Bede's Senior School | Sport

Our innovative Hockey programme, centred around the individual, offers pupils an unrivalled coaching provision across all three terms.

We pride ourselves on developing individuals to play hockey for life, be it at local club/university level, senior international players or anything in between.

We have current pupils representing their clubs, counties, performance centres and competing in the Futures Cup, with a handful of international representatives joined up to a school programme that enables them to thrive in all environments.

Bede’s is committed to offering both a Participation and Performance pathway, and first and foremost Hockey is encouraged as an activity which pupils can enjoy during their school years and beyond. We therefore ensure that all pupils who want to take part in the hockey programme can do so regardless of ability, and in the spirit of inclusivity offer playing opportunities during all three terms.

Our Hockey Programme is led by Theo Dowse, Jon Williams and Petch Lenham. All three have extensive hockey experience both playing and coaching. Theo Dowse is a former England U21 International Goalkeeper and alongside being Director of Hockey at Bede’s, Theo is currently the Performance Analyst & Goalkeeper Coach for the Wales Senior Women’s team.

Jon Williams is both a former international player and coach: who has has led successful hockey programmes in England, New Zealand and Portugal. Alongside his role at the school, Jon currently coaches at Brighton & Hove Hockey Club and the USA indoor team. Petch Lenham has previously played National League Hockey and has led our successful Prep School Hockey Programme and now combines this role with her Senior School coaching. Both Theo and Petch coach our club links teams at the weekend, offering integrated coaching for pupils who opt to compete for club and school.

Notable recent international athletes who who have come through the Bede’s Hockey Programme include Dilly Newton (England and Great Britain senior international), Theo Dowse (England U21 international), Alicia Caillard (England and Great Britain U21 international), Ryana Macdonald-Gay (England U18), Matilda Collins (Wales U16) and Elizabeth Morgan (Wales U16).

Performance Pathway

Our Performance Pathway is the jewel in our crown and offers an unrivalled experience for individual player development, tailored to the specific needs of our athletes.

Our extensive programme offers:

Academy Model for all year groups - timetabled Hockey lessons across all three terms
Up to 15 hours contact time per week
Access to a full two-term club season through our club partnerships
All school fixtures played between Monday and Friday, including entry into all local and national competitions (indoor and outdoor), as well as a summer league
International standard Goalkeeper specialist coaching
International standard video analysis for both individuals and teams
Hockey-specific strength and conditioning coaching
Staff currently working in international game with international playing experience
Free holiday tuition available on a one-to-one and small group basis is available for Bede’s pupils (including future pupils once their place has been confirmed)

We currently have multiple alumni with international representation and playing in the national league system. A number of our current pupils play at county, regional and national level.

Scholarships are available. Please contact our Admissions team to apply.

Participation Pathway

Our Participation Pathway provides pupils with an enjoyable hockey experience to encourage a life-long love of the sport, whilst learning and developing along the way.

Our extensive programme offers:

Access to team sessions with dedicated team staff
Matches against all local opposition on an international-standard facility
Opportunity to play recreationally across all three terms and access further hockey through our club links

Participation players are also offered the opportunity to access additional coaching and tuition alongside Performance players if this is of interest.

Training Programme

Bede’s Hockey players have the opportunity to train three times a week and in teams in all age ranges for matches.

We offer a highly competitive fixtures programme including entry to all major schools’ competitions with the additional opportunity to play indoor hockey competitions. A high percentage of players are involved in adult-level club hockey and numerous alumni are competing in the National League system.

Girls Hockey training takes place on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday during the Autumn and Spring Term (please note some sessions are invitation only or restricted by age), with training during the Summer Term on Monday for the Juniors and Tuesdays for Seniors. Where pupils are also involved in other sports such as Netball and Cricket, training for these teams may be prioritised during certain terms.

Boys Hockey training takes place on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday during the Spring Term with additional training for juniors on Monday Activities and Tuesday for senior players in the Summer Term. There is also training on Monday evenings in the Autumn Term as well as a Tuesday activity.

Training Hours

Girls	Boys
Autumn Term: Both Junior and Senior girls who represent the A team can train three times per week during Activities and girls who play for participation teams can train twice per week, also during Activities sessions.	Autumn Term: Throughout this term, there are 6 evening training sessions held on Monday evenings from 5-6.30pm.
Spring Term: There is an opportunity to train three activities per week in the 1xi or U15a sides as part of our Tier 1 National League programme. Girls can opt to train and play with their chosen club sides on weeknight evenings and Saturdays (subject to normal registration conditions).	Spring Term: 1^st XI Boys train during all three Activities sessions and players who represent other teams can train up to two times per week also during Activities.
Summer Term: Players of all abilities can train once a week.	Summer Term: Players of all abilities can train once a week.
Girls can also opt to train and play with club hockey teams.	Boys can also opt to train and play with club hockey teams.
Most school fixtures are held within the school day in mid-week sessions.	Most school fixtures are held within the school day in mid-week sessions.
A year-round academy for all years operates, offering three sessions of training over a fortnight.	A year-round academy for all years operates, offering three sessions of training over a fortnight.
There is weekly goalkeeper training in addition to the regular team programmes.	There is weekly goalkeeper training in addition to the regular team programmes.
The programme is supplemented with strength and conditioning training which is tailored for hockey players.	The programme is supplemented with strength and conditioning training which is tailored for hockey players.

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