Youth Sport Trust is pleased to announce the pilot of the I eXcel card in conjunction with British Gymnastics, British Diving and England Hockey. Each NGB has nominated eligible young people to register their details online and test out the new scheme. Once this pilot has been completed a decision will be made on extending the project to other sports.
This is a scheme to help high performers still at school excel in their sport and their study. It aims to improve the quality of support to elite athletes in the education sector, whilst raising the profile of the unique needs of these young people. It will also improve the communication and co-operation between the young person, parent/carer, schools, teachers and coaches, and assist National Governing Bodies of Sport in managing sporting excellence in relation to their academic pathway.
Click here to see a list of athletes currently on the I eXcel Card scheme.
What is the I eXcel Card?
It is a personalised credit card sized card that shows the young persons name, sport, age and the period of card validity, one year. It will be accompanied by supporting guidance notes targeted at the young person and their parents/carers, their school/college, teachers/mentors and their coach from the National Governing Body of Sport.
The card will be valid for one year and renewed annually, subject to the young person being nominated by the National Governing Body (NGB).
Key Objectives of the Scheme
- Recognise to the school that the athlete is not just gifted and talented but on the World Class Pathway or equivalent. The athlete needs to be of a high standard or have high potential.
- Improve the communication between young person, school/college, family and coach/NGB
- The supporting guidance documents will identify the type of support and co-ordination that the young person requires to fulfil their academic and sporting potential
- Enable schools/colleges to effectively plan the support to the young person. This will be particularly important in the transition between the key transition stages and schools/colleges
- Encourage the schools/colleges to provide enhanced and comprehensive mentoring support to the young person.
- Provide access to a help line that will give detailed advice on specific questions related to the young athletes involvement in education
- Enable the schools/colleges and the relevant NGB to work closely together to plan in advance for particular pressure points such as examination/competition clashes
Who will receive the Elite Athlete Education Card?
It will be available to:
- Young people who are in education up to Key Stage 5 or the equivalent
- Young people identified by the relevant National Governing Body of sport, who are on the World Class pathway or equivalent for non World-Class funded sports
The following summary table outlines the age of your athletes and key stage at school:
|
Age |
School Year |
Key Stage (exam) |
|
11 |
6 |
2 (SAT) |
|
12 |
7 |
3 |
|
13 |
8 |
3 |
|
14 |
9 |
3 (SAT) |
|
15 |
10 |
4 (GCSEs) |
|
16 |
11 |
4 (GCSEs) |
|
17 |
12 |
5 (AS Levels) |
|
18 |
13 |
5 (A2 Levels) |
Application
We are currently trialling the scheme with three governing bodies of sport for this academic year, hockey, gymnastics and diving. The scheme is aimed at athletes who are targeted by their governing bodies as potential for Olympic, paralympic or world level success, and therefore may need extra support from their schools to train and compete.
Next academic year 2008/09 other sports will be introduced onto the scheme. If you are from a national governing body and would like to be involved please email IeXcel@youthsporttrust.org. Please note nominations must come from a national governing body of sport.