmental chamber, which replicates environmental extremes and can be used by athletes to improve physical performance ahead of important sporting events.
UWS has longstanding experience in working with elite sports organisations. The latest partnership with the Scottish Volleyball Association comes after the University announced in July that it had become Celtic Football Club’s official sports science partner for its Youth Academy.
I am delighted to announce UWS’s partnership with the Scottish Volleyball Association. It marks another partnership between the University and an important Scottish sports organisation in the last few months. The impact and importance of sport and exercise cannot be underestimated and it is something we promote widely at UWS, not only via our first-class research, but also in our student experience. It is fantastic to see the unique opportunities the partnership will provide to our students.
Professor Craig Mahoney, Principal & Vice-Chancellor of UWS and Chair of British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS)
Scottish Volleyball CEO, Margaret Ann Fleming MBE, said: “This really is a very exciting partnership that will clearly benefit the University and the Scottish Volleyball community. I am absolutely delighted, on behalf of the Board and staff of Scottish Volleyball, to be able to announce this partnership today, and look forward to getting to work on the key aims as soon as possible.”
In celebration of the launch of the partnership, staff from both the Scottish Volleyball Association and University of the West of Scotland will be taking part in a special Scottish Volleyball TV live tonight (Monday 21 September 2020) on YouTube and Facebook at 7pm.