27th October 2022
Coach Core apprenticeship programme celebrates success with the Prince and Princess of Wales visit
A programme which runs apprenticeships for young people in the sport and physical activity industry celebrated its ten year anniversary this month.
To mark the occasion Prince William, Prince of Wales, and Catherine, Princess of Wales, attended the Coach Core event at the Copper Box Arena in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London and joined in with some of the taster sessions.
Active Sussex is a keen supporter of the Coach Core apprenticeship programme and is currently signing up more Sussex partners to help support the 2023 programme.
Nick Chellel, from Active Sussex, attended the celebration and said: “It was a fantastic and inspiring event that celebrated the impact Coach Core has had over the last ten years on lives and communities.
“The highlight for me was hearing the inspirational stories from current/graduate apprentices about how Coach Core had transformed their lives and enabled them to fulfil their potential, despite the significant barriers they have faced in their lives.
“Young people need this support now more than ever and I hope we can bring another Coach Core programme to Sussex in 2023, to help the young people that need it the most.
“Huge credit must go to the small, but fantastic, Coach Core team who work incredibly hard, as well as all the organisations and young people that make Coach Core so great. Here’s to another ten years.”
Aaron Bishop, is a Defiant Sports apprentice in Sussex. He said:
“It was an honour to be given the opportunity to not just attend the event but to run one of the stations while representing Defiant Sports.
“It was also an amazing opportunity to meet lots of new people, even some celebrities and Olympians.
“All in all it was an amazing event and I am proud that I was able to be part of it and give the opportunity to show off my coaching skills.”
Sussex apprentice Aaron coaching two people at the event
The Coach Core apprenticeship scheme offers the chance for Sussex partners to provide a young person the life changing opportunity of entering employment and education within our sector.
For more information about the first Coach Core programme in Sussex, please click here.
The Royal Foundation launched the Coach Core programme in 2012, in response to the London Riots and to contribute to the legacy ideals of the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Since then, the, now independent, charity has supported over 750 disadvantaged young people onto community sports coaching apprenticeships, which will enable them to start meaningful careers, re-engage with education and increase physical activity levels in their local areas.
A spokesperson from Coach Core said: “We are so proud of the 750 apprentices we’ve supported so far, not least because they have impacted over 8 million other people over the last decade through the community coaching they have enabled.
“We now want to help even more young people over the next decade and we’d love your support with that please!”
Coach Core CEO Gary Laybourne said: “As a coach since the age of 17, growing up in tough communities where sport is your main escape, I know first-hand the hugely positive effects of sport and mentorship on influencing a young person’s life.
“I’ve had the privilege of launching and shaping Coach Core from the outset and I couldn’t be prouder of the young people who have come through our programmes and gone on to make a difference in the next generation’s lives.
“Thanks to Their Royal Highnesses, in 2012 we were given this unique opportunity to grow a single project in London, shaped by community coaches ‘on the ground’, and then scale it to meet the needs of young people and employers locally in multiple sites across the UK.
“Observing the charity’s continual growth over the last ten years has been humbling and we have been able to make a lasting impact on so many young lives as well as nearly 200 sport-for-good employers too.
“But there is much more to work for us to do, and we are committed to providing even more accessible, life-changing opportunities through apprenticeships and sport.”
Application Forms for both the Level 2 and Level 3 qualifications can be found below. If you are interested in being involved in the next Coach Core Sussex cohort, please complete the relevant form (s) below by Friday, November 25. We will then review all applications and get back in touch with next steps.
Level 2
New Employer Application Form- Level 2 Community Activator Coach (office.com)
Returning Employer Application Form- Level 2 Community Activator Coach (office.com)
Level 3
Employer Application- Level 3 Community Sport and Health Officer
