Sheffield Hallam received some great news recently, as it was announced they had been chosen by Volleyball England to be one of the five universities selected to take part in the Senior Academy Programme.
Volleyball England are the governing body for volleyball in England and their website describes the Senior Academy Programme as “a fantastic opportunity for young volleyball athletes to train and develop in a performance environment whilst studying at university in England”.
The four other universities selected are Bournemouth University, Northumbria University, University of East London and University of Essex. These universities, as well as Hallam, are all Sport England TASS (Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme) accredited centres and therefore offer students a top class training environment which includes coaching, facilities and support alongside their academic activities.
These new Senior Academies are an extension of the existing England Talent Pathway and hopes are that these new opportunities will help athletes go on to represent England at an international stage.
Frazer Johnson, Sport Development Manager at Hallam told SHUlife Sport:
‘Sheffield Hallam University are delighted to further our partnership with Volleyball England from the creation of the Senior Academy Programme. It will be of enormous benefit to the University in terms of the recruitment of talented student Volleyball Players and it is a great privilege for SHU to be given the responsibility of assisting with the development of some of the next generation of performance volleyball players in the country. In return SHU are committed towards supporting Volleyball England’s aim of creating a world class programme for Men & Women’ Volleyball in England. This is another tangible demonstration of the mutually beneficial and successful partnership between Sheffield Hallam University and Volleyball England.’
The men’s volleyball first’s have had a successful few years which culminated in them winning the BUCS Championships last season and Alex Jenkinson, Chairman of the volleyball team at Hallam, commented:
‘Sheffield Hallam being selected as an academy is great recognition for the work in the continued development of players that has been going on for quite a few years now. It just goes to show that the hard work and money put in to the programme by Sheffield Hallam and Keith Trenham has been noticed and this has been shown through the number of professional players that have been produced and even top level NVL players in England! Most of whom have been through or at least in contact with the Sheffield Hallam programme over the years.’
